MADRID: A politically charged trial of a dozen Catalan separatist leaders began Tuesday in Spain's Supreme Court amid protests and the possibility of an early general election being called in the country.
The defendants are being tried on rebellion and other charges stemming from their roles in pushing ahead with a unilateral independence declaration in October 2017. The declaration was based on the results of a divisive secession referendum that ignored a constitutional ban.
The trial, arguably Spain's most important in four decades of democracy , started as the future of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's minority government hinged on a last-minute change of position by Catalan pro-independence parties to back his 2019 budget.
Sanchez could be forced to call an early election if the Catalan separatists, whose support brought the Socialists to power last year, don't change their current position of voting against his spending plan Wednesday.
The separatists want Sanchez to agree to talks on self-determination for their region, but the government argues that Spain's constitution doesn't allow it.
Opening the parliamentary debate on Tuesday, Spanish Budget Minister Maria Jesus Montero told Catalan lawmakers that the government would "not give in to any blackmail by anybody."
"Under no circumstance will we agree to include the right to self-determination in Catalonia in any talking points," she said.
Meanwhile, Sanchez appeared to put more pressure on his opponents by tweeting that "the right-wing and the separatists will vote against a budget that helps social causes."
"They both want the same thing: a Catalonia that is divided and a Spain that is divided," he wrote.
In response, Catalan lawmakers said that despite the imminent vote Wednesday, there was still time for the government to "rectify."
Tensions between regional and central authorities peaked with the 2017 breakaway attempt but the conflict has been festering ever since. The 7.5 million residents of Catalonia remain divided by the secession question.
In Barcelona, thousands marched to a central square on Tuesday, demanding independence and criticizing Spain's judiciary. Some carried signs with the slogan, "Self-determination is not a crime." Earlier, pro-independence activists briefly blocked highways and the entrance to the state prosecutor's office before they were cleared by the regional police without incident.
In Madrid, right-wing protesters carrying national flags shouted as lawyers and three defendants who were free on bail entered the 18th-century convent that houses Spain's Supreme Court.
Former Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras, the regional parliament's former Speaker Carme Forcadell and the other 10 defendants weren't expected to testify Tuesday. They sat on four benches in the middle of the courtroom.
The defendants sat facing a seven-judge panel headed by Supreme Court magistrate Manuel Marchena, who presided. They held papers, smiled to each other at times and waved at relatives in the courtroom.
Junqueras' lawyer, Andreu Van den Eynde, was the first to speak, arguing that the cause goes "against political dissidence."
"We are before an exceptional trial," he told the judges, adding that "self-determination is the formula to avoid conflicts in the world."
Catalan President Quim Torra, a fervent separatist who has had to apologize for anti-Spanish comments, followed the proceedings from the back of the courtroom, where 100 seats were reserved for defendants' relatives, journalists and members of the public who lined up for hours to get one of the limited spots.
Torra later called the trial a "farce" and said any guilty verdicts would be appealed to European courts.
"No court can put Catalan democracy on trial," Torra said. "This case will end up in European and international courts, and we will win it."
Among those not on trial is Carles Puigdemont, Torra's predecessor who fled Spain. He called for the 12 separatists to be absolved for their alleged crimes and called the trial "a stress test for the Spanish democracy."
Addressing reporters at a news conference in Berlin, the former Catalan leader added: "I trust, however, that the Spanish state will take advantage of this chance to issue the correct sentence, which is absolution."
Puigdemont successfully avoided extradition to Spain when a German court refused to send him back on charges of rebellion last year. Since then, he has campaigned in Europe for the Catalans to be able to settle their links to Spain in a vote.
Those who stayed behind and showed up in court are the ones standing trial. Junqueras, Puigdemont's No. 2 at the time, faces up to 25 in prison if found guilty of rebellion, while others charged with sedition or misuse of public funds could get shorter sentences if convicted.
The proceedings were broadcast live on television in a display of transparency that aims to fight the separatists' attack on the court's credibility. Authorities in Spain have dismissed the notion that the trial is political and say it follows the European Union's highest standards.
Proceedings were likely to last for at least three months. The verdicts, and any sentences, will be delivered months later.
