Spain's Supreme Court prosecutors find evidence of terrorism to charge Carles Puigdemont

The Criminal Prosecution Board of Spain's Supreme Court has rejected a report by conservative judge Álvaro Redondo dismissing terrorism charges and indictment against former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont. 

The judges, who discussed the Tsunami Democràtic case in a four-hour session on Tuesday, agreed that there was sufficient evidence of terrorism in the case.

The report, which has now been rejected, considered that there were "no reasonable indications of criminality" to investigate Puigdemont for the actions of Tsunami Democràtic. 

Judge Manuel García-Castellón is investigating Puigdemont, Esquerra Republicana (ERC) general secretary Marta Rovira, and ten other people for terrorism over their links to the protest group. 

Tsunami Democràtic organized protests in 2019 after the imprisonment of pro-independence leaders who organized the 2017 referendum. Actions included the blockade of the AP-7 highway near France and the attempt to shut down Barcelona Airport. 

The prosecutor in the case has criticized the judge on several occasions. In a written statement, the prosecution called the judge's decision to request the Supreme Court to retain the case "completely unjustified and unmotivated." 

The prosecutor also accuses García-Castellón of using "artificial delays" to prolong the processing of the prosecution's appeal against the judge's decision ordering the investigation of Puigdemont, Marta Rovira, and nine others on terrorism charges.  

Tsunami Democràtic shapes amnesty bill 

The case of Tsunami Democràtic has gained attention in recent weeks with the approval of the amnesty law, which aims to pardon those involved in the Catalan independence movement. 

Catalan pro-independence Junts wants to modify the draft law to ensure that those accused in the protests of Tsunami Democràtic and the Committees for the Defense of the Republic (CDR), and in the Volhov case, are protected by the law. 

To do so, they say, the law must remove any reference to terrorism as an exception to its application. But the Socialists are concerned that if they do, the law could get stuck in Spain's Constitutional Court and even be declared unconstitutional. 

After being rejected in the Spanish Congress on Tuesday, the bill will now be renegotiated between Junts and Socialists in the Justice Committee, with the Socialists hoping to bring it back to Congress in two or three weeks.