On the eve of the long-awaited reunion between the two main reference points of Catalan pro-independence politics, the exiled Carles Puigdemont and the now-released prisoner Oriol Junqueras, the second referred to the encounter, in a media appearance at the doors of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. "We don't need any reconciliation. For my part, I assure you that there has always been complete will to understand each other," replied the 2017 Catalan vice-president when asked about his expectations for this Wednesday's meeting in Waterloo. “It is always a pleasure to have the opportunity to meet again,” he remarked.
Two weeks after recovering his freedom of movement through the pardon granted by the Pedro Sánchez government, Junqueras and the other prisoners from the Catalan Republican Left (ERC) - Raül Romeva, Carme Forcadell and Dolors Bassa - have crossed the border again. Last week they did so to pay their first visit in over three years to ERC secretary general Marta Rovira in Geneva. Today, it was a return to the European Parliament, taking advantage of the last plenary session before the holiday period. There they met with several MEPs from different parliamentary groups, from the political family of the European Free Alliance, of which ERC is a part. Junqueras's initial intention was for the reunion with Puigdemont to take place today in Strasbourg, but the leader of Junts did not plan to attend the plenary because he does not have to speak and will therefore follow the session electronically. Yes, Together for Catalonia (Junts) MEP Clara Ponsatí was present. The former education minister received Junqueras, Romeva, Bassa and Forcadell at the entrance to the Strasbourg headquarters.
Junqueras and the other ERC prisoners with Clara Ponsatí and members of the EFA group. / ACN
His European seat
At the gates of the EU building, Junqueras - who was elected as an MEP in the 2019 elections - announced that he has not abandoned the recovery of the seat he won two years ago. The Spanish Supreme Court denied him the option of leaving pre-trial prison to take up his seat in the European Parliament. However, in December that year, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that this step was not necessary, and MEP status is obtained at the time a candidate is elected, and it thus recognized the parliamentary immunity of the ERC leader. The Spanish judiciary, however, upheld its decision, alleging that since by that time his sentence was final, Junqueras was disqualified from holding public office. In January 2020, the president of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, declared Junqueras's seat vacant. His lawyers again turned to European justice, and the case is pending resolution. “We don’t give anything up as lost,” the Republican Left president noted.
Previously, both Junqueras and Romeva had served as MEPs, between 2009 and 2012 for the former and between 2004 and 2014 the latter. It is this status as former members of the European Parliament that has allowed them to re-enter the headquarters to contact the present MEPs. At ERC, they underline that the will is to continue to internationalize the Catalan issue and to demonstrate that the repression continues in spite of the pardons.
This evening, the group of ERC prisoners, led by Junqueras, will travel by car to Brussels, where they will spend the night. Tomorrow, they will travel to the official residence of Carles Puigdemont.
In the main image, Junqueras, Romeva, Serret, Forcadell and Bassa outside the European Parliament in Strasbourg. / ERC