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BARCELONA, Spain: Millions of Spanish workers shut down businesses and public transportation across the eurozone\u2019s fourth largest economy on Wednesday before thousands took to the streets of major cities in a nationwide protest over soaring rents and real estate prices.<\/p>\n
Housing activists hope the massive show of force will lead to more regulations to protect tenants and crack down on real estate speculation, while Spain\u2019s left-wing government is seeking to mobilize voters ahead of a national election later this month with polls against it.<\/p>\n
The walkout \u2014 under the slogan \u201cSalaries. Housing. Prices.\u201d \u2014 was the first general strike in Spain in 14 years, and the first whose principal push was born from unrest over housing.<\/p>\n
The strike culminated in workers and average citizens gathering in downtown Barcelona and Madrid, along with protests in other cities. Housing activists said 400,000 marchers filled Barcelona, while the city government said 55,000 turned out.<\/p>\n
In Barcelona, most storefronts on Paseo de Gracia, a main shopping boulevard, were boarded up in anticipation of potential unrest before thousands of people walked behind a huge banner that said \u201cLive. Not Just Survive.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the peaceful march, some apparently younger protesters started to smash storefronts of brand-name stores. Police in riot gear quickly arrived in vans to the area.<\/p>\n
Carlos Ferrer, a 45-year-old customer service worker who was trying to get back home to Alicante by train from Barcelona, said that sometimes only \u201cradical measures, such as a general strike\u201d can force a change of course.<\/p>\n
\u201cAuthorities need to feel pressure from the citizens so they can do something,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Barcelona\u2019s metro and public buses stopped running outside rush hour. Street traffic was light. Many smaller establishments like coffee shops, however, did open.<\/p>\n
Protesters march in Madrid, defying rain and pepper spray<\/strong><\/p>\n In Spain\u2019s capital, the wide Paseo del Prado boulevard became a sea of umbrellas as a huge crowd turned out in the evening\u2019s march despite heavy rain.<\/p>\n Earlier, protesters had blocked off Gran V\u00eda, the city center\u2019s main thoroughfare, until police in riot gear pushed them to the sidewalks.<\/p>\n Manuel G\u00f3mez, a 19-year-old student in Madrid, welcomed the protests, which he said marked a change for the country.<\/p>\n \u201cIn Spain, we have a serious problem, which is that when we don\u2019t like something, we never go out to protest,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Unions hailed the strike as a success, while Spain\u2019s business owners\u2019 groups said that it had fallen flat. But they agreed that worker participation was higher in heavy industry and transportation, while it lagged in other sectors of the economy like retail and restaurants.<\/p>\n \u201cThe strike has exceeded the labor unions\u2019 expectations,\u201d said Unai Sordo, secretary-general of CCOO, one of the two unions calling the strike for a nation of 22 million registered workers.<\/p>\n CCOO and UGT, the other major union organizing the strike, reported significant work stoppages in strategic sectors. They said that the stoppages amounted to 90 percent in the automotive and port sectors, 85 percent in the meat industry, 82 percent in waste collection and 75 percent in the energy sector. Many schools and universities closed.<\/p>\n About 5 percent of flights for Wednesday were canceled at airports across Spain, according to the country\u2019s airport operator, AENA.<\/p>\n Miguel \u00c1ngel Garc\u00eda, the spokesperson for the regional Madrid government, which is run by Spain\u2019s conservative Popular Party, or PP, called the strike a \u201ccomplete and authentic failure,\u201d saying that just 9 percent of public sector employees in the region participated.<\/p>\n Minor incidents were reported in the first hours of the strike. Tires were set on fire at roadblocks in Barcelona, and scuffles with police were reported by unions near the main wholesale market on Madrid\u2019s outskirts. Police also used pepper spray against protesters in some places.<\/p>\n In Barcelona, demonstrators wearing masks interrupted the live broadcast of a morning talk show on one of the state broadcaster\u2019s channels. They held up a large sign in favor of the strike before the signal went down momentarily.<\/p>\n Police said they made 29 arrests across Spain for incidents related to the strike, led by nine in Madrid.<\/p>\n Workers and activists want more government action on housing<\/strong><\/p>\n The average rent in Spain has almost doubled in the last decade, eating into household budgets and upsetting voters.<\/p>\n The anger reached a boiling point following the eviction of an 87-year-old woman from her home in Madrid last month. The subsequent death of Maricarmen, as the woman became known, solidified her as a symbol of Spaniards who can\u2019t dream of owning a home.<\/p>\n Housing activists used the uproar over Maricarmen\u2019s eviction to call for the strike, and soon won union backing.<\/p>\n \u201cThe uproar that started over 40 days ago with the eviction of Maricarmen hasn\u2019t stopped growing and has now flooded the streets of our cities,\u201d Alicia del R\u00edo, spokesperson for the Tenants Union, said in Madrid.<\/p>\n The housing activists are seeking the automatic renewals of leases as a way to protect renters and other measures. Unions demand more public housing and a new minimum wage agreement.<\/p>\n Spain\u2019s left hopes to put focus back on housing<\/strong><\/p>\n On the back of the housing protests, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro S\u00e1nchez called an early election, hoping to earn four more years in power for his left-wing coalition. The vote is set for Nov. 29.<\/p>\n Then, in late October came a high-speed train collision \u2014 Spain\u2019s second deadly rail disaster of the year \u2014 that killed 69 people. The aftermath of the tragedy has created a drag on S\u00e1nchez\u2019s campaign.<\/p>\n The strike now offers an opportunity for S\u00e1nchez\u2019s Socialists and other parties on the left seeking to stay in power, analyst Oriol Bartomeus said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Socialists need for the strike to be a success and for there not to be any violence so that the election campaign can swing back to being about housing,\u201d Bartomeus, a professor of political science at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n S\u00e1nchez posted a video on X this week, lauding past social policy achievements like the 40-hour work week and national health insurance, which were the fruit of the workers\u2019 movement.<\/p>\n \u201cIt wasn\u2019t easy, but they changed Spain,\u201d S\u00e1nchez said, warning that right-wing parties would underfund social services if they took over.<\/p>\n The right could benefit if the strike turns ugly<\/strong><\/p>\n PP and the far-right Vox argue that the unions are trying to help S\u00e1nchez with months of polling showing voters leaning toward a change.<\/p>\n If the strike descends into violence or has a low turnout, right-wing parties could benefit, Bartomeus said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Popular Party and Vox both want the strike to be a flop and to end in scenes of burning dumpsters and shattered shop windows,\u201d Bartomeus said, so that the next morning, \u201cthey can say, \u2018This is chaos and we are coming to establish order.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n