Marisa Cruz Madrid

Madrid

Updated Thursday, March 7, 2024-20:00

  • Pact The Justice Commission approves the amnesty law: broad forgiveness for terrorism, embezzlement and Pujol's children

  • Politics Puigdemont warns Sánchez that "the 'procés' continues" and urges him to "negotiate self-determination"

Pedro Sánchez

tied his destiny to that of

Carles Puigdemont

on the night of 23-J when he verified that his chances of being re-established in La Moncloa inevitably depended on having the approval of the fugitive from Justice.

The seven votes that the spiritual leader of Junts controls in Congress proved essential for the socialist not only to be invested and able to form a Government, but above all for his presidency at the head of a new legislature to prosper.

The Congressional

Justice Commission

has confirmed the payment of the main bill that the fugitive demanded in exchange for his support: an Amnesty bill drafted by himself and to his measure.

A text enthusiastically supported by the same PSOE that seven months ago abhorred the grace measure as "

unconstitutional

" and just seven days ago - after having finally accepted it - refused to include any modification in it because the text was already "impeccable" and The adjustments regarding terrorism or high treason that the independence movement demanded could only prevent it from passing the filter of the Constitutional Court and European Justice.

All these arguments have become a dead letter.

The text of the bill approved in the Justice Commission by

20 votes to 17

includes from beginning to end each and every one of Puigdemont's demands.

Sánchez has agreed to grant the fugitive the amnesty that he himself drafted to benefit himself, hand in hand with the Secretary of Socialist Organization,

Santos Cerdán

, and with the Minister of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Cortes,

Félix Bolaños

.

And he has accepted everything in the hope that the fugitive will not subject him to permanent blackmail and from now on will offer him support, to begin with by approving the General State Budgets, which would give Sánchez a boost of oxygen to achieve at least the half of the legislature.

However, this is a wish that may remain a mere illusion because just yesterday the ranks of Junts already warned that "amnesty is one thing and the Budgets are another."

The opinion that the Justice Commission has approved with the votes of PSOE, Sumar, Junts, ERC, PNV, EH Bildu and Podemos incorporates the four transactional amendments agreed upon by the socialists with the Catalan secessionists, by virtue of which the Code is bypassed Criminal to cover under the umbrella of amnesty possible crimes of terrorism committed during the process as long as they do not constitute "serious violations of human rights" and crimes of embezzlement that do not imply "personal enrichment or financial benefit."

In addition, the objective is established of forcing the Administration to return the money for the fines that the police forces imposed during the process in demonstrations, protest actions or the celebration of 1-O itself under the protection of the Citizen Security Law.

The forgiveness of these fines is only excepted in the case of "very serious" infractions and "provided that, at the discretion of the Administration that imposed the sanction, it is considered that proportionality criteria are met."

Likewise, the temporal scope that the grace measure will cover is extended, establishing it from November 1, 2011 to November 13, 2023. According to the approved amendment, November 1, 2011 is the date on which "the facts of the independence process".

This means including in the amnesty the first meetings of the Convergència leadership to activate the illegal consultation of 2014, in one of which three of

Jordi Pujol

's sons participated : Jordi, Oriol and Josep.

The Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, described the agreement reached with Junts and ERC to amend the Amnesty law as "great news for Catalonia and for all of Spain" and added that it is "a source of pride" for the socialists to have contributed to a norm. which, in his opinion, "marks history" and will become a "world reference".

According to him, the now revised proposal complies with the recommendations set out by the Venice Commission in its draft opinion on the amnesty.

However, this text criticizes the urgent procedure without reports that the Government has imposed on the proposal;

It is recommended that it attract a broad social consensus and have the approval of a qualified majority in the Cortes and it even suggests the need to proceed beforehand with a reform of the

Constitution

to include in it the figure of the measure of grace. in addition to pointing out that self-amnesties are prohibited.

None of these objections have been taken into account.

In the course of the debate in the Commission, the independentists have boasted of what they consider a victory against "State repression" and have warned that the amnesty is only the first step to enter a new phase that enshrines independence.

For the PP, the

Government

has laid down "a rug for impunity" and has "unprotected the State" with the aim that "those who attacked him keep Sánchez in power with their votes."

For the general secretary of the PP,

Cuca Gamarra

, it is a "corrupt law to amnesty corruption."

The opinion approved by the Justice Commission will now be sent to the Plenary Session of Congress, which will debate and vote on it in an extraordinary session next Thursday.

It will then go to the Senate where the absolute majority of the PP will submit it to a procedure that will last at least two months.