Thousands of people marched through Barcelona, Spain, on Wednesday afternoon, protesting soaring rents and demanding stronger tenant protections. Organizers said 400,000 people participated in the demonstration, while police put attendance at 55,000, a figure the Tenants’ Union called a significant underestimate.
The rally took place less than three weeks before Spain’s snap parliamentary election, scheduled for November 29.
Socialist Prime Minister Sanchez called the early vote after parliament rejected two housing reform decrees on October 2. The measures, which included rent caps, stronger protections against evictions and restrictions on property speculation, were defeated by the conservative People’s Party, the right-wing Vox party and the Catalan separatist party Junts.
The march, organized by the Tenants’ Union and the Confederation of Housing Unions of Catalonia, saw protesters chant “Landlords, wake up, your party is over!”
According to El Pais, after the demonstration ended, groups of masked rioters erected makeshift barricades and targeted shops, smashing windows and setting garbage containers ablaze.
A Lego store was among the businesses vandalized, while other establishments were looted.
Barcelona Mayor Jaume Collboni reported around 50 arrests following the unrest, while at least 75 people were detained nationwide during the general strike.
“Neither violence nor vandalism represents the people who demonstrated peacefully throughout the day,” Catalan regional president Salvador Illa wrote on X. “In Catalonia, those who break the law will face the consequences.”
The protest was part of a nationwide general strike that disrupted transport and commerce across Spain. Demonstrators blocked roads in Madrid, Valencia and other cities, while pickets forced some businesses to close. Rail services were disrupted, with 24% of high-speed AVE trains and 10% of Cercanías commuter services canceled, along with more than 330 flights.
Europe has seen a wave of unrest in recent weeks, with protests over rising living costs and the quality of public services in France and Germany erupting into clashes with police, vandalism and looting.