About twenty members of the Platform of Mortgage Victims gathered yesterday in front of a block of 24 uninhabited apartments owned by Sareb located between Palauet and Torrelameu streets, in the La Bordeta neighborhood of Lleida, to demand that the empty homes of the so-called bad bank be incorporated into the emergency table.
The protest focused on denouncing the lack of social use of these properties. The demonstrators demanded that the half a thousand empty apartments that Sareb has in the demarcation be allocated to situations of housing emergency.
Complaint over the closure of homes for a decade
The PAH spokesperson, Sara Ferrer, criticized the blocked state of the La Bordeta building and the absence of solutions for families in vulnerable situations.
"We are in front of a building that has been closed for 10 years and could have housed many people, but it has been kept with a reinforced door" - Sara Ferrer, spokesperson for the PAH
Ferrer also questioned the conditions for accessing housing rentals assumed by the state-owned company Casa 47. In his opinion, the minimum rent of 16,800 euros required excludes part of the population with more difficulties accessing an apartment.
"It excludes vulnerable families who do not reach this minimum income" - Sara Ferrer, spokesperson for the PAH
The testimony of a neighbor in the eviction process
Maria Estrella Ortiz participated in the rally, who explained that she is in the process of eviction. The affected person recounted that she had a rental contract, but that the situation changed when the property was acquired by an investment fund two years ago.
"I had a rental contract, but when a vulture fund bought the property two years ago, they didn't accept my contract and declared me a squatter" - Maria Estrella Ortiz
Ortiz also assured that the city council has denied him access to the emergency desk and that the only alternative proposed, if he loses his home, would be a shelter resource for a very brief period.
"I have filed claims and I have taken it to the Constitutional Court" - Maria Estrella Ortiz
Coordinated action in several Catalan municipalities
The mobilization in Lleida was part of a joint action called in several Catalan municipalities by entities integrated into the Catalan Housing Union Confederation. Within this framework, the organizations maintain that Sareb keeps some 5,340 empty apartments in Catalonia and that 3,000 families are waiting for a social allocation for an average of 522 days.
During the gathering in La Bordeta, the Guardia Urbana of Lleida identified the attendees for not having requested authorization to hold a protest of more than 20 people. The action took place in front of the empty block to make visible the pressure on families awaiting a housing solution and to demand that part of that real estate be allocated to social emergencies.