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CRIME

How crime levels in Barcelona have been affected by the loss of tourism

With few tourists in Barcelona, criminals are targeting locals—but there may actually be a silver lining, writes Jennifer Creaser.

Published: 6 August 2020 11:01 CEST
How crime levels in Barcelona have been affected by the loss of tourism
Photo: AFP

In 2019, Barcelona was in the midst of a crime wave.

Headlines splashed across local newspapers and UK papers citing the alarming rise in street robberies—including the death of a Korean diplomat during a violent mugging. Most troubling of all, of the 83,472 robberies in the first half of 2019, some 5,310 were classed as “violent”, a rise of 30.3 percent compared to the same period the previous year, according to Ara.cat. 

But the crime figures for the first half of 2020 look very different.

During the national lockdown imposed to tackle to coronavirus pandemic crime rates dropped dramatically.

From March 14th to June 20th, there was a 56 percent drop in petty theft and a 38 percent drop in robberies using force, according to the official Barcelona City website. 

READ ALSO: Tips to avoid being pickpocketed in Spain

But as the city reopened and people filtered back on to the streets, so too did the criminals.

But there was one major difference to pre-lockdown – the lack of the tourists who make for easy prey for the seasoned crime gangs.

With far fewer tourists in Barcelona—due to the travel ban on US visitors to the EU coupled with EU warnings on traveling to Spain and simply a trend by many Europeans for staycations —current victims are largely Spanish citizens.

In particular, criminals are targeting elderly people and women, according to El Periodico, and stealing jewelry, mobile phones, and wallets.

In a survey of 800 residents conducted by the Barcelona City Council during the first half of July, crime is a main concern for 17.6 percent of the respondents.

Last year The Local reported on the rise of citizen patrols where groups of crime-fighting residents would patrol some of the most notorious streets and the metro system to spot pickpockets and warn potential victims.

READ ALSO: How Barcelona's crime wave is turning residents into crime fighters

Eliana Guerrero has pioneered citizen patrols in Barcelona to identify pickpockets on the metro. Photo: Wikimedia

Criminals largely operate in gangs on Barcelona’s public transport, in shops, and on the street in areas in and around Ciutat Vella, the historic city center, and the Eixample district.

The vast majority are repeat offenders. The Mossos d’Esquadra, the police force of Catalonia, has currently identified 159 active multi-recidivist criminals who focus on street robberies, according to El Peridico. Of these, 11 percent have committed violent robberies. 

In response, in June of this year, the Mossos launched the “Tremall” plan, aimed at fighting violent robberies by targeting repeat offenders. To date, the operation has resulted in the arrest of 360 criminals linked to 1,280 violent robberies, according to Metropoli Abierto. 

READ ALSO: Barcelona residents fear second wave more than second lockdown

AFP

On July 30, 2020, in a period of 24 hours, the Mossos arrested three men for separate violet robberies, including a 22-year-old who had stolen a watch from a victim in Ciudad Vella. The perpetrator had a dozen previous arrests for theft, according to Metropoli Abierto.

But what has long plagued the Barcelona judicial system—and why there are so many repeat offenders—is the imbalance between arrests and convictions.

As The Local reported previously people often complain that they report the crime to police, often providing photos of the perpetrators snapped hurriedly on their mobile phones, believing it should be easy enough to round up the thieves.

But even if the police did have the manpower and the will to do it, there is little they can do by law to keep them off the streets. 

Under Spanish law, stealing something with a value less than €400 is considered a falta (misdemeanour), and not a delito (crime). Those caught will be liable for a fine, of probably no more than €50, but however many times you re-offend, it remains a misdemeanour and as an offence it is not cumulative.

That's why gangs of pickpockets appear so brazen, often working the same beat with no need to even hide themselves. Some people have complained that after going to the police station to file a report and returning to their hotel, they see the same people who just robbed them, in the same spot waiting for new victims.

Another issue for the more serious offences such as violent robberies is that in order for a suspected criminal to be convicted, both the suspect and the victim must be present at trial, with the victim required to identify the perpetrator in person.

If the victim is a tourist, what generally happens is that they file a complaint with the police but don’t return to Barcelona for the trial. The result is that criminals are soon released to commit the same crimes again and again.

In 2018, there were 1,627 persons arrested for violent street robberies in the city, but just 159 were sent to prison (a rate of around 10%), according to figures from Ara.cat. 

But this year, there’s a definite possibility that more repeat offenders will go to prison.

Given that victims are largely locals or Spanish citizens—and thus are more likely to be present at trial—this should result in more criminal convictions and harsher penalties for repeat offenders. 

This will raise hope that by the time tourists return to Barcelona en masse the streets will be safer.

 

 

 

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POLITICS

Which Catalans want independence from Spain?

Catalan separatist politicians have taken on kingmaker roles in Spanish politics in recent months, but Catalans themselves increasingly see independence as unlikely. Which Catalans still support independence and which don't?

Published: 10 May 2024 11:39 CEST
Which Catalans want independence from Spain?

Catalan separatists are playing an increasingly crucial role in politics at the national level in Spain, but the vast majority of Catalans themselves see the prospect of independence as increasingly unlikely.

