Mögliche Heimkehr aus Exil: Nach neun Jahren Exil Puigdemont vor Rückkehr in die Heimat

Carles Puigdemont, the Catalan separatist leader and former regional government chief, fled Catalonia in October 2017, escaping to Belgium after a failed attempt to secede the region from Spain. He had been under a European arrest warrant for rebellion and abuse of public funds since the failed independence referendum. After nine years in exile, a constitutional court ruling may allow his return to Catalonia, but he will face a new country - Belgium.

Puigdemont's rise to notoriety began with the illegal referendum and subsequent declaration of independence in 2017, which led to the chaos of Catalonia's independence movement. While his supporters were imprisoned for up to 13 years, Puigdemont himself was never prosecuted as those who are convicted are eligible for pardons. Spanish authorities pursued him relentlessly, issuing both national and European arrest warrants, but he managed to avoid capture by traveling through Europe.

In 2018, he was briefly arrested in Germany while traveling and later in Sardinia. However, his arrest attempts in Barcelona failed due to the intervention of the Supreme Court's President, Pablo Llarena. The constitutional court recently ruled that Puigdemont's conviction for public funds misuse does not constitute personal enrichment and thus no longer warrants his arrest.

The timing of Puigdemont's potential return to Catalonia remains uncertain, as it could potentially impact the upcoming November elections and the government's policies towards separatists.