Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont faces arrest in Finland after authorities there received an international warrant for his detention issued by Spain, the latest legal action against separatist politicians from the wealthy northeastern region.

If he returns to Spain, Puigdemont faces up to 25 years in prison on charges of rebellion and sedition for his part in organizing an illegal referendum on secession last year.

Finland has received the warrant but has requested more information from Spain before taking action, Inspector Hannu Kautto told Reuters on Saturday.

In an interview with Spanish radio station Catalunya Radio earlier, Puigdemont's lawyer, Jaume Alonso-Cuevillas, said his client would present himself to Finish police.

Puigdemont went into self-imposed exile in Belgium last year, shortly after the Catalan parliament made a symbolic declaration of independence from Spain. He arrived in Finland on Thursday to meet lawmakers and attend a conference.

On Friday, Spanish supreme court judge Pablo Llarena ruled a total of 25 separatist politicians, including Puigdemont, would face trial for rebellion, embezzlement or disobeying the state.

Of those, five were sent on Friday to pre-trial jail, among them Jordi Turull, a close ally of Puigdemont who was due to be put forward for a second vote on Saturday to become the next regional president.

The court's decision means the vote on Turull's leadership cannot go ahead because his presence is mandatory.

Catalan parliament speaker Roger Torrent said on Friday he would continue with the session and read a statement in support of pro-independence leaders, despite opposition from the government and unionist parties in Catalonia.

On Saturday, government sources reiterated calls for Torrent to cancel the session and said Madrid would study what action to take if it went ahead as planned.</s>Finnish police are looking for the former president of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont, and will detain him if he’s found, according to the Nordic country’s interior minister.

Finland received an extradition request on Friday from Spain, which also delivered additional documents to support an arrest, Kai Mykkanen, the minister, said by phone on Saturday. An arrest warrant has been issued for Puigdemont, whose whereabouts are unknown.

A Spanish Supreme Court judge on Friday filed preliminary charges against 13 Catalan separatist leaders, including Puigdemont, for their part in the push to break away from Spain last year. Pablo Llarena said the separatist leadership should be charged with rebellion for holding an illegal referendum and declaring independence from the state.

Puigdemont fled to Brussels immediately after that declaration in October and has remained in self-imposed exile ever since.</s>Catalan separatist leaders Jordi Turull (2R) and Josep Rull (C) arrive at the Supreme Court in Madrid

Spain's Supreme Court said on Friday that it would prosecute 13 key Catalan separatists for "rebellion", as Marta Rovira became the latest leading pro-independence figure to flee abroad to escape charges over the region's breakaway bid.

Among those prosecuted are Catalonia's sacked president Carles Puigdemont and his designated successor, Jordi Turull.



 'Junts per Catalonia' member of Catalonia's parliament Jordi Turull during the session on Thursday. Photo: AFP

If found guilty, they face up to 30 years in prison.

Judge Pablo Llarena accused Puigdemont -- currently in self-imposed exile in Belgium -- of organising the independence referendum in October last year despite a ban from Madrid and "grave risk of violent incidents".

Turull, a former government spokesman, is already under investigation over Catalonia's secession drive but so far remains free under bail. He was due to appear in court Friday along with several other leading separatists.

But one of them, Marta Rovira, ignored the summons and instead announced she was taking "the road to exile".

Rovira is deputy leader of the leftwing separatist ERC party, whose chief is currently in jail.



 Marta Rovira said she would go into exile. Photo: AFP

She was placed under judicial control in February, but the judge stopped short of putting her behind bars for the duration of an ongoing probe into charges of rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds.

In a statement released by her party, Rovira said she felt her "freedom of expression was being censored by the courts which intimidate and shamelessly apply political criteria".

Rovira, who did not specify where she was headed, is the seventh separatist to flee abroad to escape charges.

Separatist parties won regional elections in December called by Madrid after they attempted to secede, retaining their absolute majority in parliament.

But they have still not been able to form a government as their two previous candidates for the presidency proved problematic.

As a result, Catalonia remains under direct rule from Madrid, imposed after the declaration.

The separatist parties failed to elect a new regional president on Thursday after their most radical faction refused to back Turull in a vote of confidence.

