Madrid: The government evicts La Ingobernable taking advantage of the state of emergency

No matter who we tell, the reaction is always the same. WTF. The self-proclaimed ‘government of change’, the one that claims to be guided by the demands of the social movements, has consummated an eviction in times of Coronavirus. We would never imagine this reality of confinement, police state and restriction of most activities. Nor could we imagine that, in the midst of this situation, we would find out, while we were walking the dog, that we were being evicted by stealth. We don’t know if they have been more cowardly, more clumsy or more deluded. They have had the cowardice to take advantage of the fact that the social center is empty, and those who have recovered the space are being responsible by staying in their homes, to break out of their own confinement, kick in the door, take down the banners, and change the locks. They have had the clumsiness to do this by committing resources and security forces, at a time when no one will believe that this is really an essential activity. And, above all, they have been so deluded as to think that this will get us killed.

The Ministry of Justice, headed by Juan Carlos Campo Moreno, wanted us to believe that this procedure was part of those that the Royal Decree of the state of emergency calls “essential for the protection of the general interest”. They don’t give a shit: while we devote our forces and capacities to supporting health workers by printing 3D masks or supporting networks in our neighbourhoods, they dismantle a social center without even proposing an alternative use. Or perhaps, it’s only the continuation of five years of vacancy and neglect of a building in one of the most exclusive areas of the capital. And they call this “general interest” and “priority” in times of pandemic. [Read More]

Madrid: The Government wants to evict La Ingobernable in 24 hours despite the state of emergency

This Tuesday, April 14, we learned through publication in the BOE (Official State Bulletin) that the Ministry of Justice was giving us 48 hours to leave the new open space occupied by La Ingobernable in Calle Alberto Bosch, 4.

The deadline is today. And we are not only faced with a new demonstration of the absolute lack of interest in dialogue between this Ministry and Minister Juan Carlos Campo, but also with a particular use of the right of an administration that has decided that its priority in the midst of the quarantine is to resume a process such as the eviction of La Ingobernable, omitting even the right of allegation, all in order to deprive Madrid of a self-managed space. In this case, there are several reasons why it seems to us to be a particularly shabby move.

Firstly, we cannot even remotely understand how this government has set as a priority in the current context the resumption of the administrative process for the eviction of this social center. A place that, as we already defended in our previous communiqué, will be essential, like the rest of the social centers, for the post-quarantine scenario. [Read More]

Madrid: Imagine not having social centers

Last week, in the midst of all the commotion caused by the current health crisis, we were stupefied by the publication in the BOE (Official State Bulletin) of the resumption of the administrative process to evict the new social centre at Calle Alberto Bosch, 4. Despite the fact that last 14 March, with the Royal Decree of Covid19 , all administrative procedures, including ours, were stopped, the Ministry of Justice has decided to resume it on the grounds of “public health reasons”. As we have made public, our activity in the building is on hold since the declaration of the state of emergency, following the recommendations and restrictions implemented to curb the epidemic. Obviously, we conclude from this that the rush to resume the eviction procedure is based on political will. Taking advantage of the state of exception that prevents us from defending ourselves, the intention is to carry out a new aggression against self-managed social centers and deprive the city of Madrid of an essential space for social movements.

This situation has made us ask ourselves some questions: what role will social centres play in the coming period? Is it really relevant, in the midst of this gigantic systemic crisis, that a space like the new headquarters of the Ungovernable should disappear? Can we imagine a Madrid without social centres? [Read More]

Alcázar De San Juan (Spanish state): CSOA La Idea attacked and trashed

Since our beginning as a CSOA (self-managed occupied social centre) on 23rd May 2017, we announce with much sadness and resignation, that the collective LA IDEA ceases its activity in the current premises.

In the early morning of last Thursday 5th March, the social center suffered an extremely serious attack for the development of the activities we had been carrying out. The social center has suffered irreparable damage, they have destroyed all the infrastructure we built: windows, doors, solar energy, water tanks, furniture and much more seriously, they have stolen and destroyed all the electrical installation that made it possible to hold events and activities. They have opened the fences that delimit the space and have destroyed all the material that we had, such as cleaning products, refrigerators, stoves, tables, chairs, kitchens, bathrooms, lighting and a long etc… [Read More]

Madrid: La Ingobernable, we are still in the heart of Madrid

For our friends.
For the ones who fight every day.
For those who are gone.
In this month of feminist revolt, of organized rage, of joy and of struggle, we, the neighbors of Madrid, make public the recovery of the building in Calle Alberto Bosch 4, as a new common and open space in the heart of Madrid. Now, in this week more than ever, we must remember the role that social centers have had, have and will have for the feminist movement, as a space for convergence, construction and self-organisation. The attack on social centers is undoubtedly a direct attack on feminism, which we are not prepared to tolerate.
In recent years we have witnessed a lamentable spectacle in which a few people share out the city, selling it to the highest bidder or handing it over to friends while others are thrown out of our neighbourhoods. Recently we learned that the building of La Ingobernable (Paseo del Prado 30) was once again being given, in the style of the PP, to a foundation directed by the former mayor Gallardón to build a museum instead of the so promised endowments for the neighborhood that the current mayor, Martínez-Almeida, was advocating during the electoral campaign. This story is very familiar to us because some years ago the also ex-mayor Botella already gave it, for 1 euro and at 75 years old, to a foundation friend of the PP. [Read More]

Rubí (Catalonia): Rally against the risk of eviction from El Mirlo community garden

Call out from El Mirlo community garden.

Saturday 15 February 2020, 12:00, rally in front of Rubí train station.

If the speculator persists, El Mirlo resists!

