Spanish attorney general requests that imprisoned vice-president remain behind bars
Public prosecutor calls on Spanish supreme court to reject Oriol Junqueras’ appeal to be freed
The public prosecutor of Spain’s Supreme Court has called for the dismissed and imprisoned vice-president Oriol Junqueras to remain in prison. He has asked the Supreme Court to maintain the provisional measures already in place against Junqueras, and reject an appeal for him to be freed in order to campaign.
In his appeal, Junqueras requested to be able to leave jail in order to campaign in the election for ERC, of which he is the number one candidate. He also denied having promoted violence in the street on the day of the October 1 referendum. Junqueras also argued that the Spanish constitution protects “the persecution of independence.”
However, the public prosecutor argued against the appeal, and considers the reasons why judge Pablo Llanera decided to keep Junqueras in prison as “fully valid.”
Campaigning from behind bars
Junqueras has been in prison in the Madrid region for over a month, in preventive detention without bail. According to the Spanish justice system, the dismissed vice-president committed the crimes of rebellion and sedition for his role in the October 1 referendum, the declaration of independence and the independence roadmap in general.
Thus far, as he is top of the pro-independence ERC ticket, he has had to campaign from behind bars, but it has not been easy. In fact, a recent recorded message broadcast at one of the party’s events leading to Spain’s Interior Ministry to open up an inquiry into both him and fellow ERC candidate Jordi Sanchéz, who has spent more than two months in prison, and also managed to send out an audio recording.