Junqueras celebrates the endorsement of the amnesty to "end the repression": "The political conflict has not disappeared"

BarcelonaThe Constitutional Court's decision this Tuesday was transcendental for the return of Carles Puigdemont, but also so that Oriol Junqueras can run in elections. That is to say, to lift the disqualification that still weighs on the ERC leader, but also on former ministers Jordi Turull, Dolors Bassa, and Raül Romeva, to whom the amnesty law had not been applied for the crime of embezzlement. "Carles Puigdemont must be able to return. Oriol Junqueras must be able to run in elections. All repressed people must recover all their rights," defended Junqueras in a statement from the party headquarters without questions. Junqueras, in this sense, celebrated the Constitutional Court's endorsement of the amnesty law, but also warned that this does not mean that the political conflict has "disappeared".

"The amnesty is not the end of the political conflict between Catalonia and the State. It is not because the deep reasons that led millions of Catalans to demand the power to decide the future of their country continue to exist," he stated. In this sense, Junqueras defended taking advantage of the opportunity to leave behind the judicialization of the conflict to return it to the field of politics. "Ending the repression was essential. Recovering politics is the next step," he added: "We have arrived here because we have done politics. And now we must do more of it".

Oriol Junqueras' goal is to run as an ERC candidate for the presidency of the Generalitat in the next Catalan elections. Therefore, the next step that the Supreme Court must take to lift his disqualification definitively is key. Esquerra trusts that it will be in the coming weeks when judge Manuel Marchena applies the Constitutional Court's ruling.

The ERC leader took advantage of his statement to vindicate ERC's negotiation strategy of recent years, especially when defending the "dejudicialization of the political conflict was criticized as a renunciation of the spirit of October 1st". In this sense, he thanked the work done by the party to negotiate with the Spanish state when he could not do so and directly cited the work of former ERC secretary general Marta Rovira –with whom he has not had a relationship for some time following the party crisis two years ago– and also of former deputy secretary Marta Vilaret; of the current president of ERC in Parliament, Josep Maria Jové; of the Congress deputy Pilar Vallugera, and of senator Joan Queralt.

Turull: "It is a great victory for the independence movement"

While awaiting the statement to be made this afternoon by Carles Puigdemont, the secretary general of Junts, Jordi Turull, has celebrated the decision of the Constitutional Court and emphasized that he even had to "control his emotions": "We are very happy". For this reason, he commented that "it is a great victory for the independence movement" and "a total amendment to the"a por ellos and all the repression". Turull has underlined that this Tuesday's resolution is "a great victory for President Puigdemont and the two exiles". Turull did not want to comment on Puigdemont's return, but has admitted that "it can help the party's self-esteem", reports Roger Palós.

For his part, the President of the Parliament, Josep Rull, has celebrated the endorsement of the amnesty as a "resounding victory" and has said that there must be a "feeling of gratitude" towards Puigdemont "for having preserved" the presidency of the Generalitat by avoiding prison. In statements to El matí de Catalunya Ràdio, Rull said that now it is necessary to see how the Supreme Court applies the TC's decision for the crimes of embezzlement.

For its part, the CUP has celebrated the Constitutional Court's decision and, in a post on X, has called to "re-center the goal of independence, rebuild popular independence, and walk firmly towards the liberation" of Catalonia. Òmnium, in turn, has urged the Supreme Court to apply the amnesty "without further delay" to "definitely close the cycle of repression," it said through social media.

The Comuns have also celebrated the decision. The party's leader in Parliament, Jéssica Albiach, has stressed that the Constitutional Court's decision makes it clear that "political conflicts must be resolved with politics, not in the courts" and, from X, has demanded that the Supreme Court abide by the ruling. On the other hand, the former mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, despite celebrating that the leader of Junts can return to Catalonia, has lashed out: "Carles Puigdemont will have trouble walking through Catalonia". "He will find a very angry citizenry because Junts has struck down two decrees that have left millions of people helpless, threatened by evictions and with rental contracts that were ending and will not be extended," she argued in an interview on La 2 and Ràdio 4.

Sánchez will not meet with Puigdemont

The Spanish president, Pedro Sánchez, will not receive Carles Puigdemont either. "We are in electoral times," he justified in a press conference, later adding that each candidate will have to defend their "legitimate" political options. The photo of a Sánchez-Puigdemont meeting has been pending since 2023, when the 'juntaires' sealed the investiture pact with the Spanish government. Nevertheless, Sánchez did celebrate the Constitutional Court's endorsement of the amnesty: "It was a political problem that we had to resolve through politics." He also recalled that his government promoted pardons, thinking of the "coexistence between Catalans" and the "cohesion of Spain." "I respect the Constitutional Court's resolution and I celebrate that with this we also help Catalan society to look forward, learn from mistakes, and continue advancing," he summarized, reports Núria Orriols Guiu.