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

PalmaThe people recently evicted from the old Palma prison have been relocated to various points in the city, such as Can Pere Antoni beach, the green area next to the Gesa building, and 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 set in,” remarks Doctors of the World, who assure that a good part of the people who lived in the old prison have only changed location. Thus, they have now dispersed into open spaces and 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 of substandard housing or caravans, is not a solution if real alternatives adapted to the residents' needs are not offered.

Doctors of the World argues that before acting, it is necessary to identify who these people are and what their needs are, as many are in a situation 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 organization calls on administrations for greater responsibility and capacity to respond to a housing and social crisis that is growing uncontrollably in Palma.