Charges sought in Catalan crisis
Some secessionist leaders may seek asylum in Belgium
BARCELONA, Spain — Spain moved Monday to put Catalonia’s secessionist leaders on trial for alleged crimes that carry maximum sentences of decades in prison, and some of the ousted government figures went to the Belgian capital, where an official said they might be able to request asylum.
As Catalonia spent its first working day under the direct rule of Madrid, Spain was venturing into new political terrain amid an unprecedented crisis.
An early regional election on Dec. 21 is on the horizon, when both separatists and unionists will present candidates, but before that the country is likely to endure weeks of uncertainty.
Cranking up the tension, Spain’s state prosecutor said he would seek rebellion, sedition and embezzlement charges against members of the region’s secessionist government. Chief prosecutor Jose Manuel Maza said he would ask judges for preventive measures against the politicians and the governing body of the Catalan parliament that allowed a vote to declare independence on Friday.
The rebellion, sedition and embezzlement charges carry maximum sentences of 30, 15 and six years in prison, respectively.
Those facing charges include ousted regional leader Carles Puigdemont and his No. 2, Oriol Junqueras, as well as Catalan parliamentary speaker Carme Forcadell.
Puigdemont’s whereabouts were a mystery early Monday. The Catalan leader has tormented the national government since he announced almost two months ago that Catalonia would hold an independence referendum on Oct. 1 — a ballot the government rejected as illegal.
Puigdemont, it later emerged, had traveled to Brussels, according to Spanish government officials who requested anonymity because they weren’t authorized to be named in media reports.
Belgian Asylum State Secretary Theo Francken said over the weekend that it would “not be unrealistic” for Puigdemont to request asylum. Spanish media reported that five other members of Puigdemont’s government went with him to the Belgian capital.
Belgium allows asylum requests by citizens of other European Union nations, and in the past, some Basque separatists were not extradited to Spain while they sought asylum.
Still, it would be exceptional for Belgium to grant asylum to another EU citizen based on arguments that repression would endanger the full exercise of one’s rights.
Also Monday, Catalonia’s civil servants returned to work for the first time since Spain imposed direct control. There were no immediate signs of open disobedience, and separatist parties agreed to run in the new elections.