Do ‘blank slate’restart the relationship with Catalonia, leaving behind the judicialization. Almost three years after that commitment made during an inauguration in which ERC played a key role, the president Pedro Sanchez face the ‘president’ Pere Aragones the final stretch of the negotiation to mitigate the judicial impact of the organization of 1-O, a reform of the Criminal Code that, yes, will later be at the expense of the interpretation of the courts to determine how it affects those accused by the ‘procés’. after the pardonsthe suppression of the sedition and the modification of the embezzlement that is now underway, and three general State budgets that have guaranteed the stability of Moncloa, there are now three weeks left so that, according to the schedule of the two presidents in July, the dialogue table meet and officially seal their results. For Republicans this is nothing more than a “first step” to advance in the resolution of a conflict that, they warn, they do not consider finished.
But both parties agree that 2023 will be eminently electoral and, therefore, incapable of large-scale agreements. In the short term, Socialists and Republicans have on their hands putting the finishing touch on a reform of embezzlement that is a real headache for the Government. Even more than the release of the leaders of the ‘procés’ from prison or the repeal of sedition, which they consider amortized in terms of repercussions at the polls. Especially since what I could not justify is a review of sentences of convicted of corruption. At the same time, both the PSOE and the PSC have defended from the beginning of the Penal Code reform that it would not serve to decriminalize the events of 1-O.
For this reason, although what ERC is looking for with its amendment is narrow the definition of embezzlement so that not applicable to the organization of the referendum, the average term of the negotiations for an agreement is situated in a reduction of penalties for what they understand was an “improper use of public funds” without this being detrimental to the punishment of corruption. The match of oriol junqueras He recalls that even though he has voted for the State budget, it cannot be assumed that they have lost negotiating force because there are still more than 4,000 amendments in the Senate, but he admits that the reduction of sentences may end up being the most possible scenario.
The priority, beyond his maximum proposal, is to reach an agreement that is less harmful to the defendants. In fact, if Sánchez has opened up to addressing this folder, it is because, in electoral terms, a climate of tension is not convenient for him if there are again pro-independence leaders who go to jail, in addition to the fact that ERC may once again be decisive in a future investment. And the trial of the Republicans Josep Maria Jove Y Lluis Salvado will fall in the coming months, intertwined with the unpredictable judicial situation of Carlos Puigdemont.
Gripped by the right – the PP has already announced that it will take the reform of the Penal Code to constitutional Court because he understands that it is an “infringement of the legislative power” and Vox and Ciudadanos stir up the scarecrow of the motion of censure-, Sánchez is convinced that his strategy of de-judicialization not only gives him revenue to maintain the stability of his Government, but is also effective for, in the words of patxi lopez, “dismantle the victimhood” of the independence movement and divide it. A rupture that has materialized with the departure of Junts from the Government and an open crack through which the PSC gains an advantage. This Sunday, Sánchez lands in Barcelona in an act with Salvador Illa to chest out that, with him at the helm of Moncloa, the conflict with Catalonia is no longer high-voltage.
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However, ERC warns behind the scenes of the error that it would be for the PSOE to end the conflict. Their aspiration, they insist, is the amnesty and self-determination. They acknowledge that, given Moncloa’s refusal to lift general penalties, they have focused on a package of measures that, added together, “come closer” and that will mean that “the penalty of 1-O I ended up very reduced“Or so they hope, both to prevent more leaders from going to jail and to show that their commitment to dialogue is bearing fruit. Even so, they assure that nothing can prevent judges from interpreting the reform in a “vengeful key”. limit arbitrarinessbut not delete it”, summary.
Beyond the de-judicialization folder, the Republicans understand that this is only to put the score to zero and be able to face the great Gordian knot: the catalan lace and the referendum they demand. Faced with those who point to it as an impossible objective because the Government has made it clear that this is an insurmountable wall, they recall that Sánchez ruled out the pardon and advocated the “full” serving of sentences in the 2019 campaign and that the poll indicates that the support of the independence movement may once again be essential for the president to remain in Moncloa. This will continue to be his lever.