Spanish youth demonstrations turn violent as police fire rubber bullets at protesters in Barcelona

Riot police fired rubber bullets and used truncheons on protesters camped out in Barcelona's Plaza de Catalunya as they tried to clear the square ahead of today's Champions' League final.

Authorities said they had to clear the square ahead of the Champions' League final  Photo: JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images
By Fiona Govan, Madrid 4:21PM BST 27 May 2011
Riot police fired rubber bullets and used truncheons on protesters camped out in Barcelona's Plaza de Catalunya as they tried to clear the square ahead of today's Champions League final.
After nearly two weeks of peaceful protests in a youth movement that brought tens of thousands to occupy plazas across Spain, the first violent altercations occurred in the Catalan capital Friday morning.
The local police force, Mossos d'Esquadra, equipped in anti-riot gear moved in after protesters blocked cleaning trucks attempting to dismantle the encampment that has been in place since the demonstrations started on May 15.
Some 45 people, including one police officer, were treated for slight injuries after the clash during which police were seen swiping activists with truncheons and firing rubber-bullets.
Authorities said they had to clear the square ahead of the Champions' League final between Barcelona FC and Manchester United in Wembley on Saturday night.

Crowds are expected to gather in the square to watch the match on giant screens and to stage celebrations if their team are victorious.
"Once the cleaning is finished the protesters can go back but without the tents, knives and potentially dangerous objects," explained a police spokesman in Barcelona.
The demonstrators, who call themselves 'los indignados' – the indignant ones – began gathering May 15 – in a swelling movement known variously as "M-15", "Spanish Revolution" and "Real Democracy Now" driven onto the streets by an economic crisis that has pushed youth unemployment to 45 per cent.
Inspired by the Arab Spring revolts, the protests swelled ahead of the regional elections in Spain last Sunday that delivered Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriquez Zapatero's socialists a resounding defeat.
Protesters from their base in Madrid's Puerta del Sol have vowed to continue their movement despite dwindling support and are preparing a manifesto calling for an end to political corruption, an overhaul of the electoral system among other demands.

You Might Also Like :