The residents of the old Palma prison now live on the beach of Can Pere Antoni and at Bellver Castle

PalmaThe people recently evicted from the old Palma prison have been relocated to different points in the city, such as Can Pere Antoni beach, the green area next to the Gesa building, or Bellver forest. This was denounced this Friday by the NGO Doctors of the World, which warns that the eviction has not resolved the situation of vulnerability, but has only displaced and made it invisible.

In a statement, the entity criticizes that the only housing alternative offered to those affected was “a piece of paper” with the possibility of sleeping two nights at the fire station. According to the organization, this response has been clearly insufficient in the face of a structural problem of homelessness and social exclusion.

“Reality has imposed itself”, remark Doctors of the World, who assure that a large part of the people who lived in the old prison have only changed location. Thus, they have now dispersed to open spaces or improvised settlements, often in even more precarious conditions.

The NGO warns that only a small number of people are trying to access public reception resources, which it describes as “saturated”. In this regard, it insists that closing settlements, whether they are substandard housing or caravans, is not a solution if real alternatives adapted to the needs of the residents are not offered.

Doctors of the World argue that before acting, it is necessary to identify who these people are and what their needs are, as many are in situations of great social and health vulnerability. “They will not disappear because they are expelled from a specific place. They will simply move to another, in worse conditions”, they warn.

The entity calls on administrations for more responsibility and capacity to respond to a growing housing and social crisis in Palma.