Spanish Prime Minster Pedro Sánchez has called for calm after a series of violent protests around the country took place at the weekend. Angry demonstrations took place in cities across Spain in response to the government’s decision to declare a six month state of emergency and a nightly curfew in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
32 people were arrested and 12 injured in Madrid as protesters clashed with police over the midnight curfew. Protests also took place in Alicante, Valencia, Barcelona, Malaga, Vitoria, Santander and Burgos. Bins were set alight and shops smashed and looted in several places with videos shared on social media showing crowds of people running away from police in full riot gear. While much of the gatherings were organised on social media, social media was also key in the cleanup as on Sunday morning, groups of young people took to the streets to start cleaning up the mess.
Sánchez appealed for calm and solidarity, saying on Twitter “Only through responsibility, unity and sacrifice will we be able to beat this pandemic that is ravaging every country. The violent and irrational behaviour of minority groups is intolerable. This isn’t the way.”
The president of Madrid’s regional government, Isabel Díaz Ayuso also called on citizens to act responsibly, saying “The people sowing chaos on the streets are not those most vulnerable to the virus, nor are they the ones fighting for their lives. They are organised groups looking to take advantage of the situation and people’s fears.”
Although some of the protests were led by far-left groups, police believe some of the demonstrations involved “far-right elements”.
Far right party Vox, which recently launched a failed vote of no confidence in Sánchez’ government, did little to defuse the situation. Vox leader Santiago Abascal said, “There are more reasons than ever to protest against this government which is ruining us.” Abascal called on police to protect the rights of protesters but blamed this weekend’s violence on “the far left”.
In Alicante, anti curfew protesters were rallied through social media and gathered in the city centre at 11pm with a banner reading ‘Enough!’. When a half an hour passed with no incident, the crowd broke up into smaller groups and violence broke out when a wrench and other blunt objects were thrown at National Police, bins were set alight and street furniture thrown around. Two arrests were made and more officers deployed to maintain calm for the rest of the night and into the early hours. Police have said they will be monitoring social media to watch out for further incidents.