Trial of Catalan separatists begins in Madrid amid protests
Trial of Catalan separatists begins in Madrid amid protests
- The separatists want Sanchez to agree to talks on self-determination for their region
- In Barcelona, thousands marched to a central square on Tuesday, demanding independence and criticizing Spain's judiciary
An average of 140 women and girls were killed by a partner or relative per day in 2023, the UN says
Globally, an intimate partner or family member was responsible for the deaths of approximately 51,100 women and girls during 2023, an increase from an estimated 48,800 victims in 2022, UN Women and the UN Office of Drugs and Crime said.
The report released on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women said the increase was largely the result of more data being available from countries and not more killings.
But the two agencies stressed that “Women and girls everywhere continue to be affected by this extreme form of gender-based violence and no region is excluded.” And they said, “the home is the most dangerous place for women and girls.”
UN Women’s Deputy Executive Director Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda told a news conference launching the report that women have been killed by their loved ones for a long time and the trend is continuing because underlying issues haven’t been addressed — especially gender stereotyping and social norms.
“This is killing which is associated with power over women,” she said, and it continues because of the continuing impunity for violent attacks against women.
Gumbonzvanda, a Zimbabwean and longtime advocate for women’s rights, said there is “a lot of perpetrator anonymity” when it comes to the killing of women by partners or family members because “it means the family members have to bring justice against another family member.”
UN Women is campaigning for those with economic and political power and for leaders in various traditions not to use their power to perpetuate violence. “Power should be used to facilitate options for prevention,” she said.
According to the report, the highest number of intimate partner and family killings was in Africa – with an estimated 21,700 victims in 2023. Africa also had the highest number of victims relative to the size of its population — 2.9 victims per 100,000 people, it said.
There were also high rates last year in the Americas with 1.6 female victims per 100,000 and in Oceania with 1.5 per 100,000, it said. Rates were significantly lower in Asia at 0.8 victims per 100,000 and Europe at 0.6 per 100,000.
According to the report, the intentional killing of women in the private sphere in Europe and the Americas is largely by intimate partners.
By contrast, the vast majority of male homicides take place outside homes and families, it said.
“Even though men and boys account for the vast majority of homicide victims, women and girls continue to be disproportionately affected by lethal violence in the private sphere,” the report said.
“An estimated 80 percent of all homicide victims in 2023 were men while 20 percent were women, but lethal violence within the family takes a much higher toll on women than men, with almost 60 percent of all women who were intentionally killed in 2023 being victims of intimate partner/family member homicide,” it said.
The report said that despite efforts to prevent the killing of women and girls by countries, their killings “remain at alarmingly high levels.”
“They are often the culmination of repeated episodes of gender-based violence, which means they are preventable through timely and effective interventions,” the two agencies said.
President of Chile denies sexual harassment complaint
- Chilean President Gabriel Boric denies claims he sexually harassed a woman over a decade ago
Santiago: Chilean President Gabriel Boric was accused in a criminal complaint of sexually harassing a woman over a decade ago, an allegation he “categorically” denies, a lawyer said Monday.
“The president ... rejects and categorically denies the complaint,” attorney Jonatan Valenzuela said in a statement, referring to an alleged event in 2013.
The complaint was filed on September 6 in the local prosecutor’s office of Magallanes, in the far south of Chile where Boric is from.
Cristian Crisosto, who heads the Magallanes prosecutor’s office, confirmed “there is a criminal case related to the facts listed,” adding that there was a special team at the agency investigating the complaint.
According to Valenzuela, the complaint was filed by a woman who at the time sent Boric 25 emails that were “unsolicited and non-consensual,” including one with explicit images.
More than 10 years later, the woman “filed a complaint without any basis whatsoever against now-president Gabriel Boric.”
Boric, now 38, was 27 at the time and had just completed his law degree.
“My client never had an emotional relationship or friendship with her and they have not communicated since July 2014,” Valenzuela added.
The accusation against Boric comes as his administration is dealing with a separate scandal over sexual abuse after former crime czar and ex-deputy interior minister Manuel Monsalve was arrested this month on suspicion of raping his subordinate.
Boric, who is ineligible to run for reelection after his four-year presidential term ends in 2026, has special immunity and must first be subject to an impeachment trial by the justice department to be formally investigated.
