The conservative Spanish People’s Party (EPP) announced on Tuesday (February 13) that its conservative leader Alberto Nuñez Feijo granted conditional pardons to several Catalan separatist leaders. It called for quelling the fallout caused by media reports that the country intended to grant
Last year, the ruling Socialist Party pardoned politicians from the pro-Catalan independence right-wing party “Together for Catalonia” (JxCat) and the left-wing Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC), who currently belong to the local government, using an amnesty law. It is controversial to do so. ).
The aim was to secure sufficient support for the government on the progressive platform Sumar.
Politicians from Catalonia’s secessionist party, including former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, had been charged with sedition over the unauthorized 2017 independence referendum.
Amnesty law sparked massive protests by right-wing groups in Spain especially angry Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
This time, it turned out that the PP leadership had briefly considered a pardon before refusing it, and Feijo was granted a pardon in Catalonia with several conditions: accountability to the judiciary, a referendum and abandonment of unilateralism. Spanish media reported that he may be in favor of granting amnesty to separatists.
Feijo did not deny these reports, but on Sunday insisted that the PP was opposed to the amnesty, stressing that the conditions for the amnesty had not yet been met.
“I said no, I said no and I will continue to say no to any kind of pardon (…) I have said this and I will continue to say no to any kind of pardon. I keep saying that because one of the conditions for a possible pardon has not been met,” Feijo said.
smear campaign
However, the fact that the PP met with the leadership of the pro-independence hardline Catalan party JxCat to consider an amnesty law, and that Mr. Feijó supported “reconciliation with the separatists,” This seems to contradict the position.
At several rallies protesting the amnesty law, Feijot said all those charged following the October 2017 independence referendum should be brought to court and serve their sentences.
of This contradiction is currently causing headaches for the PP leadership.Multiple party sources told EFE that this is because it would be difficult to justify to “core” voters.
Miguel Tellado, the PP’s parliamentary spokesperson, said Feiju’s position on amnesty had been taken out of context and that “there was a certain relationship between the PP and the Catalan independence movement at a time when the Catalan independence movement was taking place. There is an organized campaign by certain media outlets to show that “No such negotiations have taken place and are not currently taking place.”
Terrado also denounced his comments as a “smear campaign by the PSOE” and accused the far-right party Vox of “running a campaign to prevent the PP from succeeding.”
PP leaders from several regions, including the presidents of Andalusia, Madrid and Valencia regions, come Support FeijoHe pointed out that he had always refused pardons and pardons.
[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic]
