for us values that we want to decide our own future."

READ MORE: Euronews explains Catalan separatists' trial and what it could mean

The defendants who went on trial on Tuesday are facing charges of rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds for their role in the north-east region's failed independence declaration.

Puigdemont, the former president of Catalonia, is the big absence from the trial. He fled to Belgium on October 30, 2017.

"The fact is the support for the pro-independence parties was higher than the support for parties explicitly against independence," said Puigdemont, pointing to the most recent elections in the region to support his desire for secession from Madrid.

Puigdemont, though, saved his strongest words for the Spanish government when asked why he wasn't at home facing justice.

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A six-year-old girl has suffered serious facial injuries after being bitten by a dog "similar to a pitbull" at a restaurant.

The incident took place at around 4pm on Sunday afternoon (April 7) at a Toby Carvery in Cheam Road, Ewell , where the child was playing outside in the garden. She was taken to hospital as a result of her injuries.

Police received a call from Epsom General Hospital, where the girl was being treated, following the incident and are now appealing for information. They have released descriptions as they search for the dog and its owner.

The dog is described as white and “similar