'Madness' and 'punishment': Catalan leaders react to court’s decision to keep Junqueras in jail

ERC representative says that the Catalan leader has been “kidnapped” and Puigdemont states that he’s a “hostage”

Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras and president Carles Puigdemont, now both deposed by the Spanish government, with the former in precautionary jail and the second in exile in Belgium on October 26 2017 in the Catalan parliament (by Pere Francesch)
Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras and president Carles Puigdemont, now both deposed by the Spanish government, with the former in precautionary jail and the second in exile in Belgium on October 26 2017 in the Catalan parliament (by Pere Francesch) / ACN

ACN | Barcelona

January 5, 2018 04:33 PM

Once the Spanish Supreme Court ruled to keep Oriol Junqueras in precautionary jail, it didn’t take long for Catalan political and social leaders to react.

Besides the Catalan vice president, deposed by the Spanish government, there are three more Catalan leaders in jail. These include deposed Catalan home affairs minister Joaquim Forn and pro-independence civil society leaders Jordi Sànchez and Jordi Cuixart.

Junqueras urges unity, love, and perseverance

Junqueras himself responded with a tweet published on his twitter account. It read: "In the coming days, stay strong and united. Transform indignation into courage and perseverance. Anger into love. Always think of others. In what we have to redo. Persist because I will persist." The jailed deposed minister finished his message by writing "thank you for all your support" and showing his appreciation.