The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) returned this Tuesday to grant parliamentary immunity to three Catalan pro-independence MEPs wanted by the Spanish justice system, including the former president of the Catalan government Carles Puigdemont.
In a provision released to the press, the Luxembourg-based court “suspends the execution of the decisions” issued in March 2021 by the European Parliament, when this body voted to lift the immunity of the three Catalan independence leaders wanted by the Spanish justice.
Vice President of the CJEU thus accepted the precautionary measures requested by the defense, which considered that the granting of immunity was “justified”given that his clients are at risk of being arrested, as happened with Puigdemont in Sardinia, Italy, last September.
Arrested in Italy the former president of the Generalitat Carles Puigdemont
Tuesday’s decision is a precautionary decision, pending another from the CJEU on the merits of the casethat is, the appeal filed by Carles Puigdemont, Toni Comín and Clara Ponsatí against Parliament’s decision to waive immunity requested by the Spanish Supreme Court.
On May 26 last year, the three pro-independence MEPs submitted a request for provisional measures for the preventive restoration of their immunity, which the EU General Court accepted in a first decision on June 2, 2021, but later revoked on June 30. of July. , considering that they were not in danger of being arrested.
Puigdemont, Comín and Ponsatí appealed this last decision before the CJEU, which this Tuesday ruled in their favor again, granting them provisional immunity.
Still there is no date for the CJEU to issue its decision on the two substantive issues that will mark the judicial future of Charles Puigdemont: the appeal against the decision of the European Parliament to suspend his immunity and the preliminary decision of the Spanish Supreme Court.
Based in Belgium since 2017 to escape charges from the Spanish justice system, Carles Puigdemont was arrested on September 23, 2021 upon arrival at Alghero airport, on the Mediterranean island of Sardinia, where he was going to participate in the Catalan cultural festival Adifolk.
The Catalan MEP was released the following day and allowed to leave Italian territory after being assured that he would return to Sardinia to attend an extradition hearing.
The Spanish Supreme Court, which had issued an international arrest warrant, accuses Puidgemont of the crimes of rebellion and embezzlement, among others, for his role in organizing the self-determination referendum in Catalonia, held on October 1, 2017 and considered illegal.
A fugitive since then, due to his leading role in the failed attempt at independence of the Spanish region of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont is still wanted by Spanish justicewho accuses him of “sedition” and “embezzlement of public funds.”
The pro-independence leader had already been arrested in Germany in March 2018, at the request of Spain, but was released a few days later when German courts dropped the charge of “rebellion”, which has since been reclassified as “sedition”.
Member of the European Parliament since 2019 for the independence party Together for Catalonia (JxCat), the politician managed to enjoy, for a time, parliamentary immunity, but the European hemicycle lifted it in March last year, by a large majority, a measure that was confirmed on July 30 of the same year by the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Source: Observadora
