Catalan Leaders Guilty of Sedition: El País

Catalan separatists – including a party leader, former speaker of the Catalan parliament, former ministers and cabinet members – were sentenced to 9 to 13 years in prison by the Spanish Supreme Court for an attempt to break from Spain in October 2017. “The court has found that there were “undeniable acts of violence” in Catalonia in the fall of 2017, but that these were not severe enough to convict the defendants of rebellion,” reports El País. “The events that took place were not enough ‘to impose an effective territorial independence and the derogation of the Constitution.” The defendants insist their only aim was “to give Catalan citizens a chance to express themselves through a referendum.” But that independence referendum was unauthorized. The defense teams plan to appeal. Meanwhile, violent protests broke out in Barcelona, Tarragona, Sabadell and Lleida. – YaleGlobal