Catalan civic groups appeal amnesty for 46 police officers and accuse them of 'torture'

Civil society organizations in Catalonia will file an appeal with the Spanish Supreme Court against the amnesty granted to 46 police officers accused of police brutality during the 2017 independence referendum.

Pro-independence groups Òmnium Cultural and the Catalan National Assembly (ANC), as well as the human rights organization Irídia, say the officers acted "with a clear intent to humiliate and punish citizens who freely and democratically sought to exercise their rights."

They argue that the police actions fall under the categories of torture or degrading and inhuman treatment, which are excluded from the amnesty law passed by the Spanish Congress in May 2024. 

Òmnium president Xavier Antich said that wanting to grant amnesty to the officers was "yet another act of irresponsibility by a Spanish state that plays with the limits of democracy."

European Convention on Human Rights

The three organizations are appealing to Spain's Supreme Court after both Barcelona Court No. 7 and Barcelona High Court granted the officers clemency.

According to Òmnium, the police actions on October 1, 2017 constituted a violation of the European Convention on Human Rights, as the force used by police was "disproportionate," "excessive," and "produced serious injuries."

Antich added that Òmnium "will not forget that the police brutality of October 1 was a blatant act of state barbarity, a premeditated humiliation, and a deliberate punishment against citizens who were exercising fundamental rights."

The organization laments that, eight years after the events, the "victims of police brutality have still not been granted their right to justice, truth, and reparation."

For that reason, Òmnium will continue to act as a popular prosecutor "in all ongoing cases of police violence across the country."

This includes a case currently under investigation by Barcelona Court regarding injuries sustained by activist Roger Español, in which Òmnium has accused police officers of causing serious bodily harm with loss of a major organ, torture, and crimes against moral integrity.