Spain: Catalan separatist politicians criticise Spanish government in court

W/S Trial in progress, Madrid
SOT, Oriol Junqueras, Former Vice-President of the Catalan Government (Spanish): "I genuinely believe that the best thing for all of us – for Catalonia, for Spain, for Europe, for everyone – would be to see this issue returned to the sphere of politics – good politics – an area it should never have left. Return the issue to the sphere of dialogue, negotiation, deals. In the meantime, my job should be to always contribute, through the voting ballot, to promoting democracy, coexistence and the common good."
W/S Trial in progress *CUTAWAY*
SOT, Oriol Junqueras, Former Vice-President of the Catalan Government (Spanish): "My democratic, civic, pacifist and republican principles, or even my Christian principles, but they are principles I have and I maintain, and that I share with all of those who think voting or defending the republic from within a parliament cannot be considered a crime."
W/S Former President of the Parliament of Catalonia Carme Forcadell speaking in court
SOT, Carme Forcadell, Former President of the Parliament of Catalonia (Spanish): "I understand I’m being prosecuted as President of the Catalan parliament. But all the processes I undertook were done jointly with the members of the Mesa or were adopted in a plenary session."
M/S People in attendance *CUTAWAY*
SOT, Josep Rull, Catalan politician (Spanish): "The strong deal, the weak impose. The United Kingdom or Canada know that they have something interesting to offer the Scottish or Canadians, and for that reason, voting is not a problem or a threat. They look for the mechanism, within their legal and political frameworks, to look for that expression of will."
W/S Trial in progress *CUTAWAY*
SOT, Jordi Turull, Former Counselor and Spokesperson of the Presidency of Catalonia (Spanish): "A large part of the origin of the problem in the accusations made towards us is this: they confuse dissent, criticism, protest, with attacks and lack of respect. That logic of confusing criticism with lack of respect or with attacks only exists in mindsets with low self-confidence or in authoritarian mindsets."
W/S Trial in progress
SCRIPT
Catalan politicians jailed for their role in the 2017 independence referendum appeared in court in Madrid on Wednesday, at the conclusion of a four-month trial, using their time on the stand to criticise the Spanish government for their response to the separatist movement.
The defendants include Former Vice-President of the Catalan Government Oriol Junqueras, who said, "Voting or defending the republic from within a parliament cannot be considered a crime."
Josep Rull, another Catalan politician, called the Spanish government weak, unfavourably comparing it to its British and Canadian counterparts, saying, "The strong deal, the weak impose. The United Kingdom or Canada know that they have something interesting to offer the Scottish or Canadians, and for that reason, voting is not a problem or a threat."
Former Counselor and Spokesperson of the Presidency of Catalonia Jordi Turull said, "That logic of confusing criticism with lack of respect or with attacks only exists in mindsets with low self-confidence or in authoritarian mindsets."
The defendants have been in pre-trial custody since 2018. Although the trial phase is over, no verdict is expected from the court until September.
MANDATORY CREDIT: ACN