(11 Feb 2019) Spain is bracing itself for the nation's most sensitive trial in four decades of democracy this week, with a dozen Catalan separatists facing charges including rebellion in a failed secession bid in 2017.
The proceedings, which begin on Tuesday, will be broadcast live on television and all eyes will be focused on the impartiality of the Spanish Supreme Court.
Catalonia's separatists have attacked the court's credibility in the run-up to the trial, saying it is a puppet of the Spanish government and any ruling will be a political one that has been decided in advance.
But the President of the Supreme Court dismissed that claim, saying the trial is the most important since Spain's transition to democracy in 1977 after the death of dictator General Francisco Franco.
The outcome of the trial will reverberate beyond the political crisis in Catalonia, with the Supreme Court's integrity at stake.
Spanish authorities say that the separatists are guaranteed a fair trial by the very democracy founded on the rule of law that they allegedly violated.
Ten politicians and two activists are being tried for their roles in holding an independence referendum on October 1, 2017 after ignoring a ban by the country's Constitutional Court, and for the subsequent declaration of independence 26 days later despite more warnings from authorities.
The conflict with Catalonia has been festering ever since, with a regional election on December 21, 2017 showing that the 7.5 million residents of Catalonia remain equally divided by the secession question.
Former Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras faces the longest possible sentence of 25 years for rebellion. Junqueras and eight other defendants have spent over a year in pre-trial custody because they were considered to be flight risks.
Junqueras' boss, former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, and seven associates fled Spain to other European countries and have succeeded in avoiding extradition.
Proceedings are likely to last for at least three months. The verdicts, and any sentences, would be delivered months later.
More than 500 witnesses have been called to testify in court, including former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, Catalan and central government officials, police officers and ordinary citizens.
The charge of rebellion will hinge on whether the prosecution can establish that the separatists employed violence during the breakaway attempt. They also face charges of sedition, which does not imply violence, as well as disobedience, and the misuse of public funds.
One of the issues that is raising eyebrows in this case is the fact that the new far-right Vox political party sits in the prosecution bench.
Vox is acting as the "popular prosecution," a peculiarity of Spanish law which allows individuals or entities to take part in certain criminal cases even when they have not been directly harmed by the accused.
Vox joins the two other prosecutors in the case: the public prosecutor, on behalf of the general interest, and the state attorney, whose client is the government.
Defendants also strongly deny accusations of a coup d'etat, arguing they acted democratically and peacefully.
Politically, the stakes are high. A harsh sentence would further alienate many Catalans, possibly even some who have not been seduced by the idea of independence. The start of the trial coincides with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez needing the support of Catalan separatist parties to pass his national budget.
Meanwhile, relatives of the jailed separatists are anxious for the trial to begin.
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