• Elections. The Electoral Board prohibits TV3 and Catalunya Ràdio from using "repression trial" or "political prisoners"

As in the past campaigns, TV3 and Catalunya Ràdio will not be able to use in their informative spaces referred to the referendum of October 1, 2017 expressions "clearly identifiable with the electoral message of certain political options that attend the elections, such as exili , prisoners politicians and president a l'exili in relation to the people tried and who have not been able to be judged of the so-called ' procés ". This is what the Barcelona Electoral Board considers in response to a resource presented by Citizens (Cs).

In its resolution, the Board believes that the use of these expressions within the news of these stations violates the electoral regime law "especially the principle of political and social pluralism, as well as the equality, proportionality and information neutrality that should govern public media in election periods. "

The Board also establishes that these two public media managed by the Catalan Audiovisual Corporation (CCMA) "must refrain from carrying out informative practices that unjustifiably deviate from the current legality, to the detriment of the information neutrality that especially characterizes said electoral period. " In addition, the Board considers that "in order to avoid confusion to listeners and spectators, during the electoral period the allusion to Consell de la República and Assembly of Elected Positions must be preceded by the word self-appointed .

In this way, the Board considers that the viewer is prevented from reaching the " false conclusion that, in effect, there is a legitimate Government in exile" since "they are not part of the legal institutions" in Catalonia. However, the electoral body considers that the professionals of the autonomous radio stations can use the terms "police repression" and "October 1 referendum" since "they are protected by the constitutional right to inform" and have no electoral influence. The Board also reminds the CCMA that its professionals have to respect the agreement at election time since, otherwise, they may incur economic sanctions.

The agreement of the Electoral Board of Barcelona has the particular vote of the vocalist Marc Marsal, who was a member of the Electoral Syndicature that the Government of Carles Puigdemont appointed to endorse the 1-O independence referendum and that was fined by the Constitutional Court before resign from office with the rest of his classmates. In addition, he is prosecuted for the crimes of disobedience and usurpation of public charges for which the Prosecutor's Office asks for 2 years and 9 months in jail. As a member, Marsal considers that the "principle of information neutrality" required by the electoral law "cannot be interpreted in such a way that it violates the fundamental right to communicate truthful information" and that is why these expressions should be allowed in the news of the broadcasters Autonomous

After knowing this resolution, the spokeswoman for Citizens in the CCMA commission Sonia Sierra said that "the Electoral Board again gives the reason to Cs, confirming that TV3 has manipulated reality and misinformed the Catalans by using the speech of the parties independentistas. From Cs we are not going to tolerate that TV3 continues being the speaker of the separatism instead of a means of public communication in favor of all the Catalans ".

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