The president of the Catalan National Assembly, Elisenda Paluzie, has this Thursday warned of the "importance" of the trial of the Catalan political prisoners this autumn from the UK Parliament. "I've explained that the Supreme Court trial will be very important and I spoke about the violation of rights and the accusation of rebellion, a crime which has very high sentences and requires violence which didn't take place", she told the Catalan News Agency after speaking to the all-party parliamentary group on Catalonia.
"We'd like to see solidarity from international public opinion", she admitted, adding that they might organise "activities" around the trial. She said one idea from the French solidarity committees is for a response similar to that to the 1970 Burgos Trial, a summary trial during the Franco era which sparked large protests, to create a "wave of indignation around Europe". According to Paluzie, committees and working groups like the one in Westminster "could play an important role" when it comes to "activating" European public opinion.
Paluzie said she had told the group's members in two sessions about the "state of repression" which is also affecting "teachers, activists and mayors" accused of having contributed to the organisation of last year's independence referendum. Present were MPs and peers from the Conservative and Labour parties, Plaid Cymru, the Scottish National Party and Sinn Fein.
Asked how attendees reacted, Paluzie said they were "very shaken" and "absolutely indignant that political leaders can be in prison for having organised a referendum". She was speaking in the UK, where an independence referendum was held in Scotland in 2014, agreed between the Scottish and Westminster governments, and in front of a group including MPs who acted as international observers in Catalonia last year and "saw first hand the violence from [Spanish] police". "I've noted great sensitivity", she remarked, emphasising the "need to internationalise" the trial.