Bassa defends dialogue before returning to prison while Forcadell urges persistence

Barcelona / FigueresCarme Forcadell and Dolors Bassa are already back in prison. The two pro-independence leaders convicted at the trial on the referendum bid, who had already left the prisons of Puig de les Basses and Wad-Ras, respectively, to spend the Bank Holiday weekend with their families, arrived at around 8:30 p.m. They have done so after the Supreme Court ruled to revoke their parole, and contacted the two political prisoners to inform them that they must return to prison.

Visibly affected and surrounded by her family and friends, former Minister Dolors Bassa has returned to prison, but before that she has addressed the dozens of people who have gathered at the prison to support her and show their rejection of the judicial decision. "Whatever they do, we will not give up, we will go on. Whatever they say, dialogue and negotiation will always be there". "However much they want to trample on us, they will not succeed," Bassa said, who also admitted that she feels "anger, impotence and indignity".

Former Parliamentary President Carme Forcadell also thanked the people gathered outside the Wad-Ras prison, which she returned to this afternoon after the Supreme Court revoked her parole. "You are always there and we know you will persist, go ahead," she said in a brief speech just before entering the Wad-Ras prison.

Bassa and Forcadell have not been alone in their return to prison. The vice-president and acting president, Pere Aragonès, has led the ERC delegation to support the former president of the Parliament, who has also been joined by the president of the Parliament, Roger Torrent, or the deputy secretary general of ERC, Marta Vilalta. The delegation was received by some of the demonstrators by reproaches for the party's support of the state budget: "Less budget and more unity", chanted the demonstrators, who also demanded that the prisons be opened. Among those gathered in Puig de les Basses, besides the deputy in Congress Montse Bassa, Dolors's sister, were also the Minister of Agriculture, Teresa Jordà, the Minister for Work, Chakir El Homrani, and the vice-president of Òmnium Cultural, Marcel Mauri.

ANC concentration

Summoned by the ANC, several columns of vehicles arrived at the two prisons at around 7 p.m. to reject the Supreme Court's decision to revoke parole for the political prisoners. Coming from Girona, Banyoles, Santa Coloma de Farners or Figueres, in the case of Puig de les Basses, and from Barcelona and Santa Coloma de Gramenet, in Wad-Ras, the demonstrators have gathered in front of the prisons to denounce the judicial resolution.

In front of the Wad-Ras prison, the president of the ANC, Elisenda Paluzie, said that the revocation of the third degree of political prisoners is "one more episode of political repression" and urged to "continue working tirelessly until the country's independence is achieved". The leader of the ANC has said that the "punishment" aims to "crush the movement" and that, also with the revocation of parole, the State wants the independence movement to "abandon its goal".