The Urban Guard evacuated early Friday morning 32 people settled in tents and some very precarious constructions built on the slope of Montjuïc facing the Ronda del Litoral, right next to the Fire Station, on Josep Carner Avenue… We are talking about what would practically be the most precarious, unsafe, and on top of that unhealthy neighborhood in the shantytown city that this mountain has become for some time now.
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Because all along the more discreet slopes of Montjuïc, shacks were built, but in truth, not so long ago, especially after the pandemic, substandard housing also began to proliferate along the busiest paths of the place, at the foot of the cable car, in front of the Primavera gardens, surrounding the Poble Sec neighborhood…
This mountain became a shantytown city, and this slope was its toughest neighborhood
We have on these slopes, so frequented by tourists and other visitors, dwellings with paths leading to the entrance decorated even with garden gnomes by Filipinos whose cook salaries are not enough to afford even a room in a shared apartment, also what would be self-built chalets equipped with camping gas and drawer furniture to keep all belongings well organized… and also wells of despair and some vintage airs that remind us of those murky not-so-distant times of Can Tunis. Now what happens is that pipes and crack have taken the spotlight away from syringes and heroin. But this ruin is just as sad as that one.
The government of Mayor Jaume Collboni explained shortly after that it had no other choice, that this settlement was also a foul source of filth, garbage, and dirt, that in recent months thefts, fights, and crimes against property had increased by 400%, that many of these battered residents are well known to the police… The neighbors around were already fed up with all this. Even the road safety of the Ronda del Litoral was compromised. Moreover, this situation increased the risk of fires on the mountain.
So, as the executive of Mayor Collboni also detailed, the municipal police informed the residents of this well of despair that unfortunately they had to leave, that the municipal cleaning teams had to guarantee the healthiness of these much-declined corners, that the City Council’s social services would advise them on their alternatives…
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It is truly another chapter in a long list of evictions marking this term. Third sector entities estimate that around 2,000 people currently live on the streets of Barcelona. It is a record number. And hundreds of them do nothing but move from one park to another. In the last year, at least half a thousand people were invited to pitch their tents elsewhere.
Then, on the ground, when it comes down to it, these operations are carried out in a much harsher way. The battered residents said after their eviction that they were indeed warned, specifically the day before. In reality, they can count themselves lucky. Other shantytown dwellers are simply told day after day that any day now they will be kicked out. Many times the City Council dresses its evictions as simple cleaning operations. And the supposed social care in these evictions basically consists of telling you which office to go to explain your circumstances if you want to request some kind of aid. Of the 32 evicted, only three showed interest in this information. The Catalan Federation of Drug Dependencies and other Addictions (FCD) warned that “the presence of homeless people and drug use in public spaces cannot be addressed solely as a problem of order, security, or coexistence. These are complex situations also linked to lack of housing, poverty, social exclusion, and difficulties accessing the most basic services.”
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Furthermore, some battered residents added, everything happened somewhat hastily. Apparently, many of them had not finished packing their belongings and saw how their possessions ended up in the garbage truck in the blink of an eye. Also, the more alert took advantage of the commotion to grab anything unattended, like a bicycle that suddenly disappeared. Deep down, thefts were always very common in this settlement. Some even stoically celebrated being forced to leave. “I have my things hidden around here, on the mountain. I guess I’ll look for another place.” “Not me, as soon as I can, I’m going back to Italy. I’ll ask for money until I have enough for the ticket.” “I don’t know, we’ll see…”
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