“What we want is a stop to all evictions in this time of crisis, though we prefer not to use the word ‘crisis’. We say instead that it is all as a result of a big fraud.” Inspiring news from Spain: With over 500,000 evictions since 2007, citizens in Spain are losing faith in politicians and taking direct action. The Platform for Mortgage Victims [PAH] is now established in over 160 cities and towns, and has three key demands: stop all evictions, allow homeowners who can no longer pay their mortgages to hand back the keys and be released from debt, and use the glut of three million empty homes across Spain – a million of them owned by banks – to provide social housing at reasonable rents. It has picketed politicians’ offices, blocked bailiffs trying to carry out evictions, and organised sit-ins in bank branches, which has on occasion led to the bank’s director agreeing to negotiate with mortgage-holders. (Irish Times 21/9/13) PAH members meet in assemblies, where they present their personal stories of how mortgage affects them and exchange practical and emotional support. According to PAH’s senior members, the PAH aims at changing first of all the way people think about evictions and to face it as a collective problem caused by the political system instead of a personal one. This way, evicted people can stop blaming themselves for their failure to pay the mortgage and most of them become dedicated activists. Apart of this psychological effect, the PAH also provides a solid base for information not only about civil rights, but also about mortgage loans, evictions, judicial process, bureaucracy. Members of PAH accompany the evicted or the threatened with eviction people to all their dealings with institutions, i.e. banks, judicial system and police. The PAH also offers material support to evicted families so that they do not end up on the street. x-pressed.org/?xpd_article=pah-platform-for-the-mortgage-affected-si-se-puede
Posted on: Tue, 26 Nov 2013 11:54:59 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015