May 2016, we occupied the land on 44 General Prim Street, opposite the Ateneu Anarquista la Hidra, owned at that time by Arrels CT Finsol, a BBVA real estate company, in order to build a community garden among all of them. Since then we have been giving life to this space, making use of an abandoned land. El Mirlo (the Blackbird) and its plants have not stopped growing with the effort of all of us, day after day and in each of the open days to the neighbors that are organized every 15 days. We cultivate vegetables, medicinal plants, tubers and we do it all together to learn together and thus share knowledge. The garden is also a meeting place for people and groups, a corner protected from the asphyxiating pollution and asphalt of this city. [Read More]

Zaragoza: statement by the CSO Kike Mur

If the Kike Mur falls, Zaragoza will rise up.

Greetings to anyone who feels identified with the values of freedom, self-management, anti-fascism and with the CSO Kike Mur . First of all, we would like to thank all the comments, communications and expressions of support that are reaching us from both collectives and individuals, they transmit a lot of strength and reaffirm our resistance, it is the people who really give meaning and life to space, who have managed to make this dream come true. It is because of all this that we feel strong, we know that we have the support and solidarity of the best people of this city and other places, and that is the best weapon we can have. [Read More]

Madrid and Berlin: brochure from squatters and resisting spots

A sea of possibilities in the concrete desert: Territory, city and insurrection’ – Madrid & Berlin

This publication is a compilation of texts that emerges from the discussions and the work we started in the wake of the event “A sea of possibilities in the concrete desert. Territory, city and insurrection” that happened in Madrid during June 2019 in la Emboscada and Local Anarquista Motín. Is the product of a joint work of some comrades from Berlin and Madrid, that does not finish with the publication of this pages and pretends to extend the discussion that we have shared.

What does it mean to take territory against the State and Capitalism? How can we take it through our struggles? How does it work domination in the territories that we inhabit? Does it mean our way of living in a territory a conflict with the system?

December 2019,
Madrid and Berlin. [Read More]

Pola de Lena (Asturias): The Civil Guard violently evicts the Palaciu de Ronzón

We spoke with a member of the El Palaciu Collective, which has been occupying the Palaciu de Ronzón for nine months, violently evicted this morning by the Guardia Civil.

This morning agents of the Guardia Civil have violently proceeded to evict the Palaciu de Ronzón, an old squatted manor house in Lena (Asturias) that belonged to the powerful family of the nobility Bernaldo de Quirós. During the eviction, two activists have been arrested and are still in the premises of the Civil Guard. At least one of the people arrested has broken his ankle and has had to be transferred to receive medical attention. In addition, numerous identifications have been made and another person has been detained, although she has not been arrested.

From La Haine we have been able to speak with Juan, one of the members of the Colectivo El Palaciu who had been occupying the building for 9 months, while they were gathered in front of the barracks in Pola de Lena demanding the freedom of the detained people. [Read More]

Madrid: La Emboscada under eviction threat

Friday December 20th
Hello comrades,
We write this communiqué from La Emboscada (Tetuán, Madrid) to inform you that last December 17th a judge ordered our precautionary eviction based on a complaint made by one of the owners of our Anarchist Occupied Space La Emboscada.
According to this report, the eviction can be very close, in less than 20 days. Taking into account this information, we decided to fight with all our capacities to prevent this eviction. So we called for a demonstration in the evening on the day of the eviction, at 8pm, and we are counting on your support. The meeting place will not be published until the last moment, so we encourage you to be attentive. We decided not to remain silent while we see dozens and dozens of eviction processes both in housing and social centers.
We decided not to give up or negotiate with those people who want to defend their private property above all, because we know that private property only seeks the individual benefit of some and we know that the State defends and supports these old class enemies already known.
We know that this case is not an isolated case (we have all the previous facts occurred this last year) but it responds to a normal capitalist functioning and structure. We know that the owner is not the devil who escapes the norm or the common sense accepted by most citizens. So we have decided to approach it as one more conflict to be faced and with all the will and mutual support that is given among all those who understand and are in solidarity with this fight against Capital, laws and State. [Read More]

Ronzón (Spanish State): Social center El Palaciu under threat

The social center El Palaciu of Ronzón, Asturias, which was squatted last April is facing threat of eviction.
The mansion which houses the social center is owned by the Fundacion de Ronzón. They are the inheritors of Spain’s feudal system. They have extensive land holdings in and around Ronzón. As this includes all the houses of the families living in Ronzón, they also are the landlords to the entire local community. Charged by the conditions of the trust with developing the countryside, their only action of note has been to undermine the Palace by profiting from the unwanted, unfinished AVE high speed train. Oh, they also profited from a duck farm scam.
Our vision of the countryside is different. If they are the continuation of feudal oppression, we are the continuation of peasant resistance. The rent seeking of the Fundacion and their ilk has led to the abandonment of over 800 villages in the Asturian countryside. The bureaucrats in rural town halls dream vapid dreams of wealthy city dwellers spending their excess capital in an uninhabited, natural paradise. We live and breathe and work for a sustainable, thriving agrarian world; a world where the necessities of life, like land and housing, are held in common for the empowerment of all. [Read More]

Madrid: La Ingobernable evicted, but an ungovernable Madrid can’t be evicted

From the heart of Madrid, November 13, 2019

Today, the right wing has carried out the eviction of La Ingobernable, in a demonstration of force. It has closed itself off from tackling a social conflict with arguments, and without even giving notice, it has resolved with the police what it has not wanted to resolve through dialogue. When the reasons end, you only have brute force left, but you will neither win nor convince. Thousands of us filled a common space with life, and now they are knocking down the door to empty this social center of all the life with which we filled it.

Almeida, Villacís: but why do you hate us so much? First, because you can’t stand the truth that we are carrying: that the Prado 30 conflict was not opened by La Ingobernable, but by those who stole a public building from us. [Read More]