The president of Òmnium Cultural highlights the “contrast” between what Amnesty has repeatedly asked for and what Spain is doing, considering it a “democratic shame”

On occasion of the third anniversary of Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sànchez’s detention, Amnesty International warned that “the three branches of the state have the opportunity to correct the effects of an unjust sentence, contrary to human rights”, the one that condemned both of them to 9 years of prison for the crime of “sedition”. The organization has addressed this statement directly to the judicial, executive and legislative powers of Spain.

To the judiciary, AI has denounced that the Constitutional Court is delaying the resolution of appeals for protection of Cuixart and Sànchez: “They have been in prison for more than three years. The Constitutional Court has to resolve their appeals as soon as possible”. Regarding the legislative power, Amnesty International considers that the crime of sedition for which they were sentenced “opens the door to greater criminalisation of acts directly related to the peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly”. Therefore, they ask for a change in the criminal code, as the vague definition of the crime and its broad interpretation can have “deterrent effects” regarding the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. Finally, Amnesty also urged the Spanish Government to use all the tools available, in the frame of their competences, to free them and to put an end to the unjust situation of Cuixart and Sánchez.

The statement considers an “injustice” the situation of imprisonment that has lasted three years. “It’s been a thousand days behind bars, away from their families. Amnesty International has repeatedly called for their release from the moment they were arrested”, points out the NGO.

The president of Òmnium Cultural, Jordi Cuixart, considers that, “the contrast is a democratic shame: Amnesty reiterates that our imprisonment criminalizes the right to peaceful assembly, freedom of expression and civil disobedience, while the Spanish State keeps us in prison”. From the Lledoners prison, Cuixart thanked again the position of this NGO and said that “for a political prisoner, having the support of the most important human rights organization in the world is a privilege”.

The Director of Amnesty International in Spain, Esteban Beltran, also visited the prison of Lledoners, where he explained to Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sànchez that Amnesty International will keep fighting for their freedom, and to solve this unjust situation. There, he issued the following statement: