Following the announced dismantling of a protest camp for affordable housing in Valencia the representative of the Spanish central government in the region, Roger Llanes, has rejected allegations of pressure from the authorities. There had been neither threats nor coercion, Llanes said on 12 November. The initiative had previously said it was leaving the Town Hall Square, to avoid eviction.
According to the newspaper El Español, the group began taking down its tents on Thursday. It had been demonstrating in Valencia’s central square since 3 October. The activists announced that they would leave the square peacefully and in an orderly manner, clean it and pass on as much material as possible to people in need. They said they would continue pursuing their demands for solutions to the housing shortage .
Llanes said, according to Europa Press, that the initiative had itself decided to begin dismantling the camp after talks and without pressure. Remaining in the Town Hall Square had become increasingly incompatible with the events due to take place there. He referred to a report by the city council.
The protesters gave a different account of their decision. In a statement seen by El Español, they described a situation in which they either had to take down their tents or face eviction. The safety of those involved and non-violence were their priorities. The available reports do not make it possible to independently establish the content of any discussions about an eviction.
The initiative also criticised the failure to hold another round of negotiations. Neither the city council nor the regional government had engaged sufficiently in talks about its concerns. Llanes, for his part, said that his government delegation had spoken continuously with those involved since the camp began. He accused the other two administrations of failing to engage in dialogue.
On 9 November, the group had already announced that it would gradually reduce the area it occupied. It said this was to show consideration for businesses ahead of the Christmas season. Mayor María José Catalá called instead for the entire square to be cleared.
As recently as 10 November, Llanes had said there was no deadline for fully dismantling the camp; from the authorities’ perspective, an eviction was not on the agenda. At the time, the initiative had called for another round of talks before a complete withdrawal.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).