The City Council evicts the old Palma prison: "Tonight I will sleep on the street"

PalmaThe Palma City Council has evicted the old Palma prison after a court authorized its execution due to the high risk that, according to various technical reports, the state of the property represents for the people still residing there. The operation, coordinated between the Local Police and the National Police, began at 12 noon and lasted throughout the day. Bernardino, a 60-year-old Italian who was evicted, criticized being treated like a drug dealer and told reporters: "Tonight I will sleep on the street, in this park, what a shame."

This homeless man had been living in the old prison for three years and, after the eviction began at noon, he left with a cart of his belongings and a large suitcase. "I have nowhere to go, I'll have a few beers and sleep here," in the small outdoor space with trees next to the prison where there are wooden benches, he explained.

Very angry, Bernardino complained about the expulsion of the approximately 70 people who resided in this space until today. "This mayor (Jaime Martínez) is no good, he needs to be changed," he told reporters, to whom he recalled that the old prison has been abandoned for 14 years.

The action comes almost four months after the City Council initiated the procedure for the recovery of possession of the building, occupied for years and converted into precarious accommodation for dozens of people. According to municipal data, when the process began, 206 people lived there. Over the months, and as a result of social services' actions, the figure has been reduced to about 70 people who still occupied the old prison modules.

The judicial decision is based on reports prepared by the Local Police, the Palma Firefighters, and health services, which warned of a "real, serious, and current risk" to the life and physical integrity of the residents. Among the main problems detected were the high risk of fire, serious habitability deficiencies, and evacuation difficulties in case of emergency.

During the operation, the municipal social services have been kept deployed, offering residential alternatives and integration pathways to those affected. An ambulance from 061 was also made available to attend to any incidents that might occur during the eviction. In particular, Cort has set up four prefabricated houses, installed at the Central Fire Station Park, where those evicted from the city's old prison can stay for two nights. This temporary resource, which was launched on the same day as the forced eviction of the nearly 70 people still residing in the building began, can accommodate those who do not have an immediate residential alternative.

The four modules are air-conditioned and equipped with beds provided by the Red Cross. They will remain operational for two nights, from 7:30 PM to 9 AM. The installation of these temporary modules has been agreed upon and coordinated with the Palma Firefighters and does not affect the operational capacity of the service in any way. The Central Fire Station has an alternative exit for emergency vehicles, which also has a traffic light system that grants priority to traffic.

In parallel, workers from the La Sapiència Foundation, a social entity of the Bishopric of Mallorca, are working alongside municipal social services to offer support to those evicted.

According to information provided by Cort, in coordination with the Mallorcan Institute of Social Affairs (IMAS), 45 people have so far been referred to temporary reception centers or social and labor programs. However, organizations working with homeless people have warned on several occasions about the lack of stable residential resources to respond to situations of chronic vulnerability.

Once the eviction is completed, the Local Police will maintain a permanent surveillance device in the enclosure to prevent new occupations. Subsequently, the City Council will board up the facilities and begin the transformation of the old prison site into a new residential complex with more than a hundred subsidized housing units. The project proposes around 130 apartments, with a combination of protected, assisted, and affordable rental housing. A new roundabout and a new access to Palma have also been planned in the area for years.

“The PP has chosen the cruelest path for vulnerable people”

The spokesperson for MÉS per Palma, Neus Truyol, has criticized the eviction of the old prison and has accused the municipal government of the PP of opting for "the cruelest path" by expelling vulnerable people without guaranteeing, according to her, dignified housing alternatives. Truyol stated that "a decent city does not solve poverty by hiding it behind a wall" and reproached the local executive for not acting with the same force against real estate speculation and the increase in rental prices. She also maintained that the eviction "is the symbol of a policy that punishes vulnerability and rewards speculation.

For her part, Anna Ferrer, a friend of some of the evicted people, has denounced that the social services of the City Council and the Council of Mallorca are "overwhelmed," with waiting lists, and therefore these people will be forced to sleep outdoors. Ferrer, who was present during the eviction, has denounced that "now everyone is going out onto the street," reports EFE.

The Red Cross explained this Wednesday to Ferrer that its services are "saturated" and that the Mallorcan Institute of Social Affairs (IMAS), of the Council of Mallorca, also does not have more places to provide a bed for these people.

On the other hand, Jaume Pujol, from the support group established to help the prison residents, stated that everything in this process "is very shameful because it means leaving 200 people on the street," those who lived in the old prison a few months ago.

These are working people, she recounted, who with the salaries they earn cannot afford to reside in "dignified housing" due to the high cost of rent, or even rent a room.

Pujol denounced that some residents have received "pressure" for deportation if they did not leave the property, and therefore the Consistory's action "has been classist and racist."

"You cannot remove people without knowing where they will live"

Mercé, a resident and member of the Can Capiscol neighborhood association, explained that they are in favor of this eviction due to the dangers of living in this place, but they also want the evicted to be able to live in a safe place. "You can't remove people without knowing where they will live," she commented.

Some volunteers have been distributing water, bananas, and muffins among the evicted residents, who have been peacefully leaving the old building, which will be demolished by the City Council to make social housing.