Catalan leaders appear in court

The heads of two major pro-independence parties in Catalonia are appearing in court in Madrid on Monday morning for their role in the pro-independence process. After the hearing, a Spanish judge keeping four Catalan leaders behind bars for pursuing independence will decide whether to impose preemptive measures on Rovira and Pascal before they stand trial.

The head of Esquerra Republicana (ERC) in the Catalan parliament, Marta Rovira, entered the Supreme Court at 9am. The leader of PDeCAT, Marta Pascal, will speak in front of the judge Pablo Llarena at 11am.

A major question is whether Rovira and Pascal will tell the judge that they’ve given up unilateral independence or not. This could determine whether Llarena imposes some preemptive measures on them or let them go free. Yet, some pro-independence politicians who renounced unilaterality are still held behind bars. In any case, Spanish papers said judiciary sources suggested that Rovira and Pascal won't be imprisoned.

Llarena is currently investigating 28 key figures of the Catalan independence movement for their role in last October’s referendum and declaration of independence. The accused include president Carles Puigdemont, currently in Belgium, and four imprisoned leaders. In total, 12 people have been held behind bars at some point during the investigation.