That the European Parliament do the work that, in the words of ERC, Junts and the CUP, it does not seem that the Spanish authorities are willing to do regarding the spying with Pegasus on pro-independence parties. Let it “light up” the Catalangate. This was the main demand at yesterday’s meeting in Madrid of the three formations of the European mission investigating the use of this software in Spain.
To this consideration is added another that worries independence. As much as in May 2022 the same National Intelligence Center (CNI) recognized in Congress the spying on 18 independence activists, with first and last names, the deputies of ERC, Junts and the CUP had to face, during his appearance before the Pegasus commission of the European Parliament, to the doubts of the representative of the PSC, Òscar Aparicio, and of the PP, Juan Ignacio Zoido, that such espionage existed. They also questioned the validity of the report by the Canadian Citizen Lab and the impartiality of the organization, which discovered the intrusions in about sixty devices.
This fact was so surprising that even the speaker of the European and liberal mission, Sophie In ’t Veld, recalled that this report also contained espionage on personalities unrelated to independence.
In any case, the one-and-a-half-hour meeting between the European mission and the representatives of the Catalan Chamber took place at the headquarters of the European Parliament in Madrid. Among the first were ERC, Junts, CUP and En Comú Podem. The pro-independence parties asked the MEPs of the commission of inquiry to “shed light” on Catalangate, since, as they said, the Spanish authorities have no intention of clarifying the case.
In the same line, they demanded that he “take note of the boycott” of Moncloa, since in his opinion they have tried to prevent and dilute the European mission.
These requests have a basis, according to the pro-independence parties, because nothing has been left of the claim of the European Parliament’s investigation commission to meet with the president of the Spanish Government, ministers, judges of the Supreme Court or managers of the CNI. The visit coincided with Monday being a public holiday in Madrid and with today’s motion of censure presented by Vox, and pro-independence sees the intention of the central government to make these dates coincide with the mission.
In addition, they point out that the agenda for yesterday and today in Madrid is diluted. Only the Secretary of State for European Affairs, Pascual Navarro, or the Director of Security and Justice of the Ombudsman, Andrés Jiménez, will meet with the nine MEPs of the investigation commission. The rest of the meetings are with three journalists, members of the Parliament of Catalonia, three victims of Catalangate – Pere Aragonès, Meritxell Serret and Ernest Maragall –, the Congressional Defense Commission and three representatives of human rights associations.
For its part, the Spanish Government admits the low profile of its defendants, but justifies that the case is no longer political, because it is in the judicial sphere, in the National Court, after presenting a complaint Pedro Sánchez, Fernando Grande- Marlaska and Margarita Robles, also spied on with Israeli software.
Be that as it may, Vilalta, Rius and Vinyets were satisfied with the meeting with the European mission, and assure that they will not stop in their desire to denounce espionage. Together he announced that he will press during the presidency of Sánchez in the European Commission, from June.
