Exiled independence leader behind Tsunami Democràtic protest group according to police

A Spanish Guardia Civil police report that is being used in the National Court investigation into the Tsunami Democràtic pro-independence protest group attributes its design and management to exiled Esquerra Republicana secretary general Marta Rovira and other party officials, according to online newspaper 'El Confidencial'.

According to this report, Tsunami Democràtic protests, which include the blockade of the AP-7 highway near France or an attempt to shut down the Barcelona airport after the sentencing of the referendum organizers in 2019, were not the result of a spontaneous civil society movement, but rather designed by pro-independence parties to put pressure on Spain. 

The Guardia Civil findings state that Rovira, under the alias Matagalls, directed the group's political apparatus and was in charge of coordinating the support of other parties in favor of a Catalan republic and former president Quim Torra's government.

It also states that a key date behind the group's creation took place in Geneva, where Rovira lives, in August 2019. The president at the time of the independence vote, Junt's Carles Puigdemont, is said to have attended the meeting, as did far-left CUP's Anna Gabriel, who like Rovira also resides in Switzerland. It is here where they are alleged to have agreed on future protest dates and on maintaining the organizers' anonymity. 

The 'El Confidencial' article ties others to the plot, such as businessman Oriol Soler, who was previously investigated as part of the Spanish police's 'Volhov' operation and who was allegedly in charge of communication and propaganda for Tsunami Democràtic under the alias Rigoberto. 

The report also mentions former Esquerra minister Xavier Vendrell as the group's recruiter, while it says civil society group Òmnium's Oleguer Serra facilitated the protests under the alias Pare Carbasser. 

Rovira, who has lived in Switzerland since March 2018, has thus far only been charged with disobedience, an unimprisonable offense, for her role in the independence push that culminated in the October 2017 referendum deemed illegal by Spain.

If she were to return, she would not be arrested if she were to voluntarily appear before a judge, as was the case of her fellow party mate and current foreign action minister Mertixell Serret in 2021.