Spain's Constitutional court keeps Jordi Sànchez in prison

Spanish Supreme court has yet to decide whether to allow presidential candidate to attend investiture debate or not

 

Jordi Sànchez before being jailed (by ACN)
Jordi Sànchez before being jailed (by ACN) / ACN

ACN | Madrid

March 7, 2018 01:49 PM

Spain's Constitutional Court has ruled to keep the candidate for Catalan president, Jordi Sànchez, in prison. Sànchez asked Spain's court to be released on February 5, and the court accepted his appeal, which demanded the suspension of pre-trial prison. This decision is not related to Sanchez's appeal to attend the investiture debate. The Spanish Supreme court will have to decide whether to allow him to attend the debate in the Catalan parliament on Monday or not.       

Sànchez has been incarcerated since October 16 for his role in the independence bid. Along with Jordi Cuixart, both men were sent to prison accused of sedition and rebellion for mobilizing people during a police operation on September 20 and 21, and for calling on the public to protest in front of polling stations on October 1.

While in jail, he ran in the December 21 election as a candidate on Puigdemont's Junts per Catalunya ticket, and he was elected as an MP. Now, Sànchez is at the forefront of politics in the country, as the parliament speaker proposed him to be the candidate for president. Yet he is still waiting for the Spanish Supreme Court's decision t nhis candidacy for president. The Court should decide whether he can be freed and allowed to attend the investiture debate in parliament or not.

Parties involved in proceedings to decide on Catalan leaders' freedom

On Wednesday, the judge of the Spanish Supreme Court in charge of the judicial proceedings against Catalan leaders said that all parties involved in proceedings of Jordi Sànchez, Jordi Cuixart and Joaquim Forn have five days to decide on the Catalan leaders' freedom. The parties involved are the prosecutors and the right-wing party VOX, and the deadline starts on Thursday.