MADRID, March 22 (Xinhua) -- The Spanish Supreme Court on Wednesday banned Catalan deputy and former spokesperson for the Catalan regional government Francesc Homs from holding public office for one year and a month for his participation in the organization of the non-binding referendum over the independence of the Catalan region on Nov. 9, 2014.
The 2014 vote went ahead despite having been prohibited by the Spanish Constitutional Court.
The Supreme Court found Homs guilty of disobedience and thus handed down the ban along with a fine of 30,000 euros (around 33,000 U.S. dollars). However, the court acquitted Homs of misusing public funds.
The sentence is much less than that requested by the prosecution, which has asked for a nine-year ban on Homs.
The sentence is also lenient than the punishment given to the former leader of the Catalan regional assembly Artur Mas, who was banned from holding public office for two years in a sentence handed down on March 13 for his role in organizing the vote.
The ruling means Homs will have to relinquish his seat in Congress in the coming days and will not be able to stand for reelection for the duration of his ban, which in this case cannot be appealed against.
