Committees for the Defense of the Republic
None
Formation | 2017 |
---|---|
Focus | Defend the Catalan Republic through civil disobedience and sabotage |
Area served
|
Catalonia ( Spain ) |
The Committees for the Defence of the Republic ( Catalan: Comitès de Defensa de la República ), or CDR , previously named Committees for the Defense of the Referendum , are a network of committees that function on a local, regional and national level in Catalonia . Its initial purpose was to facilitate the Catalan independence referendum . After the referendum, they adopted the new objective to fight for the Catalan Republic , and publicly called for violent protests and civil disobedience. [1] The Committees for the Defense of the Republic have also made acts of sabotage , blocking railway lines and the Barcelona–El Prat Josep Tarradellas Airport .
The CDR was created in September 2017 as voluntary groups founded by a diverse collective of popular associations. Their initial goal was to collaborate with the implementation of the
Catalan independence referendum
(1-O) which had been suspended by the
Spanish Constitutional Court
. After the referendum, the Committees promoted demonstrations against the
Spanish police
and organized several actions during the
general strike of October 2017
.
[2]
[3]
On June 17 2021, Spanish Guardia Civil (National Guard) concluded an investigation that defined the CDR as a "criminal organisation with terrorist purposes [and] capacity of assault, occupation and seize of institutional Catalan buildings and infrastructures." [4]
Arrests
On September 23 2019, the Civil Guard arrested 9 members of the CDR in Barcelona. The members had been monitored for more than a year under Operación Judas , and were arrested on terrorism and possession of explosives charges. The charge claimed that the group planned attacks as a result of the Trial of Catalonia independence leaders , and 7 were ultimately charged with belonging to a terrorist group, manufacturing and possessing firearm, and conspiracy to cause criminal damage. [5] [6] [7]
References
- ↑ "Los CDR aseguran que solo apuestan por la "desobediencia violenta" " . elperiodico.es (in Spanish). 11 October 2019 . Retrieved 2019-11-08 .
- ↑ "Els comitès de defensa de l'1-O s'articulen a nivell nacional" . Ara.cat (in Catalan) . Retrieved 2018-04-19 .
- ↑ "Convocan una concentración ante el Museo de Lleida contra el traslado de las obras de Sijena" . www.efe.com (in Spanish) . Retrieved 2018-04-19 .
- ↑ "Los CDR detenidos formaban una "organización terrorista" y planeaban un ataque contra Casado" . www.elconfidencial.com (in Spanish). 2021-06-16 . Retrieved 2021-06-17 .
- ↑ "Operació policial contra els CDR per rebel·lió i terrorisme" (in Catalan). ElNacional.cat. 10 April 2018.
- ↑ Pérez, Fernando J.; López-Fonseca, Óscar (26 September 2019). "El juez encarcela a siete CDR y les acusa de formar parte de un nuevo grupo terrorista" . El País (in Spanish).
- ↑ "Dos de los CDR detenidos reconocen la compra y manipulación de sustancias explosivas" (in Spanish). El Periódico. 25 September 2019.
External links
- Committees for the Defense of the Republic - Twitter account
- International CDR - Twitter account