arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)

Last Friday July the 11th the Ministry of Treasury requested to the 1st Instance Tribunal (section 4) the execution of the sentence of eviction ruled against Kasa de la Muntanya by judge Estrela Radio Barciela. This way culminates the civil process started six years ago by the Ministry of Treasury
The building (classified as historical patrimony) known as Kasa de la Muntanya for 14 years, was built by the Güell family in 1909. Due to the request of the neighbours for more protection for the neighbourhood of “La Salut”, the building was destined to be barracks of the Guardia Civil (police). Eusebi Güell, by means of a public bequest scripture, gave this building in use under the following conditions: the surrender of property of this house is gratuitous, but with the condition that the building is destined to be used as barraks of the Guardia Civil, and in the case that the Guardia Civil stops using the building for the expressed destiny, the property will revert to the original owner or his heirs.
This juridic-legal premise had to assure that the house was going to be returned to the Güell family once the Guardia Civil stopped making use of it on 1983. Otherwise, by means of a burocratic process and , under signature of Julia Garcia Valdecasas, at that moment delegate of the Ministry of Treasury in Barcelona, the house was alegally owned by that Ministry.
Kasa de la Muntanya in the district of Gràcia in Barcelona, was sqatted on November the 11th 1989 by a group of young people wich considered squatting as a different way of living and fighting in the political and social fields. From concepts like antimilitarism, antifascism, self-organization it started a project wich during the last 14 years has made Kasa de la Muntanya a place beloved and necessary for a lot of people and organizations in Catalunya, in Spain and in the rest of Europe.

Along this time lots of persons have felt this place as their place, our place. We have proved that it is possible to live in another way, that solidarity, collectivity and self-organization are words that make sense. We have fought for our causes and we supported other causes, always maintaining a critical and combative spirit towards the system settled down by the rich and powerful. We have been a space of support for many social and cultural initiatives and we have made of this our way of being political. We have also experienced difficult moments. The summer of 2001, in a surge of repression in the whole State, and especially in Barcelona, we were assaulted by the police. Later on, in september we were pursued by the media and the police shortly after the arrest of presumed members of the Comando Barcelona of ETA. Already in that moment we received the full support and solidarity on that part from many communities, organizations, diverse people... Time has proved that they were dirty attempts to ciminalize the house and sqatting as social movement on the part of the PP-Government . 2001 supposed a hardening of the authoritarian and fascist institutional practices characterized by the persecution, imprisonment and systematic repression of social movements.
Now, two years later and without a clear project for this building, they want to evict us and put an end to 14 years of history, struggle and illusions. But, while the house is not empty, we will fight until the last moment to defend this space and all what it means. We want to stop this eviction and we cannot make it without solidarity, help and support of all the social movements, organizations, groups and people that make use of the street to denounce injustice and repression.