A second round parliamentary vote is due to take place on Saturday.</s>Catalan separatist parties were set to fail to elect Jordi Turull as regional head on Thursday after the most radical faction of Catalonia's independence movement refused to back him in a vote of confidence.

Just minutes before a Catalan parliamentary session kicked off to appoint Turull the far-left CUP party, which with its four lawmakers plays a kingmaker's role in the pro-independence camp, announced it would abstain from voting.

The decision means the 51-year-old fervent separatist would not get the absolute majority he needs in the first round of voting later on Thursday, prolonging a political impasse in the wealthy Spanish region.

Under parliamentary regulations, if there is no outright winner, a second round must take place two days later.

Turull, the only candidate, is not even guaranteed a win in a second round, where he would just requre a simple majority of parliamentary votes cast.

As if this wasn't enough, it's uncertain whether the former Catalan government spokesman would even be able to attend a second session as he has been summoned before a Supreme Court judge on Friday along with five other separatist leaders.

The judge is due to notify them of the charges brought against them for their role in the Catalan independence drive, and may even remand some of them in custody pending a trial.

With this in mind, Turull did not mention the word "independence" during his speech to the Catalan parliament even though the CUP demanded a greater commitment to the separatist cause if he wants their support.

Instead he appealed for dialogue with Spanish's central government.

"We ask to sit at the same table to resolve politically the problems we face," he said.

The vote on Turull's candidacy will trigger a two month deadline for Catalonia to install a new regional government before fresh Catalan elections must be held.

Catalan parliament speaker Roger Torrent called the express parliamentary session on Thursday faced with what he dubbed the "interference" of the Supreme Court.

Had Turull managed to be sworn in, he would go before the judge on Friday as Catalonia's new president-elect and jailing him would take on a greater gravity.

Turull is the third separatist candidate to be proposed following failed bids by Catalonia's ousted president Carles Puigdemont and jailed pro-independence activist Jordi Sanchez, who withdrew Wednesday.

As such, Spanish media have dubbed him the separatists' "plan C."

"You don't want to govern, you want to prolong the chaos," Ines Arrimadas, Ciudadanos's chief in Catalonia, said during the debate in parliament.

"You can't be part of the solution that we need in Catalonia because you are part of the problem."

Spain's Justice Minister Rafael Catala accused the separatists of seeking "a clash with the rule of law, with institutions."

Speaking on Spanish radio, Catala said that calling the session to appoint a candidate under investigation "shows there is no real desire to find solutions for the future, but only to continue muddying the playing field."

Separatist parties won regional elections in December called by Madrid after they attempted to secede, retaining their absolute majority in parliament.

But they have still not been able to form a government as their two previous candidates for the presidency proved problematic.

Puigdemont went into self-exile in Belgium after separatist lawmakers declared independence last October and Sanchez is in jail pending the probe into the secession drive.

As long has it does not have a government, Catalonia will remain under direct rule from Madrid, imposed after the independence declaration.</s>HELSINKI/BARCELONA – Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont faces arrest in Finland after authorities there received an international warrant for his detention issued by Spain, the latest legal action against separatist politicians from the wealthy northeastern region.

If he returns to Spain, Puigdemont faces up to 25 years in prison on charges of rebellion and sedition for his part in organising an illegal referendum on secession last year.

Finland has received the warrant but has requested more information from Spain before taking action, Inspector Hannu Kautto told Reuters on Saturday.

In an interview with Spanish radio station Catalunya Radio earlier, Puigdemont’s lawyer, Jaume Alonso-Cuevillas, said his client would present himself to Finish police.

Puigdemont went into self-imposed exile in Belgium last year, shortly after the Catalan parliament made a symbolic declaration of independence from Spain. He arrived in Finland on Thursday to meet lawmakers and attend a conference.

On Friday, Spanish supreme court judge Pablo Llarena ruled a total of 25 separatist politicians, including Puigdemont, would face trial for rebellion, embezzlement or disobeying the state.

Of those, five were sent on Friday to pre-trial jail, among them Jordi Turull, a close ally of Puigdemont who was due to be put forward for a second vote on Saturday to become the next regional president.

The court’s decision means the vote on Turull’s leadership cannot go ahead because his presence is mandatory.

