Oriol Junqueras, leader of ERC, flatly rejects that his party is already in a position to guarantee that its seven votes in Congress will support an upcoming investiture of Pedro Sánchez. “No, absolutely not,” he has assured, and has put the ball in the court of the PSOE and its decision to accept or not “take the side of the citizens.” After this expression, Junqueras has threaded an expanded list of demands that he heads with the amnesty but that also includes the financing of Catalonia and public services such as rail transport (Rodalis“Everything will depend on the attitude that the PSOE has,” he stressed.
In an appearance before journalists after holding a meeting with ERC deputies and senators, Junqueras asked that “justice be brought as soon as possible where there is injustice”, in reference to a foreseeable amnesty law, and has urged the socialist leader to “take a step in defense of social rights and justice.”
He has also expressed his opinion on the PSC’s intention to vote in the Parliament against the ERC resolution proposal on amnesty. “The PSC will know what it does and what it votes for and whether this suits it or not in terms of investiture in the Spanish Government,” he explained. “They will know whether or not they contribute to a climate of trust.”
The ERC leader claims to be unaware that there has already been an exchange of proposals on the “dejudicialization of the conflict” between the PSOE and other formations and has insisted that his position “is clear”: “We want there to be an amnesty because no one should be condemned and persecuted for something that is not a crime, and calling and holding a referendum is not a crime because it is not included in the Penal Code. The exercise of voting is a democratic right and that is why we are in favor of being able to exercise it with the maximum recognition by all parties. “We will not give up holding a referendum in Catalonia.”
For the Catalan republicans, he insisted, it is “essential” to reach an amnesty pact and end the “repression.” “We are not giving up anything and we have many reasons to distrust the commitments of the PSOE, although there has been progress on issues such as sedition and embezzlement,” he assured.