Spain: Vigilantes set six homes of Romani families on fire in an act of collective punishment, but some European media call the incidents "peaceful demonstrations"
Media in Spain have reported that in mid-July a local mob attacked the Romani residents of a small Andalusian town, Peal de Becerro (Jaén). The attackers looted and set fire to a total of six homes inhabited by Romani people.
Roughly 30 Romani individuals had to flee their homes because of the pogrom. The death of a 29-year-old bouncer from a local nightclub is said to have sparked the vigilante violence.
According to eyewitnesses, the bouncer had been in an argument with four Romani individuals whom police are investigating. Two of his alleged assailants are in custody.
The arrest of the two suspects, however, was not enough for the deceased's friends, who called a demonstration the next day and applied the principle of collective blame to the entire local Romani community. The attacks on Romani residents were condemned by MP Ismael Cortés (Unidas Podemos), who called on the Interior Ministry to protect the Romani families.
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