Barcelona city centre saw a night of chaos on Saturday as groups of young people clashed with police and shops were looted.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
The unrest, which began late in the afternoon around the Plaça de Catalunya, led to 128 arrests, roughly a quarter of them minors, according to authorities. Fifteen police officers were also injured during the night.
The gathering, promoted on social media under the slogan “Instituts Indignats,” aimed to bring the French youth movement “Lycéens Indignés” to the Catalan capital.
At its peak, the demonstration drew around 600 people, per Spanish media reports.
The disturbances started at around 6 pm, when several groups of young people, many dressed in black and wearing hoods, began vandalising street furniture. Riot police then moved in, prompting demonstrators to scatter through the adjoining streets, where clashes continued.
Protesters threw stones and other heavy objects at officers, whilst several groups erected barricades, set fire to rubbish bins and smashed shop windows. Police responded with charges to disperse participants as they worked to regain control of the area.
According to La Vanguardia, around 14 shops were looted. Clashes also caused damage to motorbikes, bicycles and bus shelters.
The violence forced numerous businesses to close and led the Guardia Urbana to restrict access to the Plaça de Catalunya. Train services stopping at Plaça Catalunya station were also temporarily halted.
Authorities condemn violence
The mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, condemned the incidents and announced that the city council would take part in legal proceedings to seek accountability for the damage caused.
“This will not be left as it is. We will go all the way,” Collboni warned, adding that there could be consequences for the parents or legal guardians of the minors involved.
The president of the government of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, also condemned the unrest and defended the police response.
“Protesting is a democratic right,” he said, although he stressed that violence cannot be justified as part of that right.
For her part, the Catalan interior minister, Núria Parlon, described the incidents as “gratuitous violence and vandalism” and insisted that those responsible were not defending any legitimate cause.
Both distanced the unrest from the housing rights encampment that has been set up in the Plaça de Catalunya for several weeks.
