A new beginning
On March 23, 2018, Catalonia woke up to the news of the exile of Marta Rovira, general secretary of Esquerra Republicana, who decided to leave before appearing before the Supreme Court. In a letter shared on social networks, she announced her departure to embark on a difficult path in search of freedom and the possibility of exercising her role as her mother.
After more than six years, Marta Rovira returns to Catalonia, accompanied by Ruben Wagensberg, ERC deputy, Josep Campmajó, journalist Jesús Rodríguez, and the vice president of Òmnium, Oleguer Serra, who also went into exile at the end of 2023 for the cause. of the Democratic Tsunami. Her return will be marked by an event in Cantallops, after a car trip from Geneva, where Rovira has lived for the last six years.
Reasons for return
The return of Marta Rovira is not due to the effects of the amnesty, but to a formal error by Judge Manuel García-Castellón, who filed the Democratic Tsunami case. Rovira had always stated that she would return to Catalonia the day the Tsunami case was filed, and she has done so.
Despite the reform of the Penal Code that eliminated the crime of sedition, Rovira did not return immediately, since his only pending crime was disobedience. However, after the approval of her amnesty, the judge of the process, Pablo Llarena, annulled the national arrest warrant against her.
Implication in the Democratic Tsunami
The National Court pointed out Marta Rovira and other ERC officials for their involvement in the Democratic Tsunami, ruling out that it was a spontaneous movement of civil society. According to reports, Rovira had the task of agreeing on the format and content of the Tsunami with other pro-independence parties and entities, as well as with the Government chaired by Quim Torra.
After maintaining her commitment to return once the Tsunami case is filed, Marta Rovira finally returns to Catalonia accompanied by other exiles for the same cause, including Ruben Wagensberg. Her return comes at a difficult time for her party, ERC, which is facing a deep internal crisis.
A timely return
The return of Marta Rovira coincides with a difficult moment for her party, ERC, which is divided between supporters of the renewal led by her and those who consider that Oriol Junqueras should remain at the helm. Her return is good news for a party that is going through an internal crisis, and her presence on the party’s executive and national council could mark a milestone as it is the first time in six years that it will not be connected by video call.
Furthermore, his return coincides with ERC’s negotiations with the PSC for the investiture of Salvador Illa, which could mean a change in the Catalan political dynamics.