The Generalitat will fine the translation company for failures in the trial of police officers for 1-O

The Generalitat will fine the company responsible for the interpretation service in the trial against the four national police officers accused of the injuries caused to Roger Español, who lost an eye on the day of the 1-O referendum due to the shooting of a rubber ball.

The trial had its first two sessions last week and the second day took place with irregularities in the translation of the questions in Catalan into Spanish posed by the lawyers of the private and popular accusations to the police officers who appeared as witnesses.

The Department of Justice and Democratic Quality opened an investigation into the translation company after the repeated failures of the two designated interpreters, which had caused complaints from the lawyers, who finally decided to make them in Spanish.

After analyzing the case, the department has initiated a file to impose the financial sanctions provided for in the contract specifications. "The company has committed to adopting internal organizational measures to improve the assignment of professional profiles to the required services," says the Department directed by Ramon Espadaler.

Justice also reminds the Government Chamber of the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia that, in accordance with article 231.5 of the Organic Law of the Judiciary, in extraordinary cases any person familiar with the language used can be authorized as an interpreter, beyond the translators and interpreters on staff available to the Department in certain judicial offices.

A modification of the legal text, approved in 2009, introduced in that section that "in oral proceedings, any person familiar with the language used may be authorized as an interpreter, upon prior oath or promise thereof." This was one of the requests made by the lawyers of the accusing party, but the court of section 2 of the Barcelona Court did not accept it.

It is worth remembering that, last February, the Minister of Justice himself testified in Catalan as a witness, with the consequent translation service, in the trial held in the National Court against the family of the former president of the Generalitat Jordi Pujol and several businessmen.

Next week the last two sessions of the trial will be held, the last of which will coincide precisely with the ninth anniversary of the self-determination consultation organized in 2017 by the Government of Carles Puigdemont, declared unconstitutional. while on Wednesday, September 30, it will be the turn of expert evidence and on the day of the ninth anniversary of 1-O the four accused national police officers will be interrogated.

After the interrogations of more than fifty witnesses [among whom, agents, voters or journalists], Wednesday is the turn of expert evidence and viewing of images and, finally, on Thursday, October 1, the four accused national police officers will be interrogated: an inspector, two sub-inspectors and the shotgunner.