South Korea holds memorial for forced laborers in Japan after boycotting Japanese event
- South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Monday that it had decided not to attend the Japan-organized memorial largely because the contents of the government speech
- Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters Monday that Japan held the ceremony in line with its pledge at the UNESCO World Heritage committee meeting
SADO, Japan: South Korea commemorated wartime Korean forced laborers at Japan’s Sado gold mines in a ceremony Monday, a day after boycotting a similar event organized by Japan, as tensions over historical atrocities continue to strain relations between the two sides.
Monday’s ceremony at a former dormitory near the mines on Sado Island, which date to the 16th century and were listed this year as a UNESCO World Heritage site, was organized by South Korea’s Foreign Ministry and attended by nine family members of Korean wartime laborers, the country’s ambassador to Japan and other officials.
Japan on Sunday held a memorial service for all workers at the Sado mines, including Koreans. It thanked them for their contributions at the mines but did not acknowledge their forced labor or issue an apology.
At the Korean-sponsored memorial on Monday, participants in dark suits observed a moment of silence and offered white chrysanthemums in honor of the South Korean laborers, along with offerings such as dried fish, sliced apple and pears.
In a short speech, South Korea’s Ambassador to Japan Park Choel-hee offered his condolences to the forced laborers and their families, expressing hopes that the memorial would bring comfort to families. He said South Korea and Japan should both make efforts to ensure that the painful wartime history is remembered.
“We will never forget the tears and sacrifices of the Korean workers behind the history of the Sado mines,” Park said.
“I sincerely hope that today will be a day of remembrance for all the Korean workers who suffered indescribable pain under harsh conditions, and that this memorial service will bring comfort to the souls of the deceased Korean workers and their bereaved families,” Park added.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters Monday that Japan held the ceremony in line with its pledge at the UNESCO World Heritage committee meeting after thoroughly communicating with South Korea. “It is disappointing that South Korea did not participate,” Hayashi said.
About 1,500 Koreans were forced to labor under abusive and brutal conditions at the mines during World War II, historians say.
Sunday’s ceremony, which was supposed to further mend wounds, renewed tensions between the two sides. South Korea announced Saturday its decision to not attend the Japanese-organized ceremony, citing unspecified disagreements with Tokyo over the event.
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Monday that it had decided not to attend the Japan-organized memorial largely because the contents of the government speech at the event were expected to fall short of the agreement between the two sides over the Sado mines’ World Heritage site listing.
Holding a separate memorial ceremony was an expression of “our government’s firm resolve not to make a compromise with Japan on history issues,” it said.
There was speculation that South Korea boycotted the event over the Japanese government’s representative, whom a since-withdrawn report had linked to Tokyo’s controversial Yasukuni Shrine.
Japanese lawmaker and former entertainer Akiko Ikuina is controversial among Japan’s neighbors in part because of a Kyodo News report — later withdrawn as erroneous — that she visited the shrine, which commemorates 2.5 million war dead including war criminals, after she was elected. China and Korea view Yasukuni as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism.
Ikuina has denied visiting Yasukuni since her term began, and Kyodo News on Monday published an apology saying it had erroneously reported Ikuina was among some 20 lawmakers who visited Yasukuni on Aug. 15, 2022, a report widely quoted by Japanese and South Korean media and noted by the South Korean Foreign Ministry.
Hayashi on Tuesday criticized Kyodo over the erroneous story and for causing confusion over the Sado ceremony, adding that the government plans to seek further explanation from Kyodo. He said “there was no problem” with the government’s decision to send Ikuina, who is tasked with culture and public affairs.
Hayashi, noting the importance of cooperation between the two countries in the current security environment, said, “Though there are difficult problems between Japan and South Korea, we plan to continue our close communication.”
The Sado mines were registered as a UNESCO cultural heritage site in July after Japan agreed to include an exhibit on the conditions of Korean forced laborers and to hold a memorial service annually, after repeated protests from the South Korean government.
Signs, including one at the site where South Koreans held their ceremony, have been erected indicating former sites of Korean laborers’ dormitories. A city-operated museum in the area also added a section about Korean laborers, but a private museum attached to the main UNESCO site doesn’t mention them at all.
The site of South Korea’s memorial was the former Fourth Souai Dormitory, one of four dorms for Korean laborers without families. A newly erected sign there reads, “Workers from the Korean Peninsula lived here during the wartime.”
On Saturday, the families visited a former housing site where Korean laborers lived. They also briefly saw the city-run museum and an exhibit on the Korean laborers as they listened to explanations through a translator.
