The five failed to attend a high court hearing in Madrid on Thursday when nine other ex-members of the regional government were taken into custody.

One of those detained has been freed on bail of €50,000 (£44,000; $58,000).

They all face charges of rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds for pursuing Catalan independence.

Mr Puigdemont has said he will not return to Spain unless he receives guarantees of a fair trial.

Belgium will “study” the warrant, a spokesman for the state prosecutor told AFP news agency.

The regional parliament in Catalonia voted to proclaim an independent republic a week ago, following an illegal referendum on independence organised by the Catalan government on 1 October

No other country recognised the move and the Spanish central government moved swiftly to impose control, using emergency powers under the constitution.

Who faces extradition?

Mr Puigdemont was the president of the autonomous region of Catalonia until the proclamation of independence and continues to regard himself as the president of the newly proclaimed “Republic of Catalonia”.

Mr Puigdemont and his colleagues travelled to Belgium to raise their case for statehood at the EU institutions and he insists he is not trying to evade “real justice”.

He said in a Belgian TV interview aired earlier on Friday that he would co-operate with Belgian judicial authorities.

He also said that he was ready to run in snap regional elections in Catalonia next month.

The other four warrants are for:

• Meritxell Serret, former agriculture minister
• Antoni Comín, former health minister
• Lluís Puig, former culture minister
• Clara Ponsatí, former education minister

Will the warrants be acted upon?

The warrants were sent to Belgian prosecutors, who have 24 hours to decide whether the paperwork is correct.

If they do, they will forward them on to a judge who will decide whether Mr Puigdemont and the four others should be arrested.

Belgium has a maximum of 60 days to return the suspects to Spain after arrest. But if the suspects do not raise legal objections, a transfer could happen much sooner.

A country can reject an EU arrest warrant if it fears that extradition would violate the suspect’s human rights.

Discrimination based on politics, religion or race is grounds for refusal. So are fears that the suspect would not get a fair trial.

There is an agreed EU list of 32 offences – in Article Two of the EAW law – for which there is no requirement for the offence to be a crime in both countries. In other words, any of those offences can be a justification for extradition, provided the penalty is at least three years in jail.

However, neither “sedition” nor “rebellion” – two of the Spanish accusations against the Catalan leaders – are on that list.

What about those already in prison?

Thousands of protesters have gathered in Barcelona and other Catalan cities for the second night running to call for the release of the former officials detained on Thursday.

Santi Vila, the Catalan former business minister, was granted bail at the request of prosecutors after spending a night in prison.

“My colleagues and I are fine, we are calm,” he said upon leaving jail in Madrid, but called the detentions “disproportionate”, Spain’s El País newspaper reports.

He had resigned from the cabinet before the Catalan parliament voted for independence.

Those who remain in custody are:

• Oriol Junqueras, former deputy vice-president
• Joaquim Forn, former interior minister
• Raül Romeva, former external relations secretary
• Carles Mundó, former justice minister
• Dolors Bassa, former labour minister
• Jordi Turull, former government presidency councillor
• Josep Rull, former sustainable development minister
• Meritxell Borras, former culture minister

Protesters are also calling for the release of two grassroots separatist leaders, Jordi Sánchez and Jordi Cuixart, who were taken into custody last month. They lost an appeal for release on Friday.

Five senior members of the Catalan parliament, as well as Speaker Carme Forcadell, are facing the same charges but, because of their parliamentary immunity, their cases are being handled by the Supreme Court. Their hearings have been postponed until 9 November.

–

Source: BBC

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The officials – who appeared in Spain’s high court – are accused of rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds.

Prosecutors are also seeking a European Arrest Warrant for ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, who did not show up in court and is now in Belgium.

The request also covers four other ex-ministers who ignored the summons.

Spain has been gripped by a constitutional crisis since a referendum on independence from Spain was held in Catalonia on 1 October in defiance of a constitutional court ruling that had declared it illegal.

Last week, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy imposed direct rule on Catalonia, dissolving the regional parliament and calling local elections for 21 December.

This came after Catalan lawmakers voted to declare the independence of the affluent north-eastern region.

The Catalan government said that of the 43% of potential voters who took part in the referendum, 90% were in favour of independence.

On Thursday, thousands of people gathered outside Catalonia’s regional parliament in Barcelona.

Many carried Catalan flags and slogans that read “Freedom for political prisoners”.

Similar protest rallies were held in other Catalan towns.

