Police evict squatters from Madrid base

POLICE evicted squatters from a Madrid municipal building occupied by the group calling themselves ‘La Ingobernable’ (The Ungovernable) in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

More than 130 officers from officers from different units took part in the operation in the Paseo del Prado to clear the group’s ’La Ingo’ social centre.

The eviction came after administrative procedures has been exhausted and a number of fruitless attempts on the part of the city council to get the squatters to leave the building voluntarily.

Following the city authority’s most recent call for the occupants to go on their own accord at the end of August the group responded by reaching out to the squatter community on social media to gather in from of the building to “defend it.”

La Ingobernable turned to Twitter again on Tuesday night to try and stop the eviction, posting “The right has sent the police to evict by force, without dialogue, without prior warning. We need as much presence as possible.”

The post continued, “Even though they clear this building they cannot get rid of us because we are everywhere and in Madrid ungovernable is un-evictable.”

A bunch of squatters first took over the structure in May 2017. Madrid Mayor Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida had made getting the building back in municipal hands one of his electoral promise.

Among the ideas the council is floating around for its future use are a health centre or a library.