Social groups warn that the eviction from the old Palma prison could leave more than 200 people without an alternative.

PalmSeveral social groups have denounced the lack of viable housing alternatives in the face of the eviction process at the former Palma prison, where nearly 200 people currently live. The organizations Arran, Menos Turismo Más Vida (Less Tourism More Life), the Socialist Youth Organization, and the Palma Housing Union have demanded a halt to the eviction until a dignified solution is guaranteed for all those affected. In a statement outside the municipal building, the groups warned that this case is not an isolated incident, but rather another manifestation of the housing crisis in Palma, exacerbated, they say, by over-tourism and the sustained increase in the rental market. In this context, they noted that 245 evictions were carried out in the city in the second quarter of 2025 alone, while more than a thousand people currently live in precarious settlements. The former prison, closed more than 25 years ago and acquired by the Palma City Council in 2013, has housed up to 400 people simultaneously. According to the organizing groups, the residents include homeless people, evicted families, and low-income workers who cannot access housing on the open market. The groups have criticized the City Council for initiating the eviction process without specifying a sufficient alternative, even though the municipal Social Services and the social inclusion network of the Mallorcan Institute of Social Affairs have waiting lists. In this regard, they have warned that the option of voluntary abandonment does not guarantee an immediate solution and could end up leaving many people on the street. They have also questioned whether the recent fires inside the building justify the eviction and asserted that these events have been used to expedite the process. According to the groups, there is no report that proves an imminent structural risk that would necessitate an urgent eviction. Finally, the organizations accused the City Council of shifting responsibility to other institutions and warned that the measure could replicate situations already experienced in other municipalities, such as Badalona and Ibiza, where similar evictions led to new settlements. In this context, they demanded that the right to housing take precedence over speculative interests and called for an immediate and coordinated response from the authorities.