Head-on clash Barcelona-Madrid. After the Spanish constitutional court nullified the effects of the referendum by banning the meeting of the Catalan Parliament which was supposed to declare independence, the president of the Catalan community, Carles Puidgemont, has decided to openly challenge the central institutions and intends to go to the Catalan assembly on Tuesday, probably to declare the independence of Catalonia, after the favorable outcome of the controversial referendum of 1 October last.
The news comes as the head of the Catalan police of the Mossos d'Esquadra Josep Lluis Trapero and the presidents of the large pro-independence civil society organizations Anc and Omnium, Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart are interrogated by a judge of the Audiencia Nacional who has declared them under investigation for « sedition» for the peaceful demonstrations in Barcelona. The intendant of the Mossos Teresa Laplana is also questioned with them. Penalties of up to 15 years in prison are foreseen for the crime of 'sedition'.
The interrogation lasted about an hour. As he left the court he was greeted by the applause of supporters of Catalan independence and the cries of "traitor" by a group of unionists. Sanchez and Cuixart did not respond to the judge. Cuixart said they did not respond because they do not recognize the jurisdiction of the court to judge them for sedition, Sanchez that he had replied to his lawyer to point out the legitimacy of the peaceful protests of the Catalan population.
