The socialist party, which secured the second-largest number of votes in the recent elections, has finalized an accord with separatist groups to ensure their support in the upcoming investiture vote. This agreement includes a disputed amnesty law that has been criticized by legal experts as unconstitutional.
In 2017, catalan separatists held an illegal referendum resulting in a sharp political crisis in Spain. The central figures who orchestrated the coup and remained in Spain were sentenced to prison, while Carles Puigdemont, the ringleader of the secessionist movement, fled the country, avoiding arrest.
In a controversial political maneuver, Pedro Sánchez, the Socialist Party candidate lacking a parliamentary majority, struck a deal with the absconded Puigdemont. The agreement ensures Puigdemont will evade prosecution in exchange for supporting Sánchez’s bid for the presidency. The Socialist Party has introduced an amnesty proposal that would pardon the separatist leaders, which is a political exchange to secure Sánchez’s position as Spain’s president.
What may not be as clear as it could be in this thread is that the referendum was for whether or not Catalonia should secede from Spain. I doubt that there is any country that would be okay with one of its states (in the most generic sense of that word) voting to secede. In fact, I know of one country that fought a bloody war over it.
Regardless of the actual reasons behind the American Civil War, it was actually the Confederacy that fired the first shot, and it was, and is, perfectly legal for states to hold referendums on seceding.
Actually doing that without Congress’s approval is a different question, but even slavery era America wouldn’t imprison someone (white) for taking a glorified poll.
Like in any civilized nation that didn’t have a fascist dictator that died of old age, one who singled out Catalonia for cultural and political repression, mind you.