Former Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont defied an arrest warrant to appear at a rally in Spain's Barcelona on Thursday after seven years of self-imposed exile and then vanished, sparking a frantic search by police to apprehend him.
Amid a heavy police presence, Puigdemont spoke to a crowd of thousands of followers in the Catalan capital from a platform near the Catalan parliament, telling them he aimed to revive the independence drive that plunged Spain into a political crisis in 2017.
"They thought they'd be celebrating my arrest and they thought that this punishment would dissuade us, and you," he said. "Well, they are wrong."
When he had finished speaking Puigdemont went backstage, after which police and media were unable to locate him.
Police officer arrested
The hunt for his whereabouts created traffic chaos in Barcelona and near the border with France as police set up roadblocks and searched car boots.
Catalonia's regional police force said on Thursday it had arrested one of its officers on suspicion of helping Puigdemont flee. The officer allegedly owns a car in which Puigdemont escaped after briefly addressing a few thousand supporters near the Catalan parliament, Spanish media said.
Puigdemont, 61, fled to Belgium seven years ago after a failed secession bid and has been living in exile ever since. He faces an arrest warrant for alleged embezzlement, which he denies.
His supporters hope his return will rekindle enthusiasm for the Catalan independence cause, which lost support in recent years.
Senior officials of Puigdemont's Junts party, including parliament speaker Josep Rull, and members of the moderate separatist Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya which currently runs the regional government led a march to the Catalan parliament after the rally.
A debate to swear in Socialist Salvador Illa as Catalonia's new president, ending a decade of separatist rule, began amid confusion and speculation about Puigdemont's whereabouts.
A Catalan Interior Ministry spokesperson confirmed Puigdemont had evaded capture. "I can confirm Puigdemont has not been detained yet," he said.
'Return trip from exile'
A Supreme Court spokesperson declined to comment on Puigdemont's disappearance in Barcelona. A government spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment, nor did Puigdemont's lawyer.
On Wednesday, Puigdemont had announced he had started his "return trip from exile", saying he remained committed to attending Thursday's session of the regional parliament, which is sitting to swear in the region's new leader following an election in May, in which Puigdemont's Junts party finished second.
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His arrest could jeopardize the national government's fragile alliance with Junts, on which it relies for legislative support.
In the morning, a crowd of thousands had gathered near the parliament to welcome him and hear him speak.
Several police vans were located nearby after radical protest group CDR called on its members to attend the gathering.
Return of a symbol?
"It represents the return of a symbol," said Xavier Vizcaino, 63, who was wrapped in an independence flag.
Given the risk of imprisonment, Vizcaino said he was unclear of Puigdemont's intentions but hoped his return would build momentum towards independence.
"I hope it is a stimulus that helps the movement recover energy and efforts," he said. "I want to believe there is a well structured plan behind his return."
The vote to invest Socialist Illa, who will be backed by the left-wing separatist ERC party after a bilateral deal last week, began an hour later.
The Socialists hope taking control in Catalonia after a decade of separatist rule will turn the page on the independence drive.
The Spanish parliament passed an amnesty law in May pardoning those involved in the failed 2017 secession bid, but the Supreme Court upheld arrest warrants for Puigdemont and two others who were also charged with embezzlement, ruling that the amnesty law does not apply to them.
The embezzlement charges were related to the 2017 independence referendum ruled illegal by the Spanish courts.
Puigdemont insists the vote was not illegal and so the charges linked to it have no basis.
Wearing a T-shirt and waving a flag with Puigdemont's face and the motto 'No surrender,’ 41-year-old Susana Masnou described his return as an act of "democratic disobedience" to make sure the amnesty law applies to him.
"He is a very brave man, with convictions, risking his life to move the country forward," she said.
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