Spain Far From Tackling 'State Repression' In Catalonia Despite Planned Pardon - MEP

Spain Far From Tackling 'State Repression' in Catalonia Despite Planned Pardon - MEP

The Spanish government's planned pardon of nine jailed Catalan independence leaders is a positive for the incarcerated individuals and their families, but Madrid must do more to bring decades of "state repression" in Catalonia to an end, Clare Daly, an Irish member of the European Parliament, told Sputnik on Tuesday

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd June, 2021) The Spanish government's planned pardon of nine jailed Catalan independence leaders is a positive for the incarcerated individuals and their families, but Madrid must do more to bring decades of "state repression" in Catalonia to an end, Clare Daly, an Irish member of the European Parliament, told Sputnik on Tuesday.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez traveled to Barcelona on Monday ahead of the planned announcement to pardon nine leaders of Catalonia's 2017 independence movement.

Earlier on Tuesday, Sanchez told a press conference that the Spanish government had approved the pardon, saying that the decision came "from the need to reestablish coexistence," as quoted by the El Pais newspaper.

"This is positive news for the nine Catalan prisoners and their families, but it must be considered in context. Any pardon that prohibits them from holding office is still a form of repression. There are still thousands of prosecutions ongoing, and nothing has been done to address the position of the exiled Catalan leaders," Daly, who serves on the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, said.

The Irish member of European Parliament said that the announced pardon would have to be followed by further action from Madrid to address the "state repression" directed against Catalonia.

"Mr. Sanchez sadly has a long way to go to bring Spanish state repression in Catalonia to an end," Daly remarked.

In an October 2017 referendum, which Madrid called illegal, over 90% of voters supported Catalonia's independence. The Spanish government has refused to recognize the results of the vote.

Two years ago, the Spanish Supreme Court jailed nine leading Catalan separatists for sedition. Oriol Junqueras, ex-deputy head of Catalonia's regional government, and former foreign affairs chief Raul Romeva are among those who were incarcerated.

Quim Torra, the former president of the Catalonia region, was banned last year from holding office for 18 months for refusing to remove a banner in support of jailed pro-Catalan independence leaders.