Carles Puigdemont from Belgium: 'We can defy the oppressive state'

Carles Puigdemont is back in Waterloo, Belgium, where he has lived since he left in 2017, as he confirmed during an exclusive interview with the Catalan News Agency (ACN) and the Catalan public broadcaster TV3.

The former president states that his return to Catalonia on Thursday shows that "we have the capacity to enter and exit" and to "defy the oppressive state."

Puigdemont arrived at Waterloo on Friday. 

After his appearance at Arc de Triomf in Barcelona, where he gave a 5-minute speech in front of hundreds of gathered pro-independence supporters, Puigdemont disappeared, avoiding the Catalan police operation.

He and Junts general secretary Jordi Tuirull first traveled to the region of France known colloquially as Northern Catalonia as it used to form part of Catalonia, before the former president then continued his journey on to Waterloo where he arrived on Friday afternoon after picking up his family from the Brussels airport.

In the interview, Puigdemont stated that it was his duty to "not let himself be arrested." 

Once he saw that he could not access the parliament, he thought that it was of "no use" to let himself be arrested. 

He admits that he "could have easily been detained", but if he succeded in his escape, that would show his "ability to confront Spain."

In addition, Puigdemont also expressed that he used the moment to "denounce publicly and internationally a big democratic anomaly."

The former president also criticized the Catalan government for their "incomprehensible repression."