Granada (Spain), Oct. 6 (EFE).- Acting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez referred Friday to amnesty as “a way to try to overcome the judicial consequences to the situation that Spain experienced” in 2017, with one of the “worst territorial crises in the history of democracy” in the country.
Sánchez quoted the word amnesty for the first time to questions from journalists at the press conference following the EU Summit in Granada.
The Socialist leader did so to respond to the proposal for the same purpose that will be presented next week in Barcelona by the leader of his leading left-wing partner for the investiture, Sumar, the second vice-president of the acting government, Yolanda Díaz.
In declarations to a Catalan radio, Diaz affirmed on Friday that on October 10, she will present a legal opinion from her party’s jurists about how “the amnesty might fit” the Spanish legal system.
She also pointed out that she will share “her Catalan agenda with the President of the (Spanish) Government, Pedro Sánchez,” and that there is “coordination” between what they both do and the places they visit.
At the press conference, Sanchez stressed that the proposal for amnesty of Sumar is not the same as that of the Socialist Party.
“We know Sumar’s proposal as we also know the proposal of other political parties regarding amnesty,” he said. However, he valued positively the fact that Spanish parties present this kind of initiative.
He stressed that all parties must work to ” understand each other and achieve a government in Spain as soon as possible.”
“I cannot anticipate an agreement until it does not take place (…). He stressed that the agreements will be known when they are finalized since there will be no agreement until everything is agreed”.
As for the dialogue with other political groups, he reiterated that they are “in full negotiation” and that the agreement reached will be “absolutely transparent,” public, and in line with the Spanish Constitution.
For the socialist leader, no one in Spain can argue that today the situation in Catalonia is “infinitely better than in 2017”.
For this reason, he intends to continue along the same path of dialogue and coexistence that he has undertaken, stressing that all agreements will be within the framework of the Constitution, will be validated by Parliament, and “even if they want to be appealed by the opposition,” also by the Constitutional Court.
“Full democratic normality,” Sánchez concluded.
The Spanish Socialist Party counts to form a government with the support of its 121 deputies, to which it would join the 31 of the left-wing formation Sumar and foreseeably the 6 Basque pro-independence deputies of EH Bildu and the 5 of the Basque nationalists of the PNV.
In complete negotiation are the votes of the Catalan pro-independence ERC and Junts, the party of the former regional president of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont, a fugitive from Spanish justice in Brussels, who have seven parliamentarians each.
The two Catalan pro-independence parties demanded he approve an amnesty law and advance in recognizing the right to self-determination to hold an independence referendum.
In a first appeal, Sanchez needs an absolute majority (176 seats), and if this does not succeed, after 48 hours, there would be a second vote in which he would only need a simple majority.
In case of failure, the Cortes would be dissolved, and general elections would be repeated on January 14 next year. EFE
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