Ara Balears in English - homelessness

Dying of cold in the street: the shame that portrays us as a society

Sebastià Alzamora — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 06:30:19 +0000

On January 1st, the body of a 52-year-old man was found dead in a park in the Camp Redó neighborhood of Palma. He was homeless and, according to news reports, died from various illnesses. And also, evidently, from the effects of living on the streets and spending nights outdoors during a cold snap.

Homelessness, a symptom of collective failure

Editorial ARA Balears — Mon, 01 Dec 2025 20:24:08 +0000

In Mallorca, homelessness has ceased to be a marginal phenomenon and has become a structural symptom of collective failure. Along the highways, under the bridges of the ring road, on vacant lots, and in almost invisible corners of Palma, tents, shacks made of plastic and wood, and camper vans—which are, in reality, another facet of the same precariousness—are multiplying. And yet, public administrations continue to act as if all this doesn't exist or as a mere anecdote. They don't know how many settlements there are, how many people live there, what their conditions are, or what their needs are. And if you don't know, it doesn't exist, and you can't offer solutions. Ignorance is, all too often, a mechanism of institutional defense.

Homelessness is getting out of the Administration's control.

Laura López Rigo — Mon, 01 Dec 2025 20:23:42 +0000

The number of homeless people continues to rise in Mallorca – it should be noted that cages and caravans are included within the category of homelessness. From 2019 to 2023, the increase was 112%: five years ago there were 207 people, two years ago there were already 440, more than double, according to data from the Mallorcan Institute of Social Affairs (IMAS) – this figure is not exact, because it only includes people who are physically present.