Political parties and civic groups in the affluent north-eastern region also condemned the judicial move,

What happened in Spain’s high court in Madrid?

Nine out of 14 summoned Catalan ex-ministers appeared before Judge Carmen Lamela.

She said they had to be detained because they might otherwise leave the country or destroy evidence.

Those who were held are:

• Former Deputy Vice-President Oriol Junqueras
• Former Interior Minister Joaquim Forn
• Former Foreign Affairs Minister Raül Romeva
• Former Justice Minister Carles Mundó
• Former Labour Minister Dolors Bassa
• Former Government Presidency Councillor Jordi Turull
• Former Sustainable Development Minister Josep Rull
• Former Culture Minister Meritxell Borras

The ninth official, ex-Business Minister Santi Vila, was granted bail at the request of prosecutors. He quit before the Catalan parliament voted for independence last Friday.

In addition to Mr Puigdemont, prosecutors have asked Spain’s high court judge to issue European arrest warrants for the following Catalan officials:

• Meritxell Serret, former agriculture minister
• Antoni Comín, former health minister
• Lluís Puig, former culture minister
• Clara Ponsatí, former education minister

Five other senior members of the Catalan parliament, as well as Speaker Carme Forcadell, are facing the same charges but, because of their parliamentary immunity, their cases are being handled by the Supreme Court.

Their hearings have been postponed until 9 November.

How did Carles Puigdemont react?

In a statement broadcast on Catalan TV from an undisclosed location in Belgium, he described the detentions as “an act that breaks with the basic principles of democracy”.

“I demand the release of the ministers and the vice-president,” he added.

Mr Puigdemont, who was spotted in a Brussels cafe on Thursday, has said he will not return to Spain unless he receives guarantees of a fair trial. He did not specify his exact demands.

Belgium’s federal prosecutor has said the law will be applied once an arrest warrant is received, according to Efe news agency.

Mr Puigdemont’s lawyer said the climate was “not good” for him to appear in court, but he also said his client would co-operate with the authorities in Spain and Belgium.

Mr Puigdemont’s handling of the crisis has drawn criticism among some other Catalan politicians, with left-wing parliamentary deputy Joan Josep Nuet criticising him for creating “yet more bewilderment”.

Spain’s central bank warned on Thursday of the “significant risks and economic costs” resulting from the crisis, and that Catalonia’s economy could fall into recession.

Early numbers suggest that the vital tourism sector of the region has already been affected by the ongoing uncertainty.

EU arrest warrant: What happens next?

If Spain’s high court judge issues a warrant, a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) will be sent to Belgian prosecutors, who have 24 hours to decide whether the paperwork is correct. If they do, they then have 15 days to arrest Mr Puigdemont and the four others. If one or all of them appeals against it, that process could last another 15 days.

Belgium has a maximum of 60 days to return the suspects to Spain after arrest. But if the suspects do not raise legal objections, a transfer could happen within a few days.

A country can reject an EU arrest warrant if it fears that extradition would violate the suspect’s human rights. Discrimination based on politics, religion or race is grounds for refusal. So are fears that the suspect would not get a fair trial.

There is an agreed EU list of 32 offences – in Article Two of the EAW law – for which there is no requirement for the offence to be a crime in both countries. In other words, any of those offences can be a justification for extradition, provided the penalty is at least three years in jail.

However, neither “sedition” nor “rebellion” – two of the Spanish accusations against the Catalan leaders – are on that list.

–

Source: BBC

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The move was backed 70-10 in a ballot boycotted by opposition MPs.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy earlier told senators direct rule was needed to return “law, democracy and stability” to Catalonia.

The crisis began when Catalans backed independence in an illegal vote earlier this month.

The Catalan government said that of the 43% of potential voters who took part in the referendum, 90% were in favour of independence. But Spain’s Constitutional Court had ruled the vote illegal.

In all, the motion declaring independence was approved with 70 in favour, 10 against and two abstentions in the 135-seat chamber.

Immediately afterwards, Mr Rajoy called for all Spaniards to remain calm, promising to “restore legality” to Catalonia.

Spain’s Senate is still to vote on whether for the first time to enact Article 155 of the Spanish constitution, which empowers the government to take “all measures necessary to compel” a region in case of a crisis.

It would enable Madrid to fire Catalan leaders, and take control of the region’s finances, police and public media.

–

Source: BBC

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In his first interview since Sunday’s referendum, Carles Puigdemont said his government would “act at the end of this week or the beginning of next”.

