Mariano Ordaz, 67 years old, is one of the Affected by the Priests. That is the name of the WhatsApp group he belongs to along with 40 victims of his landlord: the Church. More specifically, the Third Order of Saint Francis (commonly known as VOT), a religious order that rents out more than a hundred apartments in downtown Madrid at competitive prices in exchange for renovations, according to the tenants’ union. This Thursday, neighborhood pressure did not stop their fifth eviction attempt. Mariano has been left homeless. He left in the rain, with a backpack on his back and a bag in his hand, and got into a Samur social vehicle that took him away to provide some provisional solution.
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The situation that took place on Carnero Street has been, according to the Tenants’ Union, “unheard of.” From six in the morning, a large police deployment was in place to evict a pensioner who has lived his entire life in the same apartment. The spokesperson for the group stated that the judicial commission “did not want to talk or mediate” and insisted on carrying out the eviction despite two activists hanging from the facade to try to stop it. The firefighters took them down. Then the police entered, broke down the door to remove Mariano in the rain after 2:30 p.m.
“I would be ashamed to evict a pensioner,” “get rid of vulture funds,” or “the next eviction, Ayuso’s penthouse” are some of the chants that, for eight hours, nearly a hundred neighbors shouted on Carnero Street, in the heart of the La Latina neighborhood, from five in the morning, while eight police vans blocked the road. The officers arrived with helmets on after an entire night of vigil organized by the Madrid Tenants’ Union to try to stop Ordaz’s fifth eviction attempt.
The neighbors were waiting for the arrival of the judicial commission to carry out the eviction scheduled for eleven in the morning. However, even before it arrived, activists reported that National Police officers tried to enter the building. “They ignored the mediators. They tried to enter the apartment without the judicial commission and committed numerous irregularities,” denounces Carolina Vilariño, spokesperson for the union.
Tension rose when several officers began forcibly removing people gathered in front of the entrance. “They pulled them by the neck without any care. It was very strong violence against the comrades who were at the door,” says Vilariño, while two activists remained anchored at the building entrance. They knew that if that door opened, everything would collapse.
The Government Delegation assures that both this institution and the National Police “have always worked to guarantee the adequacy and proportionality of police actions, preserving the fulfillment of the rights and duties of all citizens typical of a rule of law.” They add that any action outside this framework “would be subject to investigation.”
The judicial commission did not arrive until after eleven in the morning. By then, the street was still full of neighbors, activists, and riot police in front of number 1. Inside, Mariano Ordaz was waiting for news, a pensioner who was born in that home and has never known another. His parents already lived there, and his uncles occupied the adjacent apartment. He has lived his whole life in La Latina. “I first worked as a waiter and then as a doorman and cleaning staff at the Gregorio Marañón Hospital,” he explains. He lives alone, and his children reside outside Madrid.
“I couldn’t pay the full contract after living here all my life,” Mariano states. For years he paid the rent without problems but stopped doing so during the pandemic in 2020. According to him, he later wanted to pay again, but with a contract adjusted to his income. “I refused to pay if the contract was not in line with what I earned,” he maintains. The monthly rent of the property was already around 600 euros while he was receiving benefits. Currently, he receives a pension below 1,000 euros. “I want to pay and sign a contract,” he insists. “They have refused.”
The Tenants’ Union claims that Mariano could afford a rent adapted to his economic situation but accuses the property owner of refusing to negotiate. “It is a clear example of religious rent-seeking. They only want more money,” Vilariño denounces. She also defends “disobedience” against a system that, they say, “protects rent-seeking over life.” The organization has praised the resistance of the activists who hung from the building and celebrated having held out for nine hours against the police operation. “Today judges, administrations, and the Government have agreed to protect the VOT and guarantee more profitability with Mariano’s housing,” they have denounced. “They have put speculation ahead of a person’s life,” they have stated.
The owner of the property is the Venerable Third Order of Saint Francis of Assisi (VOT), a religious congregation historically linked to the Franciscans and known in Madrid for managing the VOT San Francisco de Asís Hospital, located next to the Basilica of San Francisco el Grande. Besides the hospital, neighbors and union members say the order owns more than a hundred buildings and premises in downtown Madrid, especially in areas near the Rastro, including antique shops on Ribera de Curtidores, according to data from the Mercantile Registry compiled by the Tenants’ Union.
“My landlord is people with a lot of apartments in the Rastro,” Mariano sums up. “They force the tenant to do the renovations their way. After five years, they tell you that you have to pay more. These people don’t even pay taxes. They want to evict me to double the rent.”
According to the union, they have identified at least seven blocks in La Latina and nearby areas with similar problems: deteriorated housing, initially lower rents in exchange for assuming renovations, and subsequent rent increases. “They left the price a bit below market because the apartments were very old,” some neighbors explain. “But then the increases come.” Others report constant maintenance problems: leaks, rusty pipes, broken windows, or lights that don’t work in common areas.
The VOT defends its actions. In statements to the media, the entity claims that “there has been no genuine willingness to solve the problem” and considers that the suspension of the eviction constitutes “an abuse of rights and a fraud of law.” The congregation also assures that both Mariano and the Administration “have had much more time than legally provided to find a solution.”
For its part, the Madrid City Council states that municipal social services maintain communication with Mariano. According to municipal sources, a social educator accompanies him in the search for housing alternatives, and applications for access to other residential resources have been processed. “Samur Social also attended previous eviction attempts that were ultimately suspended,” municipal sources explain.
The Tenants’ Union links this case to the end of the anti-eviction moratorium following the vote on April 28 in Congress. “We have already had three attempts in these months,” they denounce. “The only certainty is that the union will continue to support Mariano.” The Affected by the Priests group assures that it will also keep fighting, but for now, Mariano does not know what his new life will be like.
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