Protest Disrupts AVE Services in Lleida
The Mossos d'Esquadra, Catalonia's regional police, have identified three teachers after around 20 demonstrators blocked high-speed rail tracks at Lleida train station on Tuesday morning, 8 September 2026. The group accessed platforms 1 and 2 shortly before 8:45 a.m. and remained on the tracks for approximately 30 minutes before being removed by riot control officers. One of those identified is Rubèn Satorra, a primary school teacher from Aitona’s Francesc Feliu School and member of the Assemblea Educativa de Ponent. He stated that police justified the identifications by claiming participants had endangered public safety. Satorra defended the action as symbolic, intended to alert the government that the school year was not beginning under normal conditions.
Wider Education Strike Actions Across Catalonia
The Lleida protest began around 7:15 a.m., when about 40 demonstrators gathered near the Fira de Lleida. They marched across the Princep de Viana bridge to the train station, where a subset entered the rail area. After the clearance, more than 100 teachers joined a march through central Lleida, passing Blondel Avenue, the PSC headquarters, and the Eix Comercial. Chants included “Lluitant també estem educant” (“By fighting, we are also educating”), “Niubó dimissió”, and “Menys discursos i més recursos” (“Less talk, more resources”). Parallel actions occurred elsewhere in Catalonia, including road blockades on the B-10 in Santa Coloma de Gramenet, the C-58 in Sant Quirze del Vallès, the AP-7 in Granollers, and the N-340 in Tarragona, according to reports from Teleponent.
“The school year starts with incomplete staffing, lack of support for special educational needs, and classrooms above 30°C,” said Nacho Rico, a primary teacher involved in the protest.
Demand for Negotiations and Systemic Reforms
The demonstration concluded with an assembly at Plaça de la Paeria, attended by members of educational assemblies from Pallars, Ribagorça, and Aran. Attendees discussed proposals to present at the Assemblea Educativa de Catalunya’s meeting on 19 September 2026. Key demands include a school climate control plan, increased staffing, smaller class sizes, psychosocial support teams, reduced bureaucracy, and greater decision-making power for school faculties. Educators warn they will maintain pressure measures, such as suspending school trips and residential programmes, and do not rule out further strike days in October unless the Department of Education provides a written negotiation schedule.
Reported by vilaweb.cat, teleponent.cat, parlament.cat, naciodigital.cat, VilaWeb.
