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Madrid, Spain – The Spanish Pedro Sanchez is in Strasbourg to speak at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), becoming the first leader of the country to do so.
Sanchez will travel Thursday to the ECHR and the Council of Europe, where he should "defend" the Spanish judicial system a week before the trial of 12 Catalan politicians.
Spanish media said Sanchez would guarantee the ECHR that "individual rights, public freedoms and minority rights are guaranteed", and insist on "respect for jurisprudence" by Spain.
The trial of the 12 Catalan leaders is scheduled to open in Madrid, the capital of Spain, on February 12.
Catalan separatists have been accused of rebellion, disobedience and embezzlement of public funds during an unsuccessful attempt at independence in 2017 and face 25 years in prison.
One of the legal teams representing imprisoned Catalan leaders confirmed Thursday in Al Jazeera that she was considering appealing the ECHR if the Spanish Supreme Court handed down a verdict of guilty.
"Distortion" of the facts
Critics say that the Spanish Supreme Court lacks independence and is politically biased against Catalan leaders.
In the 1 October referendum, the referendum on 1 October had ignored the "serious" risk of violence during police repression described as "excessive" by police repression.
In March of last year, the Spanish newspaper El Diario had written that Pablo Llarena, the judge responsible for investigating the Catalan referendum, had distorted "the reality of what happened in Catalonia. to extremes hard to believe. "
Josep Costa, first vice president of the parliament of Catalonia, said in an interview with Al Jazeera that it was necessary to take into account the "impartiality" of the court with respect to the trial.
"It's a very conservative court," said Costa, professor of political science at the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona. The judges "have political links with the most conservative branch of the judiciary," he said.
Spanish conservatives have adopted an uncompromising approach to Catalan nationalism.
During the campaign for independence, the government led by former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, of the conservative People's Party, refused to speak with Catalan leaders of self-determination, suspended the The autonomy of the region and convened early elections in order to dismiss the separatist leaders.
Many Catalans believe that the Supreme Court will adopt a similar strategy during the trial: "They will have the opportunity to show their [judicial] independence that will confirm their conservative approach, "said Costa.
European standards
There is no legal precedent for the trial of Catalan rulers in the democratic history of Spain. The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in this area is therefore subject to interpretation.
Ignacio Garcia Vitoria, badistant professor of constitutional law at the Complutense University of Madrid, told Al Jazeera that "there is no basis for a general criticism of independence judges in Spain ".
"We are a country totally in line with European standards," he said.
One of the many concerns of critics is which court has jurisdiction to try the accused.
In addition to its Supreme Court, Spain also has an Audiencia Nacional, a special high court competent for the country and for international crimes under its jurisdiction.
Both courts held hearings on their jurisdiction over the trial of the 12 Catalan leaders, although the proceedings were eventually referred to the Supreme Court.
The lawyers of the Catalans badert that the Supreme Court which ruled the criminal case violates the fundamental rights, because its decision can not be the object of an appeal in Spain and must be examined by the ECHR.
"We will see how they will be resolved and, if necessary, the decision will be examined by the Constitutional Court and the ECHR," said Garcia.
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