20 Quotes from the Prosecution that Knocked Down the Defense’s “political trial” claim.

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Originally published in Spanish: “Las 20 frases de la Fiscalía que han tumbado el ‘juicio político’ de las defensas”. Ángela Martialay y Antonio Salvador. El Independiente.

1 – “The right to decide belongs to the Spanish people as a whole”.

2 – “What belongs to all of us is not a matter to be decided by just a few”.

3 – “There is no democratic legality outside constitutional legality”.

4 – “There is no such thing as a Catalan sovereignty, but the sovereignty of the Spanish people. The right to decide belongs to the whole Spanish people”.

5 – “This trial is on behalf of a democratic political system”.

6 – “The sovereignty of the Spanish people cannot be replaced by the one of any one of its component peoples”.

7 – Political activity “is not a letter of marque to justify the engagement in criminal activities. Secessionism is not the subject of this legal process”.

8 – “The exercise of political action is not a reason for exemption from legal liability”.

9 – “Here we are not judging political leaders who claimed for liberties, but who sought to take them away”.

10 – The secessionist leaders “plotted a large-scale wide-scope criminal plan”.

11 – “What is being judged is an arranged, meticulous, multiconvergent plan to carry out” a violent public uprising to challenge the constitutional order.

12 – “This is democracy’s victory trial”.

13 – “Some statements, rather than defense statements, are accusatory libels”.

14 – “No one is prosecuted for his or her ideas, but for his or her actions”.

15 – “[They sought to] ban the Spanish Constitution and the Catalan Statute through a parallel legality”.

16 – “To link proportionate use of force by police to tortures is a legal nonsense of significant proportions”.

17 – “Dialogue through imposition is not acceptable in a democratic state”.

18 – “Everyone is free to disagree from law, but no one can disobey it”.

19 – “The risk of fleeing is obvious. Just consider that six people are not available for this court by putting themselves beyond justice action’s range”.

20 – “The Mossos d’ Escuadra [the Catalan police forces] are totally sided with rebellion”.