MADRID: Every weekend hundreds of Spanish youths mass in the streets of central Madrid for all-night parties, despite a law against outdoor drinking and much to the despair of local residents who complain they cannot sleep.
“We are fed up with the bad smells and bottles left in our doorways,” said Jose Nicolau, the president of a neighbourhood association in Justicia, a historic district where bars and restaurants have long been popular with drinkers.
The tension boiled over this month into two nights of rioting when police moved in against youths gathered in a central Madrid square, leaving dozens injured on both sides.
The violence broke out on May 1 when youths set fire to trash cans, broke shop windows and threw stones and bottles at officers who attempted to clear the square. Police in riot gear responded by using tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd.
The scene was repeated the next day. Emergency services set up a field hospital to treat the wounded on both nights, prompting the left-wing daily newspaper El Pais to compare the district to a “war zone.” —AFP
