Catalan Government Head Condemns Unrest Over Pro-Independence Politicians' Jail Terms

MADRID (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th October, 2019) Quim Torra, the head of the government of Spain's autonomous community of Catalonia, condemned the actions of radical protesters and called for stopping violent riots amid unrest caused by the Spanish top court ruling to sentence Catalan independence movement leaders to prison terms.

The protests in Catalonia have been underway since Monday when the Spanish Supreme Court handled prison terms of up to 13 years to nine out of 12 accused politicians. The demonstrations subsequently turned violent resulting in dozens of people injured and detained. On Wednesday, radical protesters set up barricades and set garbage cans and cars on fire in Barcelona.

"The protest should be peaceful. Some groups should not be allowed to damage the image of the independence movement. We should not allow incidents similar to those that we are observing to happen. There is no excuse for car arson and acts of vandalism," Torra said in a public address broadcast live by 24 Horas.

Late on Wednesday, caretaker Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez made a public statement, calling on the Catalan authorities, specifically Torra, to condemn the actions of radical protesters.

Early on Thursday, riots are still underway in Barcelona. At least six cars have burnt there and the fire threatened to engulf nearby residential buildings.

According to Barcelona mayor Ada Colau, there are at least 40 fire sources across the city.

La Vanguardia news outlet reported that the Barcelona police had used tear gas and pepper spray against the protesters. Several journalists have been injured there. The same outlet reported that two protesters had been hit by police cars.

Catalan security service Mossos de Escuadra wrote on Twitter that radical protesters had thrown Molotov cocktails on security officers.

At least 11 people have asked for medical assistance in the wake of the unrest.

The riots also took place in Girona, Lleida, Tarragona, Sallent and Sils. In Sils, one person was hospitalized in a serious condition amid the unrest.

Roger Torrent, the Catalan parliament speaker, condemned the riots, too. The violent actions have also been criticized by Carles Puigdemont, the former regional government head who led the independence movement in 2017.

The riots in Catalonia are underway despite the fact that the jailed politicians have called for the protests to be peaceful.

During the 2017 independence referendum, over 90 percent of those who voted in it supported the secession of the region from Spain's territory. However, since the vote has not been authorized by the central government, Madrid dissolved regional authorities and detained the separatist leaders on various charges, including sedition and misuse of public funds. Puigdemont has fled to Belgium to avoid detention in Spain.