Catalan parliament speaker Roger Torrent said on Friday he would continue with the session and read a statement in support of pro-independence leaders, despite opposition from the government and unionist parties in Catalonia.

On Saturday, government sources reiterated calls for Torrent to cancel the session and said Madrid would study what action to take if it went ahead as planned.</s>MADRID (AP) — The Latest on Spain's confrontation with Catalan separatists (all times local):

Spain's Supreme Court says international arrest warrants have been issued for six fugitive Catalan politicians, including ousted regional chief Carles Puigdemont, who were indicted for rebellion on Friday.

The arrest orders also affect four more ex members of Puigdemont's cabinet and the separatist ERC party's Marta Rovira, who ignored a court summons on Friday and announced in a letter she was fleeing the country to live "in exile."

Spanish media say Rovira has arrived in Switzerland.

Rovira was only charged with rebellion for the attempt to make Catalonia independent of Spain. The other five Catalan politicians were also charged with misuse of public funds.

Spanish courts sought Puigdemont's extradition from Brussels last year but later canceled that petition amid concerns that Belgium might send him back but restrict the crimes with which he could be charged.

A Spanish Supreme Court judge is sending to jail without bail five Catalan politicians charged with rebellion who showed up for a summons in Madrid.

Former Catalan parliamentary speaker Carme Forcadell, ex-Catalan minister Jordi Turull —who had been proposed as Catalonia's next president— and three more officials are expected to enter prisons Friday near Madrid.

Another summoned politician, the ERC party's Marta Rovira, ignored the court order and announced by letter that she was fleeing the country.

Spain's top prosecutor had demanded that all be jailed since there was a high risk of them repeating the crimes they are accused of.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says he is not enthusiastic about holding another regional election in Catalonia.

The wealthy northeastern region, where pro-independence politicians have been trying to win independence from Spain, held a snap election last December. But it still doesn't have a president or a government because of legal wrangles and political disputes with the national government over the secession bid.

The separatist majority of Catalonia's parliament failed for a third time to elect its candidate as regional president during a vote Thursday. That started a two-month countdown to find a leader and a government, otherwise another election must be called.

Rajoy said Friday in Brussels that he doesn't like repeat elections, saying "people vote and politicians have a duty to resolve problems and not create others."

Catalonia's fugitive ex-president says he has not spoken to the latest separatist lawmaker to flee Spain.

Speaking at a press conference at the University of Helsinki on Friday, Carles Puigdemont denied discussing exile with Marta Rovira, who defied a summons to appear in Spanish court hours earlier.

Still, Puigdemont says he fully supports her decision to do so.

Puigdemont, who is himself in self-imposed exile in Belgium, also criticized a Spanish judge's decision to charge him and other 12 Catalan separatists with rebellion on Friday.

"It is not right for a judge to do politics," the former leader said just moments after the court ruling.

Puigdemont's comments come one day after the pro-independence majority of Catalonia's parliament failed to elect a regional president.

A Spanish Supreme Court judge is requiring the 14 members of the former Catalan Cabinet to pay a collective deposit of 2.1 million euros ($2.6 million) before an upcoming trial establishes whether they misused public funds for an illegal independence referendum.

The figure, disclosed in Judge Pablo Llarena's Friday ruling into Spain's gravest political crisis in decades, includes 1.6 million euros of public money which, according to the judicial investigation, were deviated to pay for the Oct. 1 vote in Spain's northeastern region.

The judge also says that the strategy to seek unilateral secession may remain "latent," as the roadmap designed by separatists included plans to renew the leadership of Catalan parties and civil society groups.

Llarena describes the case as "an attack on the constitutional State that, with the will to impose a change in the form of government for Catalonia and the rest of the country, encompasses an unusual gravity and persistence."

Spanish Supreme Court Judge Pablo Llarena says that Catalan separatist politicians and civil society groups have "colluded" for the past six years to execute a plan to declare Catalonia's independence, in violation of Spain's legal order.

In a court ruling issued Friday at the end of a four-month investigation into the turbulent events that led to a failed declaration of independence, Llarena said that 25 Catalans will be tried for rebellion, embezzlement or disobedience.

