Hundreds of people chanting “freedom” and “this is theft” took to the streets of Barcelona on Friday to protest against tough new coronavirus lockdown restrictions.
Violent clashes with police lead to at least 12 people being arrested.
Bars and restaurants have been closed in Catalonia since the middle of October. But confronted by the spread of the virus, a 10 pm curfew has now been introduced as well as a ban on people leaving their home towns during all saints weekend.
“The measures imposed by the government of Spain and the Catalonian authorities more specifically don’t have any logic to them,” said one protestor. “They make no sense. What they should do is take more measures for hospitals, provide them with staff and material to help them to overcome this pandemic- not impose measures of social control on us.”
More than 35,000 people have been killed in Spain by the COVID-19 pandemic.