The mayor of San Sebastián, Jon Insausti (PNV), has reaffirmed that the city’s recent ban on distributing food to homeless people in public spaces is definitive. The decision was communicated directly to representatives of Kaleko Afari Solidarioak (KAS), leaving no room for reversal, information from the group’s spokesperson, Agus Rodríguez. The meeting between city officials and volunteers ended without progress. The mayor said the measure, introduced earlier this week, would remain in force.
KAS volunteers have urged the city to suspend the ban until it establishes a dedicated social dining facility. They say the prohibition cuts off support for people who rely on the group’s evening food distribution. In its coverage of the dispute, Naiz reported KAS’s allegation that police identified volunteers who tried to keep distributing sandwiches in the street. The group has also criticized increased police controls and called for “material resources to address social problems.”
The dispute centers on street-based distribution of prepared food and raises questions about the balance between public-space enforcement and social assistance. The reporting cites no citywide homelessness count or figure for the number of meals affected. San Sebastián’s labor-market figures offer a separate measure of the city’s economic conditions: the Barómetro Económico de Fomento de San Sebastián reported unemployment at 5%, described as a historic low, alongside approximately 34,700 employed people and 94,100 contracts formalized during the year. Those figures do not measure homelessness or food insecurity, nor do they show demand for free meals.
The city says the measure will remain in force, while volunteers seek an interim arrangement until a social dining facility opens. The dispute reflects competing approaches to homelessness, from enforcement and public-space management to direct material support. Recent controversies over public spending and emergency responses in Madrid have also drawn attention, including reports such as the one on the Chamberí penthouse purchase covered by RUSSPAIN.
San Sebastián’s approach to homelessness and food distribution remains under scrutiny as volunteers press the city to explain how it will address the needs of people affected by the ban. The prohibition and the reported identification of volunteers have sharpened the conflict between KAS’s call for practical social support and the municipality’s enforcement approach.
