Crime surge alarms Spanish tourism hotspot of Barcelona
• Those injured by thieves in recent days include Afghanistan’s ambassador to Spain and a 91-year-old French woman who was pushed to the ground
• In June, a South Korean public servant who was visiting the city died from her injuries after being beaten up by muggers
A surge in muggings and burglaries in Barcelona, mainly targeting tourists, has sparked alarm in
Spain’s second-largest city, leading local residents to form their own crime-fighting patrols.
The US consulate in Barcelona on Wednesday warned its nationals of “an increase in violent crime in the city” and urged them not to “display signs of wealth such as wearing expensive jewellery or watches”.
Barcelona, a European tourist hotspot, has recorded eight murders since July, an unusually high number for the Mediterranean seaside city, and in June a visiting South Korean public servant died from injuries she suffered during a mugging. The city’s hotel association has warned that Barcelona’s reputation could be “seriously harmed”.
Albert Batlle, Barcelona’s deputy mayor in charge of security, acknowledged there was a “security crisis” but called for a “calm and responsible analysis” of the problem. Thefts and violent robberies in Barcelona, a city of 1.6 million residents, jumped by 28 per cent between 2016 and 2018, according to police figures. The trend has continued in 2019 with a 31 per cent rise in violent robberies during the first half of the year.
But the total number of violent crimes – killings and bodily injuries – fell during this period and the murder rate in Barcelona is lower than in other European cities such as London, Berlin and Brussels.
“Barcelona continues to be a very safe city,” said Sonia Andolz, an expert on security policies, adding the rise in crime “was not enough to justify the alarm that is being generated”.
The boom in tourism the city experienced since it hosted the 1992 Summer Olympics is partly to blame, Andolz said. “Tourism always draws pickpockets,” she said.
The number of tourists who stayed at a hotel in Barcelona soared from 1.7 million in 1990 to 8.8 million in 2017, according to municipal figures. Millions more arrive on cruise ships or stay in holiday flats.
Nearly 60 per cent of all burglaries and robberies are concentrated in the two most visited neighbourhoods – the Ciutat Vella, the densely populated district at the city’s heart, and the Eixample, a tree-lined district that is home to most of Barcelona’s famous monuments such as the Sagrada Familia basilica.
Reported by France 24, a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market.
While visiting Barcelona my wife and I were walking from our hotel to La Rambla. As we turned and started down a street a local woman stopped us and said "This way is not for you." She then pointed and said "Go down two more streets and then you can turn." I was grateful then and even more so after reading the article.
Link to South China Morning Post, founded in 1903, it is Hong Kong's newspaper of record, and also ran the story. (
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