Meanwhile, Spain’s King Felipe VI said organisers of the vote put themselves “outside the law”.

He said the situation in Spain was “extremely serious”, calling for unity.

Hundreds of thousands of people across Catalonia have been protesting over Spanish police violence during the vote, during which nearly 900 people were hurt.

During the vote, 33 police officers were also injured, local medical officials said.

In the BBC interview, Catalonia’s President Carles Puigdemont said his government would “act at the end of this week or the beginning of next”.

When asked what he would do if the Spanish government were to intervene and take control of Catalonia’s government, Mr Puigdemont said it would be “an error which changes everything”.

Mr Puigdemont said there was currently no contact between the government in Madrid and his devolved administration.

He disagreed with the European Commission’s statement on Monday that events in Catalonia were an internal issue for Spain.

He was speaking shortly before the king’s speech.

In his televised address to the nation, the king said the Catalan leaders who organised the referendum showed their “disrespect to the powers of the state”.

“They have broken the democratic principles of the rule of law.

“Today, the Catalan society is fractured,” the king said, warning that the poll could put at risk the economy of the wealthy north-eastern region and the whole of Spain.

But he stressed that Spain “will overcome difficult times”.

The central government has described the referendum as illegal.

Huge protest rallies have been taking place across Catalonia.

In Barcelona alone, 700,000 people took to the streets, city police were quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.

This has not been confirmed by the authorities in Madrid.

More than 50 roadblocks in the city caused big traffic jams. Barcelona’s metro traffic was cut to a 25% service during rush hour and no trains at all at other times.

Barcelona’s port was at a standstill, trade union sources said.

Top tourist attractions were also closed, including the city’s famous Sagrada Familia church.

Mercabarna – Barcelona’s massive wholesale market – was left deserted as some 770 food businesses closed for the day.

However, the city’s El Prat airport and its taxis are operating normally.

Many small businesses have shut for the day. Schools, universities and medical services were also closed or operating at a minimum level.

The strike was called in protest at “the grave violation of rights and freedoms” seen during the ballot.

Some police officers were seen firing rubber bullets, storming into polling stations and pulling women by their hair.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has said the vote made a “mockery” of democracy.

Earlier on Tuesday, Spanish Interior Minister Juan Ignacio Zoido said: “We see how day after day the government of Catalonia is pushing the population to the abyss and inciting rebellion in the streets.”

He also warned that the central government would take “all measures necessary to stop acts of harassment”.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría condemned the “mafia” behaviour of those protesters who had earlier gathered around hotels housing Spanish police officers and demanded that they leave.

On Sunday, more than 2.2 million people reportedly voted in the referendum. The Catalan government says the vote in support of independence was nearly 90%, but official results have not yet been released.

Turnout was relatively low at a reported 42%, potentially weakening the position of Mr Puigdemont.

Meanwhile, political leaders are trying to find a way forward.

Mr Puigdemont earlier said he wanted a new understanding with the government in Madrid, but the Spanish government has warned it could suspend autonomy of the region.

–

Source: BBC

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Prior to the strike, members of the Greater Accra branch of NAGRAT have indicated they will embark on a demonstration on Thursday, May 15.

The intended nationwide demonstration is expected to be replicated in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region on May 27.

The President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Christian Addai-Mensah, issued this threat on Wednesday May 7, 2014 in Accra at a news conference.

He accused government of downplaying NAGRAT’s outstanding issues of non- payment of the 2011-2012 increment credit arrears, three months arrears payment policy, poor handling of the second Tier pension issues of Ghana Education Service (GES) workers, staff rationalization and non-payment of transfer grants among other issues.

He said majority of graduate teachers were facing difficulties in paying back loans they collected from banks following government’s delay in addressing their financial constraints.

On the issue of pension, Mr. Christian Addai explained that “Teacher Unions have done everything humanly possible to get government and the National Pension Regulatory Authority [NPRA] to see to a peaceful resolution of these  issues but government has remained indifferent; we are reliably informed that workers contribution have become a cheap source of funds to government and hence the persistence in clinging onto workers money.”

He demanded that steps should be taken to improve data processing mechanism at the Ghana Education Service District Directorate, the GES Headquarters and the Controller and Accountant Generals Department so as to ensure speedy processing of salaries and allowances.

Christian Addai-Mensah also challenged the education minister, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang who was onetime a lecturer to be proactive in addressing teachers’ concerns.

Click to read full address by NAGRAT president

By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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