argia.eus
INPRIMATU
Life Model Shock in Errekaleor
  • On the outskirts of Vitoria-Gasteiz is Errekaleor, the largest self-managed centre in the Basque Country and the Spanish State. Last Thursday, the joint operation of the Ertzaintza and Iberdrola suspended the electricity supply to the neighborhood, following the instructions of the Department of Industry of the Basque Government. Residents responded with civil disobedience: The Ertzaintza arrested three people and injured several.
Kauldi Iriondo Galarraga Lukas Barandiaran San Roman 2017ko maiatzaren 25

The working-class housing neighborhood of 192 houses was built in the 1950s, but in 2002, in the midst of the housing bubble, the City Hall of Vitoria-Gasteiz demolished its entirety and drew up a plan to build duplex houses. The neighbors began to move, but after the crisis that affected the project, the neighborhood was practically deserted.

The occupation started by a dozen students in 2012 is increasingly fruitful. They currently live close to 150 people and form a strong community, with several neighborhood management teams and two general assemblies a month. Among other activities, they have launched the garden, the bakery, the music studio, the gaztetxe, the printing press, the children's classroom and the library.

The mayor of Vitoria-Gasteiz, Gorka Uraran, has assured that the intervention of the Ertzaintza and Iberdrola on Thursday is "absolutely justified", that the electrical installation is a "risk" for the neighbors and that they have been cut off for their safety. It has also made public its intention to “destroy” Errekaleor’s buildings and said that decisions must be taken immediately.

Errekaleor is a popular movement agent from Vitoria-Gasteiz and Euskal Herria. They work to drive the popular movement and from Errekaleor they claim that the neighborhood is the town. Faced with Thursday’s aggression, they have called for an international demonstration to be held on 3 June in Vitoria-Gasteiz. They have called upon all the people to demonstrate with their demands “to defend what is of the people”: “Errekaleor will complete the skeleton for the people to implant the muscle.”

Some photos of the operation are: