Most groups in the European Parliament publicly make no issue of the fact that the Catalan politician Oriol Junqueras, imprisoned in Spain, cannot take up his EP seat won in May, and that his right to it has now lapsed.
Most group leaders this week sided with the reasoning of the European Commission and EP President Sassoli that it is a legal and not a political matter, and that it must be resolved in Spanish and European courts, not in the European Parliament.
As a result, the accession of two other Catalan politicians from another Catalan party also went quietly. No standing ovation, no hero's welcome. No disturbances, no shouting, no commotion occurred when the two Catalan politicians Carles Puigdemont and Toni ComĂn from the JxCat party took their seats.
Though admission was not to the liking of the Spanish far-right Vox members (within ERC) and the Partido Popular in the European People's Party (EPP), who complained loudly, jumped to their feet, and produced a Spanish flag. But Parliament President Sassoli firmly stuck to his own argument, calmed the extremists, and did not react.
Immediately after his installation, Puigdemont held his âfirstâ MEP press conference in the European Parliament building. It was attended by dozens of journalists who traveled to Strasbourg, and only a few dozen regular EU correspondents. In that press conference, Puigdemont lashed out against the Spanish political parties, and almost his entire speech concerned the disturbed relations between Madrid and Catalonia, with hardly any mention of EU matters.
Only after the session did anger surface here and there, primarily among the radical left GUE and the Greens, who expected a clear position from the Parliament and its president, and simultaneously want a condemnation of Spain. âSassoli has unilaterally taken over the Spanish position without consulting parliament or the legal committee,â railed Belgian MEP Petra De Sutter (Green).
His interpretation, and that of Madrid, is at odds with the ruling of the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg that immunity applies from the announcement of the results. Moreover, GUE/Greens believe the rule of law is indeed at stake. It is downright disgraceful that Spain disregards a ruling of the Court of Justice in Luxembourg.
This is not about whether Catalonia should be independent or not, but about whether democratic decision-making is being ignored, it is said. Others say politics should not interfere in disputes in the judiciary. The EU even acts punitively against prime ministers and ministers who interfere with the judiciary in Poland, Hungary, or other countries.
That the Spanish Supreme Court immediately requested the withdrawal of Puigdemont and ComĂn's immunity sharpens the procedure again. The European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee now must report to the Parliament on this. As a result, the Catalan issue may reappear on Brusselsâ agendas in one, two, or three months.