Thirteen, including ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont and members of his Cabinet, are charged with rebellion, which is punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

A Spanish Supreme Court judge has charged 13 Catalan separatist politicians, including fugitive president Carles Puigdemont, with rebellion for their attempt to declare independence from Spain.

Judge Pablo Llarena issued the indictment Friday, wrapping up a four-month long investigation into the events last fall.

Rebellion charges are punishable with up to 30 years in prison under Spanish laws.

Also charged with rebellion are Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras, former Catalan parliament speaker Carme Forcadell, separatist activists Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart and ERC party leader Marta Rovira, who on Friday announced that she was fleeing Spain.

A prominent Catalan separatist politician has defied a summons to appear in a Spanish court and says in a letter to her party followers that she has chosen "the path to exile."

Marta Rovira does not say in the letter whether she has left Spain already or where she might go, but six other Catalan politicians, including ousted Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, earlier fled to Brussels.

As the secretary general of the Catalan republican-left ERC party, Rovira played a key role in last year's events, including an independence referendum that led to a failed attempt to secede from Spain.

"Today I undertake a hard road, a path that, unfortunately, so many others that preceded us have had to take," Rovira wrote in a letter posted on ERC's website. "The path of exile."

The unity of Spain in enshrined in the country's Constitution and secession is not allowed without a reform of the top law.

A Spanish Supreme Court probe into last year's attempt to secede Catalonia from Spain wraps up Friday with the judge expected to charge 28 regional politicians and separatist leaders with offenses that may include rebellion.

Judge Pablo Llarena has summoned lawyers, prosecutors, as well as six separatist politicians — an indication that he may order them jailed pending trial. They include Jordi Turull, a former minister of the ousted regional Cabinet who on Thursday failed in his bid to be elected as the region's new president, as well as a former speaker of the Catalan parliament and prominent members of the republican-left ERC party.

Four other accused are already in custody and six have fled overseas.

The semiautonomous region has been without a leader for nearly five months after central authorities took control following an illegal independence declaration.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>HELSINKI/BARCELONA (Reuters) - Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont faces arrest in Finland after authorities there received an international warrant for his detention issued by Spain, the latest legal action against separatist politicians from the wealthy northeastern region.

If he returns to Spain, Puigdemont faces up to 25 years in prison on charges of rebellion and sedition for his part in organising an illegal referendum on secession last year.

Finland has received the warrant but has requested more information from Spain before taking action, Inspector Hannu Kautto told Reuters on Saturday.

In an interview with Spanish radio station Catalunya Radio earlier, Puigdemont’s lawyer, Jaume Alonso-Cuevillas, said his client would present himself to Finish police.

Puigdemont went into self-imposed exile in Belgium last year, shortly after the Catalan parliament made a symbolic declaration of independence from Spain. He arrived in Finland on Thursday to meet lawmakers and attend a conference.

On Friday, Spanish supreme court judge Pablo Llarena ruled a total of 25 separatist politicians, including Puigdemont, would face trial for rebellion, embezzlement or disobeying the state.

Of those, five were sent on Friday to pre-trial jail, among them Jordi Turull, a close ally of Puigdemont who was due to be put forward for a second vote on Saturday to become the next regional president.

The court’s decision means the vote on Turull’s leadership cannot go ahead because his presence is mandatory.

Catalan parliament speaker Roger Torrent said on Friday he would continue with the session and read a statement in support of pro-independence leaders, despite opposition from the government and unionist parties in Catalonia.

On Saturday, government sources reiterated calls for Torrent to cancel the session and said Madrid would study what action to take if it went ahead as planned.</s>Protesters hold up posters of jailed and exiled leaders during a demo last week. Photo: AFP

A Spanish judge has summoned Catalan separatists he is probing for their alleged role in the region's independence drive to tell them what they are charged with, the penultimate step before trial.

Among those summoned to the Supreme Court on Friday is Jordi Turull, the former Catalan government spokesman who is tipped to become the separatist camp's third candidate to lead the region, after deposed president Carles Puigdemont and civic leader Jordi Sanchez abandoned their bid.

According to a court document seen Wednesday by AFP, the judge will also decide whether or not to remand Turull in custody, as well as five other separatist leaders such as the Catalan parliament's former speaker Carme Forcadell.

