Catalan government demands explanation for leaked video of politicians jailed in Madrid

Justice Minister Ester Capella says images “undermine right to intimacy”; Spanish government opens investigation

Screenshot of a leaked video of former home affairs minister Joaquim Forn in jail (published by Ara newspaper)
Screenshot of a leaked video of former home affairs minister Joaquim Forn in jail (published by Ara newspaper) / ACN

ACN | Barcelona

June 7, 2018 11:54 AM

The Catalan government will demand explanations from Spain’s Ministry of Home Affairs over a leaked video of pro-independence politicians jailed in Madrid, said Catalan justice minister Ester Capella in an interview on Thursday.

In the video, published by the Catalan newspaper ‘ARA’, former ministers Oriol Junqueras, Raül Romeva and Joaquim Forn appear carrying out daily tasks, such as playing tennis, washing windows, sweeping the floor, or lecturing other inmates on Greek philosophers.

Capella said the footage “undermines their right to intimacy and one’s own image,” and she urged Spain to take measures “so that this does not happen again.” The minister also said she was not aware of whether the prisoners’ families had been asked for permission.