Ex-Catalan leader to hear extradition verdict on December 14

Sacked Catalan President Carles Puigdemont will hear the final verdict on the European arrest warrant and extradition request against him filed by Spain on December 14, one of his lawyers said on Monday.

Puigdemont, who along with four of his former ministers is in self-imposed exile in the Belgian capital, is wanted in Spain in relation to an ongoing investigation into allegations of sedition and rebellion for his role in Catalonia's unilateral declaration of independence from Spain, which was branded illegal by the Spanish courts.

Puigdemont, along with Antoni Comin, Meritxell Serret, Clara Ponsati and Lluis Puig, who have been with him in Belgium since October 30, have been on probation since November 5 while the Belgian judiciary considers the arrest warrants and their extradition, Efe news reported.

His lawyers insist he will not receive a fair trial in Spain.

This latest development came a day before campaigning is set to begin for Catalonia's regional election, which on December 21 is set to reinstate the local parliament that was dissolved in the wake of the independence bid as Spain sought to take control of the region's autonomous institutions.

Puigdemont is expected to run as the leader of the newly-founded Junts Per Catalunya (JxCat) party, born out of the merger of Catalan European Democratic Party and independents.

Meanwhile in Madrid, Puigdemont's former deputy in the Catalan government, Oriol Junqueras, was refused bail by a Supreme Court judge, as were three other separatist figureheads.

However, six former Cabinet members were ordered to be released, with bail set at 100,000 euros ($118,635).

--IANS

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