Sánchez, Puigdemont and Sedition
How hard will Sánchez try to hang on to power before next year's general election? Will the opposition now table a motion of no confidence?
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Pedro Sánchez announced on TV last night that his government will bring criminal law reform to parliament to try to change the crime of “sedition” to “aggravated public disorder”, with shorter maximum jail sentences than is currently the case, which will likely benefit Catalan separatists, on whose votes in parliament his coalition government still depends, although there is already a suggestion Supreme Court prosecutors might seek more jail time, for rebellion, not less, if Sánchez gets his sedition reform passed.
"I think it will be an initiative that will help to make the situation easier in Catalonia”, he said: “and move past this disagreement that I inherited and that I have never shied away from". He insisited that Puigdemont, who is still in Belgium after fleeing in 2017, would have to face the courts if he eventually returned.
The Catalan First Minister, Pere Aragonès (Esquerra), appeared pleased with the move: "We have reached an agreement with the state to eliminate the main crime the political prisoners suffered for calling the October 2017 referendum”. Puigdemont tweeted that he didn’t trust the Prime Minister: “‘Sánchez announcements’ are never what they seem”.
The opposition reacted swiftly. Vox’s Abascal tweeted a single word last night, “Traitor”, and today described the PM as “illegitimate and autocratic”, his government an “extremist threat” to freedom, security and prosperity. He reminded people of the motion of no-confidence Vox tabled two years ago, and announced a press conference for Monday at 2 p.m. Will he announce another one?
Ciudadanos leader Arrimadas demandad the Popular Party (PP) do so straight away: “The reform of the criminal code in the coup leaders’ favour is such a big issue that the PP should table a motion of no confidence immediately”.
PP leader Feijóo announced late on Friday evening that Sánchez was reforming sedition “in exchange only for his political survival”, and doing so under “separatist blackmail” while “disarming the nation”.
“In which democratic principle is he leaning on to reform the country’s criminal code to the exact measure of people specific names and surnames?”, he wondered: “In which other democratic country would someone touch sedition because those who carried out the sedition wanted him to?”.
He did not announce a motion of no confidence in Sánchez but said he would undo any changes made to the crime if he were elected at the next election.
“Sedition” under the Spanish criminal code (Article 544) is not exciting 17th-Century swashbuckling to overthrow an authoritarian King but a rather more mundane exercise of using force or other non-legal means to stop the police or other public officials from executing court or official orders.
“Aggravated public disorder” sounds an awful lot like what British experts told me back in 2017 when I asked what the charges might be in the UK for the actions the Catalan separtists carried out prior to their declaration of independence: obstructing a police officer, breach of the peace, affray, violent disorder and riot were all mentioned.
During the last general election campaign, in November 2019, before Covid, Sánchez promised to bring Puigdemont back to Spain. Is this his big attempt before the next election in 2023?
“If in October 2017 this stops being a case of sedition becomes a case of aggravated public disorder”, said Puigdemont in another tweet: “ don’t see where the political win is in it all. Yes, there is a big difference between 15 years in jail and five, but politically we would be in the same place. We’ll see”.
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