Humphrey CarterPalma15/08/2018 00:00
TW

In an extremely in-depth interview with Der Spiegel, former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont talks about fleeing Spain, his detention in Germany and the future of the independence movement.

In short, he is quite prepared to lead Catalonia’s largest political party from abroad, "in exile". In the meantime, the charges Spain has pressed against him and his legal situation are in the hands of the European justice system and the UN Human Rights Committee.He has little or no faith in the Spanish legal system or how the politicians play with the Constitution.

While he feels let down by European political leaders who have remained silent on the issues of an independent Catalonia and him having to flee the country, he said that has met a lot of interesting and friendly Europeans and has been made to realise more than ever that Spain does not play by the European Union rule book - only when it suits it.

The topic of the Scottish referendum was raised and Puigdemont praised the way it was handled. "Scotland was not a colony and Britain was not a dictatorship. The referendum on Scottish independence did not breach any international law. Unfortunately, it is indeed different in Spain. The Spanish legal system has more weaknesses. "If we Catalans want to split from Spain, it’s because of the 1978 Constitution," he went on to say, as he continues his fight.