Madrid, August 08, 2024, The Europe Today: Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has declared his intention to return to Spain, nearly seven years after organizing an illegal independence referendum in Catalonia. The 61-year-old politician has been residing in Belgium since the contentious vote in 2017.
“I have started the return trip from exile,” Puigdemont announced on his social media platform X. He expressed his intent to be present at the swearing-in ceremony of Catalonia’s new leader following the recent elections, in which his party secured a second-place finish.
Puigdemont’s return is likely to provoke fresh unrest in Catalonia, as he faces potential arrest upon arrival. His return coincides with the appointment of Socialist Salvador Illa as the new Catalan president, ending over a decade of separatist governance in the region.
The exact route Puigdemont will take to enter Spain and reach Catalonia’s regional parliament remains uncertain. Reports in Spain suggest that authorities are even monitoring the sewer system as a possible alternative entry route. Supporters of Puigdemont plan to gather near Barcelona’s regional parliament to welcome him, potentially setting the stage for a dramatic and public arrest.
Catalonia’s current ruling party, the moderate separatist Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, has announced its intention to participate in the welcoming event.
The situation also has implications for Spain’s national politics. Junts, Puigdemont’s hardline party, is currently in a coalition with Spain’s Socialist party. In May, Spain’s parliament approved a demand from Junts to cancel legal proceedings against hundreds of separatists. However, the Spanish Supreme Court has stated that this amnesty does not extend to embezzlement charges against Puigdemont and two other separatists, leaving the arrest warrants against them in force.
Puigdemont has criticized the arrest warrant as illegal and arbitrary, vowing to face the consequences of his return.
As the political landscape in Catalonia and Spain braces for the fallout from Puigdemont’s return, the region faces renewed tensions and uncertainty.
