Judge Plinia Azzena had stressed that the arrest was legal on the basis of a European arrest warrant issued by Spain, reported the ANSA news agency. The public prosecutor sees no need for detention.
Therefore, the judge ordered neither jail nor house arrest, the agency reported. But it still has to be clarified whether Puigdemont can be transferred to Spain. Until then, he is not allowed to leave the Mediterranean island. Spain has already failed several times in other EU countries with attempts to get the separatist politician to be transferred. He had fled to Brussels after his dismissal as a result of the illegal independence referendum in October 2017.
Puigdemont’s lawyer Gonzalo Boye reported that his client was doing well and had confidence in the independence of the Italian judiciary. On Friday, Sardinian separatists gathered in front of the Palace of Justice in Sassari to demonstrate against Puigdemont’s arrest. “Freedom for Catalonia’s political prisoners” read a banner. The demonstrators said they were “outraged” by Puigdemont’s arrest and spoke of serious violations of human rights and freedom of expression.
Hundreds of protesters also gathered in front of the Italian consulate in Barcelona. As reported by the Spanish media, they waved the Catalan flag and demanded the release of the Catalan separatist who actually lived in Belgium.
The case also caused a stir in Brussels. “We respect the independence of the Italian judiciary,” commented EU Commission spokesman Christian Wigand. The Catalan regional minister Toni Comn announced a protest against the arrest, which he describes as “illegal”.
Spain wants to try Puigdemont because of his role in a Catalan independence referendum. He is accused of having helped organize the 2017 vote, which the Spanish judiciary classified as illegal. Puigdemont recently lived in self-chosen exile in Belgium, which has always refused to extradite the Catalans.
According to his office, Puigdemont had traveled to Sardinia to visit an exhibition and to meet the regional president of the island. On arrival at the airport, he was arrested by the Italian border police, said his lawyer. The basis was a European arrest warrant issued in 2019, which was however suspended. The European Parliament lifted Puigdemont’s immunity as a member of the European Union in March. On the other hand, Boye now wants to appeal to the Court of the European Union (EGC).
The arrest is likely to weigh heavily on the recently resumed dialogues between the Spanish central government and the independence-striving regional government in Barcelona. Catalonia’s separatist head of government Pere Aragones criticized the arrest on Twitter as “illegal” and complained that the “repression is not decreasing”.
Aragones blamed the Spanish central government of socialist prime minister Pedro Sanchez for the arrest of his predecessor. “The amnesty is the only way” and “the right to self-determination is the only solution,” said Aragones on Thursday evening.
