Prominent intellectuals support Garzón; Foreign Ministry supports his ICC request
El País has published a short declaration of support for Garzón signed by, among others, Juan Goytisolo, Carlos Fuentes, and Alain Touraine, in which the signatories express their “astonishment” at the trial of the investigative magistrate. “The fact that this suit is brought by a fascist party, and incomprehensibly accepted by the Spanish Supreme Court, is both offensive and disconcerting to those of us who have celebrated and shared in the accomplishments of Spain’s democracy.” “With this letter,” they conclude, “we wish to express the urgency of suspending this trial, which leaves us both alarmed and ashamed.” Meanwhile, Spain’s Ministery of Foreign Affairs has expressed its approval and support of Garzón’s request for a seven-month leave of absence in order to take up a position as advisor to the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands. The Consejo Superior del Poder Judicial meets tomorrow to decide on Garzón’s request for a leave and his possible suspension in the light of the opening, two days ago, of the trial against him by Supreme Court Justice Luciano Varela.