Indonesia digs out as flooding, landslide death toll hits 20
JAKARTA: Rescue workers in western Indonesia used heavy equipment on Tuesday to dig out from weekend flooding and landslides that have killed at least 20 people, the national disaster agency said.
In North Sumatra, the bodies of five people listed as missing had been pulled from under a mountain of mud and debris, agency spokesman Abdul Muhari said in a statement.
“All victims have been found dead,” he said Tuesday, adding that 10 people in all had been killed in a Karo district landslide.
Beginning Saturday, heavy rain pounded four districts across northern Sumatra, producing the deadly floods and landslides.
Juspri Nadeak, disaster chief in hardest-hit Karo district, said the discovery of victims not yet reported missing to authorities remained a possibility.
“The landslide area provides access to hot springs, so there’s a possibility that tourists were hit by it,” he told AFP Tuesday.
“We are still cleaning up the mud and debris from the landslide while anticipating the possibility of discovering more victims.”
In a village in Deli Serdang district, where four people have been found dead and two more were missing, piles of mud, logs and rocks were scattered around the village where a rescue operation was underway.
“The electricity was cut off and there is no cellphone reception, making it difficult for us rescuers to communicate,” Iman Sitorus, a local search and rescue agency spokesman, told AFP.
Authorities also have deployed heavy equipment to clean up the debris, he said.
Indonesia has suffered a string of recent extreme weather events, which experts say are made more likely by climate change.
In May, at least 67 people died after a mixture of ash, sand and pebbles carried down from the eruption of Mount Marapi in West Sumatra washed into residential areas, causing flash floods.
The disaster agency on Monday revised downward its tally to 15 dead and seven missing following an earlier report that listed one more killed.
The death toll climbed to 20 on Tuesday following the discovery of the five bodies in Karo district.
The rest of the victims were found in South Tapanuli, Padang Lawas and Deli Serdang districts.
Large fire at Japan rocket test site
TOKYO: A huge fire erupted Tuesday at a Japanese rocket testing station, sending flames and smoke soaring into the sky, in the latest mishap for the country’s ambitious space program.
There were no reports of any injuries in the incident, in a remote area of Kagoshima in southern Japan, where a solid-fuel Epsilon S rocket was being tested.
Footage on national broadcaster NHK showed towering balls of fire and white fumes rising from the Tanegashima Space Center.
Journalists stationed around 900 meters (yards) away reported a large explosion shortly after after the combustion test began at 8:30 am (2330 GMT).
“There was an abnormality during today’s combustion test. We are trying to assess what happened,” the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) told AFP in a statement.
“No injuries have been reported at this point. The cause is also under investigation.”
The Asahi Shimbun daily reported that the agency’s plan to launch the Epsilon S — the successor to the Epsilon — by March was now nearly impossible.
In July 2023 one engine of an Epsilon S exploded during a test around 50 seconds after ignition.
In that incident a piece of metal from the ignition melted and damaged the thermal insulator covering the engine, allowing fuel to catch fire, Kyodo News reported.
SETBACK
That was one in a string of setbacks for Japan’s space program, including launch attempts for its next-generation H3 launch system.
JAXA managed a successful blast-off in February this year for the H3, which has been mooted as a rival to SpaceX’s Falcon 9.
But that followed a failed attempt in February 2023 when the ignition process failed. The following month a destruct command was issued shortly after blast-off.
“Including the Epsilon S, the development of flagship rockets is extremely important for the independence of Japan’s space development program,” top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters at a regular briefing on Tuesday.
In January, Japan successfully landed an unmanned probe on the Moon — albeit at a crooked angle — making it just the fifth country to achieve a soft landing on the lunar surface.
But in March a rocket made by a private Japanese company exploded seconds after launch.
Tokyo-based Space One’s 18-meter (60-foot) Kairos rocket blasted off in the coastal Wakayama region of western Japan, carrying a small government test satellite.
Around five seconds later, the solid-fuel rocket erupted in fire, sending white smoke billowing around the remote mountainous area as orange flames raged on the ground, live footage showed.
Burning debris fell onto the surrounding slopes as sprinklers began spraying water, in dramatic scenes watched by hundreds of spectators gathered at public viewing areas including a nearby waterfront.
Space One said at the time that it had taken the decision to “abort the flight” and details were being investigated.
