Catalonia’s leader calls on citizens to follow home confinement orders despite Spanish judge’s bar on lockdown

The leader of Spain’s Catalonia Quim Torra has called on the residents of the city of Lleida to follow his government’s home confinement orders, after a rise in coronavirus cases. The statement came despite a Spanish judge’s decision to bar the lockdown.

Quim Torra told reporters on Monday it was impossible to accept the judge’s ruling because of the risks involved. The local government will approve a decree to tackle the growing number of cases in the region, according to Torra.

Spanish Judge Elena Garcia-Munoz Alarco had said earlier in the ruling that “what is proposed today goes far beyond a simple limitation of movement and seriously affects constitutionally recognized rights,” rejecting the Catalan leaders’ decision.