Catalonia's exile body Council for the Republic sees the new wave of arrests of members of pro-independence CDR protest groups as an attempt to "fabricate a narrative of non-existent violence" and, in response, proposes "democratically overflowing the repressive state" to make "effective the mandate of the 1st October" - that is, the 2017 independence referendum - and thus constituting the Catalan Republic. This is their message in a press statement, in which the Spanish state is also accused of trying to "intimidate the people" and to associate the independence movement with violence, as the second anniversary of the 1st October 2017 referendum approaches and the Supreme Court prepares to announce its verdict in the trial of 12 Catalan political and civil leaders.

The Council also links the police operation on Monday with the elections coming up on November 10th and says that they "are trying to criminalize legitimate majority political options in Catalonia in the eyes of Spanish public opinion in order to obtain electoral benefits." For these reasons, the exiles group rejects what it considers "a judicial and police frame-up of innocent people" and expresses solidarity with those arrested and their families.

📌 El @ConsellxRep condemna les detencions efectuades ahir, acusa l’Estat espanyol de fabricar un relat de violència inexistent, i proposa desbordar democràticament aquest estat repressor. Llegeix el comunicat 👇 https://t.co/6SahWuLUUl — Consell per la República Catalana (@ConsellxRep) September 24, 2019

Translation:

"@ConsellxRep condemns the arrests made yesterday, accuses Spain of fabricating a narrative of non-existent violence, and proposes democratically overflowing this repressive state. Read the statement: https://t.co/6SahWuLUUl - Council for the Catalan Republic