A second wave of pro-independence activists has taken up residence abroad due to the investigation by National Court judge Manuel García-Castellón against the Tsunami Democràtic platform for terrorism for its role in the protests against the 1-O ruling.
At least seven of the 12 investigated are currently residing outside Catalonia, and four of them have moved in recent months due to said investigation. ERC deputy Ruben Wagensberg, Òmnium activist Oleguer Serra, journalist Jesús Rodríguez and businessman Josep Campmajó now live in Switzerland, where the general secretary of ERC, Marta Rovira, already resides since 2018. After 1-O, Jaume Cabani went to Belgium, where until recently former president Carles Puigdemont was also, now in Vallespir for the 12-M campaign.
All of them are exposed to being tried and convicted of terrorism for their alleged links with Tsunami and the protests against the 1-O ruling in the fall of 2019. García Castellón is also investigating the head of Puigdemont’s office, Josep Lluís Alay (in Catalonia), the businessman Xavier Vendrell (between Catalonia and Colombia, he is an advisor to President Gustavo Petro), the ERC leader Marta Molina, the businessman Oriol Soler (also in Catalonia), and the Swiss banker Nicola Flavio Giulio Foglia.
In an interview on ACN, Benet Salellas, lawyer for Serra, Campmajó and Soler, denounces that, despite the Amnesty law, there is “a certain lack of control in certain spaces” of the Spanish judiciary that are “willing to go beyond what is what the law says” for “political” reasons. “Insecurity leads to decisions like exile,” he says.
Right now there are no arrest warrants against any of those investigated, although they are beginning to be summoned to testify. Just this week the National Court asked those investigated who are not certified to send it within one day the addresses where they live so that they can be summoned to testify. The case of Puigdemont and Wagensberg is in the Supreme Court due to their status as MEP and deputy, respectively.
Beyond the risk of entering prison, Salellas explains that the decision to go into exile is also a way to “denounce internationally that Spain uses terrorism to silence political dissidence”: “We will use all institutional means to explain to the world that “They are violating the fundamental rights of European citizens.” “Until today, the exile has shown that the decisions of European countries have gone against the Spanish authorities.”
“That people have to march is a logical consequence of the arbitrariness of the Spanish state against the political opposition,” adds Swiss lawyer Olivier Peter. The lawyer for Serra and other Catalan independentists believes that the Tsunami case “will demonstrate that even if there is a change of government in Spain, the repression of the independence movement continues by the de facto powers of the state.”
Salellas reveals to ACN that they decided to activate the device to go to Switzerland following the interlocutory of the AN judge Garcia-Castellón on November 6, 2023. “It showed that it was a cause that the judicial right would use to fight against the law of amnesty and that it would not follow the controls or rules of any ordinary judicial case. This raises the risk of deprivation of liberty and arrest warrants for many people,” he says. Given this concern, he chooses to “go into exile.”
Like Ruben Wagensberg, deputy and number 9 on the ERC lists at 12-M, Oleguer Serra, member of the Òmnium Board, also left Catalonia months ago, as he himself explained at an event yesterday at dusk in Perpignan, accompanied by the president of the cultural entity, Xavier Antich, and former president Jordi Cuixart.
The same decision was made at the end of 2023 by Jesús Rodríguez, La Directa journalist. His support group gave details at an event this Thursday in Sants, where Rodríguez himself spoke by videoconference. In turn, businessman Josep Campmajó will also explain that he has left Spain in an event that will take place at Girona City Hall this morning.
Facing this new stage, Salellas defends that “the cost has to be assumed by the independence movement.” “It cannot be that the people who have gone into exile have to assume the costs,” he remarks.
For his part, the La Directa journalist, Jesús Rodríguez, commented in an interview in El Món a Rac 1 that he is leaving “because the judge and the Civil Guard accuse me without telling me anything.” “It’s surprising,” he added. Rodríguez has questioned that he was charged once the negotiation of the amnesty law began when “for four years my name does not appear in the investigations or in the reports.” “A message with Alay serves to link me to the cause of the Tsunami,” the journalist explained.
Since 2019, the National Court has been pursuing the Tsunami Democràtic platform because it considers that its connection with the protests over the sentencing of the process could constitute an alleged crime of terrorism. Four years later, finally in November 2023, the investigating judge of the National Court Manuel García-Castellón agrees to direct the investigation into the actions of the Tsunami against Puigdemont, Rovira, Wagensberg, Josep Lluís Alay, Oriol Soler, Xavier Vendrell, Marta Molina, Josep Campmajó, Jesús Rodríguez, Jaume Cabani, Oleguer Serra and Nicola Flavio Giulio Foglia. The events could be classified in an indicative manner, the judge indicates, as terrorism.
The magistrate considers that the Tsunami was an organization that had the objective of “subverting the constitutional order, economically and politically destabilizing the State and seriously altering public order through massive social mobilization.” The Civil Guard reports on which García*Castellón relies attribute to Tsunami the blockade of critical State and European infrastructures such as the Barcelona-El Prat airport, the attempted blockade of the ENAIRE control tower of Barcelona in Gavà or the attempted blockade of the Madrid-Barajas airport, the general strike of October 18, 2019, the attempt to affect the general election process in November or the actions committed regarding the football match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in December.
The Swiss Federal Office of Justice questioned García-Castellón Rovira’s investigation on February 20. In response to the request for information, the organization requested more information in Spain “before verifying” whether the rogatory commission “has a political nature,” and recalled that this would prevent them from granting the requested assistance.
Meanwhile, he suspended the judge’s request, which asked to locate Rovira in Switzerland, as well as information about his banking movements. “We do not understand what purpose is pursued with this location,” the office noted in an excerpt of its response. The next day, García-Castellón reproached Switzerland for “political bias” and lack of collaboration in the ‘Tsunami case’.
Lawyer Olivier Peter assures that it is “the diplomatic way” of Switzerland to reject the request: “Perhaps Mr. García-Castellón does not understand it, but for the Swiss it is very clear.”
Six and a half years after former president Carles Puigdemont and a group of advisors traveled to Belgium for the cause of sedition and embezzlement (initially also rebellion) for the organization of October 1, the independence movement once again sends activists and politicians to foreigner to avoid potential arrests. This time, for a cause collateral to that of 1-O.
The MEP and now head of the Junts list for the 9-J European elections, Toni Comín, continues abroad; and deputy Lluís Puig (Junts). The former deputy Anna Gabriel (CUP), the counselor Meritxell Serret (ERC) and the MEP and head of the Alhora list, Clara Ponsatí, were able to return to Catalonia, despite the fact that the latter two still have an open case for disobedience in relation to 1-O. The activist Adrià Carrasco was also able to return from Belgium in 2021.
