The Government condemns the aggression against a minor for carrying an estelada

BarcelonaUntil this Tuesday, and because the press had asked him about it, the Government had not commented on the police aggression against a Catalan minor who was carrying a "estelada" flag last Sunday evening, prior to the match between Elche and Barça. "From the Government we condemn the use of this violence, in light of the images we have all seen, of the aggression against this young man," affirmed this Tuesday the spokesperson for the executive, Sílvia Paneque, at the press conference after the executive council. Thus, Salvador Illa's government has regretted this police action and has emphasized the need for it to be investigated.

The teenager was brutally beaten by National Police agents after the force carried out a massive, forceful confiscation of "estelada" flags. He was even detained and subsequently released, despite the clarity of the images that evidence the gratuitous violence he suffered, even when he was handcuffed. In this regard, Futbol Club Barcelona has offered to take legal charge of the case against the police action and has strongly condemned the events. The Catalan executive's silence until this Tuesday had not only contrasted with the Barça club, but also politically, as complaints had proliferated from all pro-independence parties and Comuns, in addition to the Barça fan groups. Critical of the Head of Government's attitude, former Catalan President Carles Puigdemont has once again attacked President Salvador Illa this Tuesday: "Why are you silent? Where are you hiding, 'government for everyone'? Your indifference to the criminal abuses of the Spanish police makes you unworthy," he stated.

Paneque was asked about this nearly two-day silence and evaded the question despite opposition criticism: "We hope that today's statements will give them more peace of mind," she said. At the same time, the spokesperson explained that "the Government, through the government delegation" of Spain in Catalonia, was informed that "an information process had been opened to analyze the facts," meaning an internal investigation within the National Police. On the other hand, she added that the governmental delegation of the Valencian Country informed them that "there was no order to confiscate flags and if someone ordered it on their own, it must be investigated." "The only prohibited items at a sporting event are flags with direct incitement to hatred, which is not the case with the "estelades"," she concluded.

The minister also asserted that she is not aware that the Government has contacted the victim, although she stressed that she has "all the mechanisms to file a lawsuit or complaint if she considers it so". Until now, before entering the press conference, this right had not been exercised by the affected party, as she recalled.

Offensive

This Monday, the delegate of the Spanish government in Catalonia, also a socialist, Carlos Prieto, had already taken action. He spoke with the delegate in the Valencian Community, Pilar Bernabé, and they publicly announced that an internal investigation had been opened within the police force regarding the controversial actions. However, the highest-ranking Catalan authority who reacted on Monday was the President of the Parliament, Junts member Josep Rull, who sent a letter to the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska: he sent him a letter requesting an explanation for what was a completely "disproportionate" use of violence.

Junts also registered an extensive series of questions in Congress regarding the legal basis for the removal of Esteladas and requested disciplinary measures if disproportionate force was confirmed. In parallel, ERC submitted a request for the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, to appear before Congress. And in the judicial sphere, the pro-independence collective Acció Cassandra announced the filing of a complaint with the duty court in Elche.