Yahoo – AFP,
11 June 2015
Madrid
(AFP) - Spain's King Felipe VI has issued a decree stripping his sister
Princess Cristina of her title as Duchess of Palma, the palace announced
Thursday, as the royal sibling faces tax evasion charges in a scandal that has
embarrassed the monarchy.
"The
Official Journal of the state will tomorrow (Friday) publish a royal decree by
which His Majesty the King will revoke the use of the title of Duchess of Palma
de Mallorca by Her Royal Highness the Infanta Cristina," the palace said
in a statement.
Cristina,
49, stands accused of taking part in tax evasion by her husband, the former
Olympic handball player Inaki Urdangarin.
A judge
ruled in December that she must stand trial on two counts of accessory to tax
fraud, making her the first member of the Spanish royal family to be sent to
the dock. No date has been set for her trial.
Both
Cristina and Urdangarin have suffered a dramatic fall from grace since they
married in 1997 in a lavish ceremony in Barcelona and were bestowed the titles
of Duke and Duchess of Palma by Felipe's father, king Juan Carlos, who
unexpectedly abdicated last year.
The
couple's multi-million-euro mansion has been impounded by the courts and
Cristina was notably absent from ceremonies marking Felipe's ascension to the
throne in June 2014.
Urdangarin,
47, is accused along with a former business partner of creaming off six million
euros ($6.6 million) in public funds from contracts awarded to Noos, a
charitable foundation which he chaired.
Cristina's
lawyers say she is innocent of any wrongdoing and that she trusted her husband
to handle their financial affairs.
The
corruption controversy has outraged Spaniards and helped sour the last years of
the reign of Juan Carlos, who gave up the throne after nearly four decades
hoping his son could freshen up the image of the monarchy.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.