Again fines for burning pics Spanish royals

Two Catalan nationalists who burned photos of Spain's king and queen were convicted a second time Thursday of insulting the royal family and fined US$ 4,240 (2,700 euro) each. The two were convicted last November for the same offense _ insulting the crown _ and fined the same amount. That verdict however was annulled and a second trial ordered so the defendants could have a Catalan translator, as they had demanded.

Jaume Roura and Enric Stern admitted burning the photos. They said it was a protest against the monarchy as King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia visited the Catalan city of Girona last September. In last week's retrial, Judge Jose Luis de Castro dismissed the defendants' argument that the charge violated their right to freedom of expression.

That, the judge said, protected their right to protest the monarchy _ but not to vilify the royal couple by burning their photographs. The judge said the fact the two had masked their faces before burning the pictures showed they knew they were committing an offense. The prosecutor originally sought jail terms of a year and three months but ultimately sought just a fine.

Luis de Castro said the 15-month jail sentences would be applied if the two did not pay the fine. The judge in the first trial interrupted the proceedings because the two men insisted on speaking Catalan, the official language in the powerful and wealthy region of northeast Spain. He also cut the defendants off when they tried to make their final statements in Catalan rather than Spanish.

Catalonia, like other Spanish regions, has its own language and culture and is home to strong nationalist sentiment. A lawyer for the defendants said they may appeal the sentence. © GPD AP