Plaça Catalunya housing camp-out grows after Tenants' Union joins demonstration

The camp-out protest ongoing since Tuesday in Barcelona's Plaça Catalunya to demand housing rights grew visibly on Thursday night after the Tenants' Union joined the demonstration.

While there were around fifty tents on Wednesday, approximately 200 were counted by Thursday night.

The camp saw an influx of new people following the protest organized by the platform at Plaça Sant Jaume on Thursday evening, which drew 800 people according to city hall and 2,000 according to the organizers.

Once the new tents were set up, the participants held an assembly calling for a general strike to exert pressure for a solution to the housing crisis.

The camp is progressively adding services to support the participants. Various tables have been set up, along with a makeshift drinks bar, a box of books for people to take, and an "open wardrobe" with clothing for anyone in need. There is also a Punt Lila, a desk offering support for victims of gender-based violence called a "purple point", and an information point.

Many of the people who arrived at the camp this Thursday night are young people and students. There are also several tents and tarps set up for shelter from the rain.

According to the city council, there are around 450 people taking part in the camp-out protest at Plaça Catalunya.

Simón, Daniel, and Raül, all students from Barcelona, decided to join the encampment on Thursday because it addresses an issue "that affects everyone."

They believe the "struggle" has been going on for some time but has now "gained momentum." One of them admitted that, as students living with their parents in the Catalan capital, the problem does not affect them yet, "but in the near future, it will."

Maria, from Barcelona, and Paula, from Palma, explained that they had their families' support in joining the protest.

"There is no shortage of reasons; I live in Cerdanyola because I can no longer afford to live in Barcelona," said Paula, who believes the issue is not limited to the Catalan capital: "all big cities are in the same boat."

General strike

Alícia del Río, spokesperson for the Madrid Tenants' Union, insisted on Friday on the need to call a general strike as the "only way" to "secure the right to housing."

The move comes in light of a potential rejection by Congress of the Spanish government's two decrees addressing the housing crisis.

"We see a bare-minimum measur, one the people have demanded in the streets, on the verge of falling through," she lamented while speaking to the media.

Del Río asserted that the legislature is "purely rentier-driven" and prioritizes "speculation over people's lives," adding: "Society is being ignored, and that is a very serious matter for a democracy."