COSHAC Criticizes Barcelona City Council Over Sagrera Evictions

The housing rights organization accuses the council of replicating 'classist and racist' practices seen in Badalona.

Generic image of emergency lights reflecting on wet asphalt in a nocturnal urban setting.
IA

Generic image of emergency lights reflecting on wet asphalt in a nocturnal urban setting.

The Catalan Housing Union Confederation (COSHAC) has strongly criticized the Barcelona City Council for its handling of evictions, particularly in the Sagrera neighborhood, accusing it of contradicting its own criticisms of similar actions in Badalona.

The organization, comprising some thirty collectives, pointed out that Mayor Jaume Collboni condemned the eviction at the B9 institute in Badalona, yet his council is now acting similarly in the Catalan capital. COSHAC spokesperson, Marta Espriu, recalled that Collboni labeled the operation by Xavier Garcia Albiol's city council as 'classist and racist', insisting that 'the same is being reproduced' in Barcelona.

"The same is being reproduced in the Catalan capital."

Marta Espriu · COSHAC Spokesperson
Espriu highlighted the 'coincidence' that on the same day an eviction was planned at the Sant Agustí block in the Gràcia neighborhood, a Guàrdia Urbana unit simultaneously dismantled a settlement at the Pont del Treball Digne in Sagrera. Furthermore, she added that there have been 'police actions' in Vallcarca and the Zona Franca, demanding an immediate halt to any planned eviction processes.
The spokesperson also criticized the President of the Government, Salvador Illa, for a tweet stating that he 'will not allow violations of the right to housing throughout Catalonia'. Espriu underscored the contradiction, noting that while Illa expressed support for the residents of the Sant Agustí block, 'his party' was deploying forces to evict some 200 people in Sagrera, without offering them alternative housing.
According to COSHAC, the operation at the Pont del Treball Digne occurred four days after the Popular Party submitted a motion to the Sant Andreu District citing 'security and health' concerns, a situation reminiscent of the one on street 2 in the Zona Franca. The organization attributes these evictions to the 'lack of housing rights' in Catalonia.
Finally, COSHAC has warned about another settlement in Sagrera, home to about 70 people, which is also 'threatened' by an 'imminent' action. Sources from the Barcelona City Council confirmed that last Monday, as part of administrative notification procedures, residents were informed of the 'declaration of substandard housing', giving them 48 hours to voluntarily vacate the space before judicial authorization for eviction is sought.