Regarding the statement sent by Mr. Gerard Fullana, Member of the Valencian Parliament for the political group COMPROMIS to various media concerning the Act of Conciliation to which he was summoned, we inform you:
Group Vapf respects and appreciates the criticisms, opinions and all the contributions that Mr. Fullana or other people can make regarding the Medina Lliber project since, thanks to them, we can re-evaluate and re-study the project and, in many cases, improve it. What we cannot allow is the defamation and lies, as this is staining the good name of a business group that for sixty years has been bringing work and wealth to the region, operating under the strictest legality and without being accused of any criminal act or of any kind that could tarnish its history, and that is why, in defence of its right to honour, it has resorted to the voluntary jurisdiction to allow Mr. Fullana and others to reconsider their specific words and to rectify those that are untrue, without this involving any kind of coercion of his freedom of speech or thought, since in order to express a political or social position it is not necessary to harm third parties, holding them responsible for false offences and irregularities, distorting the reality of things and making accusations which, if true, would constitute a criminal offence. Moreover, the aforementioned statements were made knowing that they were false in the knowledge of their repercussions and public diffusion, even more so in the case of Mr. Fullana, as a member of the Cortes Valencianas (Valencian Parliament).
In view of the foregoing, it is clear that the aforementioned act of conciliation does not seek to restrict Mr. Fullana’s freedom to express his thoughts and opinions, but rather to safeguard the legal interests that have been harmed as a result of his behaviour, and for this purpose, GROUP VAPF, makes use of the voluntary jurisdiction mechanisms that are applicable to all citizens, including those with legal status, a condition that Mr. Fullana brought to the knowledge of the Jalón Magistrate’s Court yesterday, in order to avoid such conciliation, citing article 23.3 of the Autonomy Statute, which refers to the inviolability of members of the Cortes (Parliament).
It is striking that he did not mention this in his communiqué, and his demagogy is surprising, given that the political group he represents, COMPROMÍS, is a firm defender of the elimination of parliamentary immunity and the different treatment that this implies, as he has made public in various media:
https://www.lavanguardia.com/local/valencia/20140531/54409494567/compromis-propone-reformar-el-estatuto-de-autonomia-para-eliminar-el-aforamiento-de-los-diputados.html
Perhaps it would be too much to ask to take advantage of his status as an Autonomic Member of the Parliament to be above good and evil, in order for him to go unpunished in spite of making statements that involve the attribution of criminal actions to the comercial claimants.
If Mr Fullana or any other of those called for conciliation considers that GROUP VAPF restricts their freedom, attacks them, lies or accuses them improperly, they can take legal action in defence of their private or public interests, as VAPF has done, and that a Court or Tribunal will be the one to determine their claims.
It is not true that VAPF does not respect democratic values as, once again, it is consciously trying to convey to public opinion, quite the opposite. In fact, what it does do is to appeal to the judiciary, one of the main pillars of any democratic system.
It is not true that VAPF has threatened them, nor instructed them, nor dictated what opinion to express, as Mr. Fullana claims, they are only asked not to lie or accuse without charge and are given the opportunity to rectify and not be implicated in criminal proceedings.
No one has asked Mr Fullana or anyone else to desist from any of the three proceedings in which they are requesting a precautionary measure to paralyse, suspend and block all activity in the PAI. We respect the state of law and are awaiting court resolutions.
