Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has reached a controversial deal to secure his position by offering amnesty to Catalan separatists. The agreement aims to provide stability to the

four-year legislature.

After the center-right Popular Party failed to form a government, Sanchez, who finished second in the July parliamentary elections, faces a deadline until November 27 to build a working coalition. He needs the support of Catalan independence parties, and in accepting their demands for amnesty related to the 2017 secession attempt, he secured the backing of Junts per Catalunya party led by Carles Puigdemont.

The deal also requires support from a small Basque party. If no government is formed by November 27, new elections will be called for January.

The proposed amnesty legislation covers all crimes related to the Catalan separatist movement from 2012 to the present. The amnesty plan has faced criticism, with opposition parties accusing Sanchez of corruption and abandoning the rule of law, leading to protests in the country. Photo by Ministry of the Presidency. Government of Spain, Wikimedia commons.