Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont appeared via a video feed from Belgium to address a rally in Barcelona on Saturday.
“How is it possible that in the same European space, in the common house of Europe, what happened on October 1st (the 2017 Catalan independence referendum) would be considered an act of freedom of expression,” said Puidgemont, who appeared on a large screen at the rally to avoid arrest. “While in Spain, which cannot give many lessons in terms of democracy, it is considered an act of rebellion.”
Earlier in the month, Puigdemont announced he will be a candidate for the Junts per Catalunya party (JxCAT) in the upcoming European parliamentary elections.
Puigdemont has been in exile in Belgium since a Spanish court issued a warrant for his arrest in 2017 after the Catalan Independence referendum, which he organised, was deemed unconstitutional.