This is according to annual survey data released by the Institute of Political and Social Sciences (ICPS) in Catalonia, which revealed that just 5 percent of Catalans polled believe that an independent Catalonia will ever become a reality. In 2015 that figure was 17 percent.

The survey also confirmed that support for independence (39.5 percent) remains well below support for staying within Spain (52.5 percent). Catalans will go to the polls in regional elections on May 12th in a vote many view as crucial for the stability of the national government.

Catalan pro-independence parties, namely Junts per Cataluyna and Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, have essentially become kingmakers in Spanish politics following July 2023’s general election result and subsequent amnesty deal offered by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to cling onto power.

READ ALSO:

Often when the Catalan question is discussed, particularly in the context of national politics, broad strokes statements are made about the people and politics in the region. Catalans are all separatists, some say. Some even say they are terrorists, or that only far-left radicals want independence.

But who really still wants independence? What are the demographics behind Catalan separatism, and what does it tell us about the future of the movement?

Age breakdown

A study by the Generalitat revealed that younger voters, between 16- 42, generally show less enthusiasm for independence than older voters. Young people are more likely to show preference for the current model (of Catalonia as a region within Spain) rather than full independence, according to a survey by the Catalan Centre for Opinion Studies (CEO) cited by El País.

CEO polling groups respondents by age, the ‘silent generation’ (over 78); ‘baby boomers’ (between 59 and 77); ‘generation X’ (between 43 and 58); ‘millennials’ (between 27 and 42) and ‘generation Z’ (between 16 and 26).

The results were stark. When asked “what should be the relationship between Catalonia and Spain” the preference for independence only exceeded 30 percent among baby boomers (34 percent) and generation X (32 percent). But even within these age groups, the most pro-independence, a fully-independent Catalonia barely convinced more than a quarter to a third of respondents.

Among younger people, however, regional autonomy was the preferred option for millennials (28 percent) and generation Z (29 percent), ahead of an independent Catalonia, which appealed to 26 percent and 23 percent respectively. Interestingly, in this sense young people are closer to their grandparents’ views than to their parents’ generation on the question of independence. Among the silent generation, regional autonomy within Spain had 33 percent support, and 27 percent supported an independent Catalonia.

A demonstrator waves a half-Spanish and half-Senyera flag during a protest by far-right party Vox against the government in Barcelona in 2020. (Photo by Pau Barrena / AFP)

Young men

Furthermore, delving further into the graphics, it becomes clear that young men are some of the least likely people to support Catalan independence. A survey published by Òmnium points to “a marked conservative movement and a move away from the fundamental values of sovereignty among the country’s youth” more generally but specifically among young men.

Young men, the study demonstrates, are the most ‘espanyolistas’ in the region, in other words, the least favourable towards Catalan independence and most likely to be pro-centralisation and Spanish. They are also the ones who view using the Catalan language as a lesser priority. However, this isn’t an isolated policy issue, and young men in the region are also more likely to be sceptical about climate change, the least in favour of paying taxes, the least feminist, and those who perceive the threat of the extreme right as the least relevant.

The study termed this the ‘derechización‘ (what we might call the ‘right-wingisation’ in English) of young men, a trend across the rest of the country and the world in recent years.

Class and income

Income and social class also play a role in pro-separatist politics, and the data suggests that separatism is more popular among people self-describing as ‘comfortably off’.

According to data from the CEO cited by El País in 2017, the real flashpoint of separatist politics in Catalonia, around a third (32 percent) of Catalans earning less than €900 were in favour of independence. However, over half (53 percent) of respondents earning €1,800 or more per month were pro-independence, while 54 percent of the wealthy (monthly income of €4,000 or more per month) wanted to see an independent Catalonia.

This also ties into educational level and class. Data compiled by the London School of Economics shows that independence is most popular among the highly educated (secondary and university levels), something that makes higher incomes levels more attainable and upward social mobility more likely.

Catalan origins

Interestingly, it seems that Catalans born outside Catalonia are more likely to be on lower incomes and therefore less likely to hold pro-separatist views. There also seems to be evidence that having a multi-generational Catalan background makes you more likely to be pro-independence.

As El País states, “even more glaring is the relationship between background and pro-independence sentiment. Among third generation Catalans – those with both parents and all four grandparents born in Catalonia – support for independence rises to 75 percent.”

“But this figure drops drastically when it comes to families with more varied backgrounds. Support for independence stands at 49 percent among those with one parent from outside the region and drops to 29 percent among children of immigrants.”

Geography

Geography also plays a role. As these municipality map breakdowns by RTVE show, if the population living in each area is taken into account, as in the second map, you can see that in the largest municipalities, such as Barcelona and its surrounding metropolitan area, the non-nationalist bloc holds the greatest electoral weight.

The maps are stark, but population even things even out: in municipalities where there was a nationalist or pro-independence majority in 2021, found largely in the country and smaller towns, slightly over 3 million Catalans live; but in the big cities, where people are more likely to be sceptical, that figure is almost 5 million.

As the Royal Elcano Institute put it in its analysis of the post-2017 political chaos, Catalan independence bucks the traditional rural/urban split: “While Scottish independence is viewed more favourably in big cities, in Catalonia the territorial divide is the reverse: rural areas register a majority in favour of independence, with urban areas having a majority against.”

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