The amnesty was planned yesterday during the opening of the judicial year. In the speeches of the President of the Supreme Court and the Attorney General of the State, the word was not pronounced, but the truth is that it was in the background of their sentences. After King Felipe VI inaugurated the judicial course, as every year, a cocktail party was held in which political leaders, such as the leader of the PP himself, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, magistrates of the Supreme Court, members of the of the General Council of the Judiciary and magistrates of the Constitutional Court. The word amnesty resonated, as did the tedium after five years of a judicial power blocked due to lack of agreement between the PSOE and PP.
The Acting President of the Supreme Court, Francisco Marín, made a “tough but necessary” speech, as several sources from the High Court later assured. To begin his words, he mentioned the book Cóm o mueren las democracies, a precursor to the rest of his speech.
Marín put a stop to the attacks on judicial independence, in a legislature in which the decisions of the courts - such as those linked to the process - have been particularly criticized and overturned with agreements such as pardons or the repeal of the crime of sedition. Added to this scenario is the possibility that an amnesty could be considered for the events that took place in the fall of 2017.
The successor of Carlos Lesmes in the presidency of the High Court let slip that there are direct attacks from political leaders, but others that are more subtle "and therefore more dangerous for the functioning of the democratic system". Funds of the Council pointed out that this phrase implicitly indicated the amnesty project.
In front of the Minister of Justice, Pilar Llop, and the King, Marín did not want to miss the opportunity to delve into the "pernicious effects" of these maneuvers whose aim is "to cause his disrepute, weaken him and, if the case comes, to divert public attention from other issues".
Within the Supreme Court, the situation is delicate. First because there is nothing in writing about a possible amnesty law as a bargaining chip for Pedro Sánchez to be proclaimed president again. The only thing there is a maximum proposal presented by the pro-independence parties in 2021 and which was not even admitted to the procedure after the report of the lawyers of the Congress.
In addition, if approved, it would be a legislative decision and, therefore, they must remain on the sidelines. But the discomfort is obvious. In fact, there is already speculation about the scenarios that can open up for Pablo Llarena, instructor of the process, in the event that former president Carles Puigdemont is granted amnesty and returns to Spain without facing the pending criminal case. According to legal sources, these could go on to raise a question of unconstitutionality before the Constitutional Court or a prejudicial question in Europe to put black on white the legality and scope of the rule.
The other affair that overshadowed the judicial year was the blockade of the CGPJ, which has lasted almost five years and has brought the Supreme Court to a "bleak" state. "Not proceeding with the renewal of the CGPJ in time and form is still a way of curtailing the fullness of this independence, in the same way as it is to keep the highest court of the nation in a critical situation, "almost assisted breathing", he emphasized. "Sadness", "erosion", "weakening", were some of the adjectives to describe the situation of justice due to the blockade maintained by politicians. "It is time for great politicians and great democrats. It would be a huge disappointment to miss him," he said.
