Lorraine Williamson
The simmering frustrations of L’Hospitalet de Llobregat came to a head this week when thousands of residents poured into the streets, demanding answers to what they see as an unchecked spiral of crime and insecurity. For Catalonia’s second-largest city, the protest was not only about drugs and robberies, but about years of poverty, overcrowding, and a perception that local authorities have failed to act.
In neighbourhoods such as Pubilla Cases, residents say everyday life is becoming unbearable. Burglaries, illegal markets, and the presence of narcolocales — flats used as drug dens — have left locals feeling abandoned. “Our neighbourhood is in decline,” said Marisa Pozo, president of the merchants’ association, who described shops being forced open and stolen goods brazenly resold on nearby streets. For organisers like Abraham Lobo, the problem is not just the crimes themselves but the cycle of repeat offenders who, despite arrests, return within days to resume their activities.
A city under pressure
With more than 270,000 inhabitants, L’Hospitalet is one of Spain’s most densely populated cities. Social problems have accumulated over decades: high unemployment, rising housing costs, and fragile public services. For many families, these pressures are compounded by visible disorder in public spaces. According to the municipal barometer, 38.3% of residents now rank insecurity as their top concern — a higher proportion than those citing unemployment or housing. Not since 2012 have fears of crime been so prominent.
Crime figures tell the story
Official statistics confirm the unease. In 2024, overall crime in L’Hospitalet rose by 6.4%. Theft from vehicles surged by more than a third, while violent robberies and cybercrime both grew by almost 25%. Even in the first half of 2025, police recorded nearly 12,000 offences, with violent robberies climbing another 28%. The result is stark: nearly 700 violent robberies per 100,000 residents, one of the highest ratios in Spain.
The protest
On Wednesday night, an estimated 3,000 people gathered at La Bòbila square, the border between L’Hospitalet and Esplugues, before marching to the town hall. Demonstrators carried banners and repeated the message amplified by VOX on X: “Los vecinos quieren más soluciones y menos excusas” — residents want solutions, not excuses. The march ended with the delivery of a manifesto to Mayor David Quirós, though he offered no public statement. Chants also called for his resignation, reflecting the scale of frustration.
Beyond one city
L’Hospitalet’s troubles mirror wider trends across the Barcelona metropolitan area. In towns such as Badalona and El Prat, conventional crime has also been rising sharply, in some cases by over 13% a year. Critics argue the issue is not just local policing but structural: densely packed urban areas struggling to provide adequate services, with poverty and migration straining resources further.
Will this bring change?
Residents are demanding not only more officers on the streets but broader action — stricter enforcement against drug trafficking, collaboration with neighbouring municipalities, and social programmes to steer young people away from crime. The question now is whether Wednesday’s march will prompt a change in policy, or whether it will join a long list of demonstrations across Spain where local anger failed to shift political inertia.
For the people of L’Hospitalet, the stakes feel higher than statistics. It is about whether they can walk their streets, open their shops, and send their children to school without fear. And right now, that trust in local government is fraying fast.
Source: La Vanguardia,