EXILED Catalonian education minister Clara Ponsati fears she will be degraded and treated inhumanely if a Scottish court sends her back to Spain.
A European Arrest Warrant was issued for the academic and 24 other Catalonian politicians, by the Spanish supreme court last week.
They’re wanted on charges of rebellion related to last October’s independence referendum.
But solicitor Aamer Anwar, who is representing Ponsati, said the charges were “political” and a “systematic attempt to criminalise the desire for independence.”
The academic is due to turn herself into Police Scotland in the next few days, and will make her first appearance in court shortly after.
It’s thought a full hearing will take place on the merits of the Spanish request several weeks later.
It’ll be the job of a Sheriff in Edinburgh to decide if the European Arrest Warrant is valid, and then if there are any reasons why Scottish courts should not comply.
SNP MP and QC Joanna Cherry said she thought Ponsati’s lawyers could argue that it would be difficult for the politician to get a fair trial in Spain, where the judges have been appointed by ministers in Madrid.
In a statement Anwar said he feared for his client if she was sent back to Spain: “I am instructed to oppose the extradition on the basis that this is a political prosecution of Clara and a systematic attempt to criminalise the desire for independence by more than two million voters in Catalonia,” the solicitor said.
He added: “We will submit that there is no guarantee of due process in Spain, of a right to a fair trial in a country where most members of the Catalan government are already in prison or in exile.
“If returned we submit she will be subjected to degrading and inhumane treatment by the Spanish authorities.
“My client is a respected professor at St Andrews University who has never committed a criminal offence.”
There was also immense pressure on Nicola Sturgeon and the Scottish Government to act, and to prevent any extradition.
In his column in today’s National, former SNP MP George Kerevan calls for supporters to “bombard the Scottish Government with appeals to reject the warrant for Clara’s arrest on the grounds” it is political.
Yesterday afternoon, the First Minister issued a statement, criticising the issuing of the warrants, but adding that she was unable to get involved in a judicial process.
“It is well established that the Scottish Government supports the right of the people of Catalonia to determine their own future and that we strongly oppose the Spanish Government’s decision to seek the arrest and imprisonment of independence-supporting politicians.
“The fact that our justice system is legally obliged to follow due process in the determination of extradition requests does not change those views.”
Anwar said Ponsati agreed:”It is claimed that Spain is using the mechanism of the European Arrest Warrant to make European countries complicit in their persecution of the Catalan politicians and the people of Catalonia.
“Over recent months Spain stands accused of abusing the democratic process and the independence of the judicial system. This extradition will be opposed robustly and Clara welcomes the statement of support from the Scottish Government as well as the people of Scotland but respects that it is for our courts to decide what happens next.”
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Correction: An earlier version of this article quoted Joanna Cherry MP saying there was precedent for a court in a EU member state to reject a European Arrest Warrant on human rights grounds. We said Cherry referenced the decision of Irish court not to deport a fraudster to London. This was incorrect. Cherry was referring to the decision of Ireland’s Supreme Court to not extradite a man on drug and organised crime charges to Poland, over concerns about rule of law abuses and a lack of judicial independence.
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