The Catalan People's Army (, EPOCA), known by its members as ,
was a
Catalan nationalist
Catalan nationalism is the ideology asserting that the Catalans are a distinct nation.
Intellectually, modern Catalan nationalism can be said to have commenced as a political philosophy in the unsuccessful attempts to establish a federal state i ...
paramilitary
A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...
group which existed during the 1970s.
History
The group was founded in 1969, as a breakaway group of the
National Front of Catalonia
The National Front of Catalonia (Catalan: ''Front Nacional de Catalunya'', FNC) was a Catalan separatist party which was active between 1940 and 1990. The FNC was created in 1940 by former members of the Estat Català and the Catalan Nationalis ...
. Jaume Martínez Vendrell, the leader of the military wing of the National Front, became its commander. EPOCA trained its militants in urban warfare techniques, smuggling in weaponry from
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
.
The group came to prominence through a number of
assassination
Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...
s, committed by attaching pressure-triggered bombs to the bodies of their victims, demanding ransoms, and when they weren't received, leaving the bombs to explode, killing their victims in the process. In this way, the group assassinated in 1977 the industrialist and chemical tycoon José María Bultó, and in 1978 the ex-mayor of Barcelona, Joaquín Viola, along with his wife.
By 1979, the group had become inactive in comparison with many other contemporary groups. Following discussions with paramilitaries from
Terra Lliure, the groups decided to merge.
This led to many of the better-trained EPOCA militants joining Terra Lliure.
Trials and justice
Seven people were arrested in connection with the killings of Bultó and the Violas. Two of them were tried in 1980; one was acquitted entirely, whilst Martínez Vendrell, the other, was sentenced to a year and three months in prison, although this was not directly related to the assassinations. However, he had already served this time awaiting trial, so was immediately released. The remaining five were tried in 1982, saying at the time that they "learned of the assassination through the newspapers and television".
A number of additional arrests were made towards the end of 1980 in connection with the construction of the bombs that were used in the killings.
See also
*
Terra Lliure
*
Front d'Alliberament de Catalunya
References
{{Authority control
Catalan nationalism
Secessionist organizations in Europe
Politics of Catalonia
1969 establishments in Spain