Just a few minutes before nine o'clock in the morning, technicians from the Santa Eulària Town Council, accompanied by officers from the Local Police and the Civil Guard, entered the Can Rova II settlement to carry out the relevant checks and certify that the machinery would not come across electrical panels, possible explosive elements such as butane bottles or septic tanks. Once this was certified, authorisation was given to the machinery, two backhoes and three lorries, to begin removing all the shacks, substandard housing and other furniture on the site. Thus began the dismantling of Can Rova II, in a much more peaceful way than what happened with the original settlement almost a year ago, but which leaves the same uncertainties for all those families who had made shantytowns their way of life.
When the first eviction took place, many of the people living on the land were not aware of the eviction until the day of the eviction, so many families remained on the land at the time of the eviction. This time the conditions were different: Santa Eulària posted documents informing of the date and time of the eviction in the settlement itself, so the people who lived there were aware of it. This knowledge has allowed the vast majority of the three hundred people living in the settlement to leave prior to the date of the eviction.
The few people who remained on the site early on Tuesday morning hurried to finish removing their belongings until the last moment. At the back of the site, a few families carried their possessions to the various vehicles that had stopped in the car park of the neighbouring commercial area. Once the operation was over, they left the site peacefully. This meant that the riot police, who had been deployed to the site, did not have to intervene.
Many of those who have recently been evicted look on, saddened, at all the machinery working to remove the shacks that have been built over the last few months. Others gathered under a tree at the former entrance to the first settlement. There was a general feeling of hopelessness as they face their second eviction in less than a year. Many of them are looking for housing, but in the middle of July, the only options they can find demand between 700 and 800 euros per person for a room — a price that is practically impossible for families with children to pay.
While these conversations are ongoing, the machinery was advancing slowly but surely to remove all the waste and substandard housing that has accumulated over the past year. This work began at the entrance to the lower part of the land, closest to the road, and has progressed along this area until it is finally possible to move up to the next level. The work was progressing slowly due to the numerous checks that must be carried out before the machinery can enter. This means that the work lasted all day Tuesday and, most probably, Wednesday as well.