The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) considers that the Amnesty law aims to reduce institutional and political tensions and promote a scenario of “reconciliation.” That was one of the central messages outlined yesterday in the reading of a ruling that supports the law, dispels much of the doubt about its fit within European Union law, and clears one of the main legal obstacles for the return of former president Carles Puigdemont, Antoni Comín, and Lluís Puig.
Read more The unprecedented half-hour break, the gibberish of coaches and physical trainers
For the court, it will now be up to the Spanish judges to complete the application of the law, which has already benefited about 400 people, although amnesty is still pending for nearly a hundred former senior political officials.
The law has accompanied Pedro Sánchez’s government since the beginning of this legislature. The president was initially very reluctant to promote the law – as Junts reminded him yesterday – but he “made a virtue of necessity” to get his investiture through with the seven votes of the post-convergent party. The preamble of the law – which the PSOE registered alone in 2023 – justified the measure under the premise of promoting reconciliation, coexistence, and institutional normalization in Catalonia, objectives that the CJEU has taken into consideration when endorsing the law.
The law became from the outset the main focus of political polarization
A backing that comes at one of the government’s weakest parliamentary moments and opens a new scenario in the relationship with Junts, although it remains to be seen whether the European endorsement translates into greater political stability, as the bridges between the post-convergents and socialists have remained closed for months.
The meetings in Switzerland with the international mediator stalled a long time ago. The two socialist interlocutors – Santos Cerdán and José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero – are under investigation for corruption cases, and dialogue between the two parties is limited to what is strictly necessary in the parliamentary sphere. Given this scenario, it is difficult to foresee what effects the ruling may have on the relationship between the government and Junts, although it changes the political context in which both parties should come to an understanding again, especially once the former president’s return to Catalonia materializes.
The government feels disappointed by what they call Junts’ disloyalty, which has sided with PP and Vox in key votes in Congress. They consider that the PSOE has burned itself out with the Amnesty law, which was difficult to justify even within its own ranks, while Junts accuses the socialists of breaking the agreements sealed for the investiture. Nevertheless, the executive points out that Puigdemont’s return could be the “window of opportunity” to mend these strained relations.
The Popular Party considers the former president’s return amortized before elections are called
Within the independence movement, despite celebrating a ruling more forceful than expected and considering it a victory, expectations about Puigdemont’s return are cooled. The former president himself made this clear yesterday in a message on X, warning that there is still judicial progress to be made and that the effective application of the ruling will largely depend on the Supreme Court’s response. “The path to end repression is not over,” he concluded.
The truth is that the horizon ahead for Junts in the coming months presents difficulties. On one hand, there is the return of their leader and determining what role he will play in the party, and on the other, countering the onslaught of Aliança Catalana, which aims to overtake the post-convergents.
Read more The impact of birds may have caused the helicopter accident where a Catalan family died
The truth is that the ruling leaves the application of the law in each specific case in the hands of the Spanish courts. The ruling, however, reinforces the doctrine of the Constitutional Court, which a year ago declared that the law is compatible with the Constitution.
The European decision changes the context in which Junts and the PSOE could come to an understanding again
Since the law’s approval, the Constitutional Court – chaired by Cándido Conde-Pumpido – and the Supreme Court – with magistrate Pablo Llarena leading the main procés proceedings – have maintained a legal tug-of-war over its application. While the former endorsed the constitutionality of the law, the latter has proposed a more restrictive interpretation, as in cases related to embezzlement.
For now, everything points to Pablo Llarena maintaining the arrest warrant against Carles Puigdemont until the Constitutional Court rules on the amparo appeal that the former president filed against the Supreme Court magistrate’s decision to exclude the crime of embezzlement from the amnesty. That ruling will not come until autumn. Hence, Puigdemont rules out, for now, returning to Spain without guarantees of avoiding any judicial surprises and without knowing if the Supreme Court will raise any new objections.
The law, key to Sánchez’s investiture, became from the outset the main focus of political polarization and the origin of a harsh confrontation between the government, the judiciary, and the opposition. The PP and Vox maintained a frontal rejection of the law with appeals from the autonomies governed by the Popular Party to the Constitutional Court, despite Alberto Núñez Feijóo defending just a few weeks ago in Catalonia that it was necessary to “turn the page” on the procés.
The CJEU’s backing comes at the government’s weakest parliamentary moment
The Popular Party considers the former president’s return amortized and prefers it to happen now rather than later, given the possibility that future general elections may be favorable to them, according to polls. But not everyone within the PP shares the same view. Former president José María Aznar said yesterday that “the seditious aggression against the law must not go unpunished.”
The political polarization experienced in Catalonia during the procés has been transferred this legislature to Congress, and the amnesty is partly responsible for this phenomenon. A situation contrary to what was experienced in Catalonia, whose effect was visible in the last regional elections when the independence movement lost its majority in the Parliament.
Read more Santacreu wins the battle for the silver chairs of the Chamber after a very close vote
