The former president of the Generalitat and current leader of Junts, Carles Puigdemont, has lashed out this Wednesday against the cardinal archbishop of Barcelona, Juan José Omella, due to the limited presence of the Catalan language in the events planned for the Pope's visit to Barcelona. He accuses him of "taking heed of (José María) Aznar" and his slogan "he who can, let him do" rather than adhering to the latest encyclical of Leo XIV.
In a message published on X and reported by Europa Press, Puigdemont recalls that in said encyclical the Pontiff maintains that the common good can never be separated from respect for the right of peoples to exist, preserve their own identity, and contribute their uniqueness to the international community, and emphasizes that any plan aimed at erasing or subjugating a nation is gravely immoral and, therefore, unacceptable.
Based on this argument, he has called for the 'esteladas' to be visible during the Pope's visit to Catalonia and for "the voices and whistles of protest against the resurgence of Francoist Catholicism, an oppressor of minorities and an accomplice in crimes against humanity" to be heard.
"Catalan is the native language of Catalonia, without which neither Gaudí nor the Sagrada Familia can be explained," emphasized Puigdemont, who accompanies his publication with an AI-generated image in which Omella is seen holding a torch in one hand and a burning scroll with the words 'llengua catalana' in the other, with a Spanish flag in the background.
For Puigdemont, this scene illustrates that the spirit of the Spanish Inquisition "appears quickly" as soon as "you scratch a little."