Balearic general strike: call to ban holiday lets
On Mallorca and across the Balearic Islands, Wednesday’s general strike is drawing a call to ban holiday lets. The Balearic Institute of Anthropology backs the walkout, saying more workers are struggling to find a decent home. It also wants evictions suspended and empty homes owned by large property holders expropriated.
The institute blames rising rents, property speculation and the concentration of ownership for widening inequality and pushing people out of their neighbourhoods and towns. It says the links between housing and tourism also affect community ties and the islands’ natural and rural areas.
The strike calls for higher wages as well as housing that is not treated simply as something to buy and sell. The institute wants empty homes held by big owners made available at social rents. It also calls for policies to protect farmland, improve access to land and housing, and support small farms.
Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com