The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) This Tuesday provisionally restored the parliamentary immunity of former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont and MEPs Toni Comín and Clara Ponsatí, according to a ruling to which AFP had access.
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In an order signed on the day, the vice president of the CJEU accepted the precautionary measures presented by the three MEPs and determined to “suspend the execution” of the decisions of the European Parliament, which in March 2021 had lifted their immunity.
As it is the acceptance of a precautionary measure, the parliamentary immunity of the three Catalan legislators is valid immediately, but the underlying case must still be dealt with by the full CJEU.
On Twitter, Puigdemont welcomed the ruling and noted that “today we have another positive result of this attitude, with which we decided to go into exile and stand up. We will continue to do so, no matter how much uncertainty there is and no matter how colossal the strength of the Spanish State is.”
Freedom is raining every day, every time. We had another positive result of this attitude, with which we are going to decide to go into exile and stand up. Ho will continue fent, for more uncertain than hi hagi and for more colossal that followed the força de l’Estat espanyol. #nosurrender
— krls.eth / Carles Puigdemont (@KRLS) May 24, 2022
For his part, one of the lawyers for the Catalan independence leader, Simon Bekaert, stated on Twitter that a “provisional victory was achieved in our legal proceedings against the decision of the European Parliament to suspend the parliamentary immunity” of the three MEPs.
Meanwhile, Comín stressed on Twitter that “in the EU, unlike Spain, there is justice.” Spanish justice accuses Puigdemont and Comín of sedition and embezzlementand Ponsatí only for sedition, for the attempted independence of Catalonia in 2017, and demands his extradition.
Protests against the European Parliament
The complicated legal case has already experienced several ups and downs, after the European Parliament in March last year revoked the parliamentary immunity of the three lawmakers.
In May, the three presented precautionary measures before the European justice, which were initially accepted but later denied by the General Court of the EU., considering that they were not at risk of being arrested. In his 37-page ruling, the vice president of the CJEU slipped the possibility that “prejudice” against the three Catalan MEPs had been verified in the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) of the European Parliament that recommended the lifting of immunity.
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The behavior of the rapporteur and the president of the JURI Commission (…) may, at first sight, show a taking of sides or an unfavorable personal prejudice” against Puigdemont, Comín and Ponsatí, the document pointed out.
The rapporteur on the issue of lifting immunity was far-right Bulgarian MEP Angel Dzhambazkiwho in February this year was involved in a spectacular controversy for apparently giving a Nazi salute in the plenary of parliament.
AFP
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