Exiled Catalans lawyer: 'There are flagrant violations of fundamental rights in the Spanish proceedings'

One of the Belgian lawyers of Catalan former ministers exiled in Brussels thinks that there are "flagrant violations of fundamental rights" in the Spanish proceedings against pro-independence leaders.

Christopher Marchand said in an interview with the Catalan news agency (ACN) that the Spanish Supreme Court judge dealing with the case, Pablo Llarena, takes "very odd" decisions which are "in contradiction with the basic rights of the European Union."

Marchand is part of the legal team that presented a civil demand in Belgium against judge Llarena for not acting like an impartial and independent magistrate and violating his clients' right to a fair trial and presumption of innocence.

As a consequence, a Belgian judge summoned Llarena to appear in Court on September 4. However, a Spanish judge rejected the petition, saying the demand is "wrongful" and warning that Belgium "cannot evaluate judicial investigations by European colleagues following a simple petition by the accused."

"If a Belgian judge had acted as Llarena, we would have done exactly the same, a civil demand," insisted Christopher Marchand, adding that his legal team has "always handled" the pro-independence leaders' case as they would have done if it was a purely Belgian domestic issue.

Marchand said that they have not been officially informed of Spain's decision to reject the demand against judge Llarena. In any case, he said it would be up for the Belgian judge handling the case to decide "how to react" if "there is no one" on September 4, the date when he has been summoned.

In May, Belgium rejected extraditing three deposed Catalan ministers wanted by Spain. A Belgian judge dismissed the European Arrest Warrant issued by Spain for Lluís Puig, Toni Comín and Meritxell Serret. In a hearing in Brussels, the prosecutor and the defense agreed that the extradition request had “procedural defects” and “irregularities”, and was therefore rejected.

The reason was that there was no arrest warrant in Spain issued for them, something mandatory for an EU arrest warrant to be taken into consideration.