Parliament passes resolution protecting jailed MP's rights

The Catalan parliament holds a new plenary session on Wednesday to debate protecting the political rights of the three presidential candidates, including their right to be appointed as head of government, after their bids for president were blocked by the Spanish judiciary. 

While the deposed Catalan president Carles Puigdemont is in custody in Germany awaiting a decision on his extradition, both Jordi Sànchez and Jordi Turull are incarcerated in the Madrid region. They all face criminal charges of rebellion.

The resolution protecting the political rights of Puigdemont, Sànchez, and Turull was approved with the votes of the three pro-independence parties, which have a narrow majority in the chamber: Junts per Catalunya (JxCat), Esquerra Republicana (ERC), and far-left CUP.

Unionist parties criticized the pro-independence bloc. “The resolution presented by pro-independence parties includes several falsehoods, such as presenting Carles Puigdemont as president,” said Inés Arrimadas, the leader of Ciutadans, the largest party in the chamber.