Portuguese cops clear Lisbon housing protest camp, make arrests

Portuguese authorities dismantled a housing protest camp in the heart of Lisbon on Sunday, charging demonstrators and making multiple arrests, while minor injuries were reported. The crisis in Portugal is one of Europe’s most severe, with home prices more than doubling since 2017 and rents for new leases nearing double. Young people are particularly affected by the situation.

One protester, Vitor Gomes, 21, a multimedia communications student, stated he was fighting for his beliefs, citing housing speculation, wealth concentration, and rising inequality as reasons for his pessimism. Police, accompanied by some with police dogs, entered the camp in Rossio Square around 2 a.m., after warning protesters to remove their tents or face their dismantling and threatening disobedience charges for those who resisted.

Protesters had constructed over 100 tents following a march by thousands on Saturday along one of Lisbon’s main avenues. Hundreds rallied to protect the camp when police dismantled a similar one earlier in the week. The police's actions were deemed "completely disproportionate" by Left Bloc lawmaker Fabian Figueiredo, as there was no public disorder.

Figueiredo, present at the camp, questioned the excessive force used against the peaceful protesters. The protest comes as Portugal grapples with a housing shortfall of 300,000 homes nationwide, equivalent to the entire housing stock in Lisbon, and growing discontent among households due to soaring rents and higher living costs.

The protesters are demanding that the government revoke a bill aimed at making evictions easier and halt rent caps on new leases, though the far-right Chega party abstained from the vote. The demonstration mirrored similar protests in Belgium, France, Italy, and Spain.