If Turull, who is currently free on bail, is placed in custody, it will make his candidacy for the presidency difficult.

Separatist parties won regional elections in December, retaining their absolute majority in parliament, but they have still not been able to form a government as their two candidates for the presidency proved problematic.

As a result, Catalonia remains under direct rule from Madrid since October 27th when lawmakers declared independence.

Puigdemont, who was sacked by Madrid after the declaration and left for Belgium where he lives in self-exile, was the first candidate to lead the region again.

But the Constitutional Court ruled he could not be appointed remotely, and he will be arrested if he comes back to Spain.

So he proposed Sanchez, the former head of the influential pro-independence ANC civil society group who is in jail pending the probe into the independence drive.

But this too proved problematic as Supreme Court judges refused to release him for a parliamentary session that would officially appoint him president.

Turull could become the new candidate as he was third on the list of Puigdemont's "Together for Catalonia" list in December elections after the former regional president himself and Sanchez.

On Friday, the judge will tell each person he is probing or their lawyers exactly what they are charged with.

Until then, they had only been charged over a general probe into rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds, but did not know what they were specifically accused of.

They will be able to appeal the charges, but if these are confirmed, they will go to trial.</s>A Spanish Supreme Court judge has charged 13 Catalan separatist politicians, including fugitive former regional president Carles Puigdemont, with rebellion for their attempt to declare independence from Spain.

A Spanish Supreme Court judge has charged 13 Catalan separatist politicians, including fugitive former regional president Carles Puigdemont, with rebellion for their attempt to declare independence from Spain.

Rebellion charges are punishable with up to 30 years in prison under Spanish law. In a court ruling issued on Friday, Judge Llarena said that 25 Catalans in total will be tried for rebellion, embezzlement or disobedience.

Others charged with rebellion were former Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras, who is already in pre-trial detention; seven other members of the ousted Catalan government; former Catalan parliament speaker Carme Forcadell; jailed separatist activists Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart; and the leader of the left-republican ERC party, Marta Rovira, who defied the judge’s summons and announced on Friday that she was fleeing Spain. In a letter addressed to her party followers and posted on ERC’s website, Rovira did not say whether she had left Spain already or where she might go.

“Today I undertake a hard road, a path that, unfortunately, so many others that preceded us have had to take,” Rovira wrote, adding: “The path of exile.” Five other Catalan politicians, including Puigdemont, fled to Brussels following the failed secession attempt in late October.

An anti-establishment party’s former politician, Anna Gabriel, fled to Switzerland earlier this year. The unity of Spain is enshrined in the constitution, which says the country is “indivisible”, and courts have blocked Catalonia’s independence efforts at every turn.

Catalan presidential candidate Jordi Turull, right, and former cabinet member Josep Rull arrive at the Supreme Court in Madrid (Francisco Seco/AP) The judge also required the 14 ex-members of the Catalan cabinet to pay 2.1 million euros (£1.8 million) as a deposit before the trial establishes whether they need to pay back misused public funds. That figure includes 1.6 million euros that, according to the judicial investigation, were used to pay for the October 1 referendum that set the turbulent events in motion.

Six of the politicians were summoned to court on Friday – an indication that the judge may later in the day order them jailed pending trial. They include Jordi Turull, a former minister of the ousted regional cabinet, who on Thursday failed in his bid to be elected as the region’s new president.

The semi-autonomous region has been without a leader for nearly five months after central authorities took control following October’s illegal independence declaration. Puigdemont indicated his resolve was not shaken by the charges. “Let’s see what happens tomorrow, what happens today. Every day things change,” Puigdemont said in Helsinki, where he was on a visit.

He also aimed criticism at the judge’s decision, suggesting Judge Llarena was influenced by the political climate. “It is not right for a judge to do politics,” Puigdemont said. Judge Llarena described the case as “an attack on the constitutional state that, through the desire to impose a change in the form of government for Catalonia and the rest of the country, is of unusual gravity and persistence”.</s>MADRID (AP) — Spain’s Supreme Court says international arrest warrants have been issued for 6 fugitive Catalan politicians.
Thirteen Catalan separatist politicians appear before the Spanish Supreme Court. Marta Rovira, who is "self-exiled" in Switzerland, does not attend.