Manifestación contra el CIE de Aluche

The CIE of Aluche is a Foreigner Detention Centre where migrants are confined under police custody while awaiting deportation, despite having committed no crime. It functions as a prison without judicial sentencing and has been widely denounced by human rights organizations for its conditions and lack of transparency. The CIE stands next to the former site of Carabanchel Prison, the largest prison in Spain and a central pillar of repression during Franco’s dictatorship, where political prisoners and antifascist militants were incarcerated and tortured. Its closure and demolition in 2008 sparked major controversy: neighborhood groups and memory collectives demanded the prison be preserved as a site of historical memory, but it was erased, leaving an empty lot and unresolved debates about justice and remembrance. Every year on December 30th, a demonstration marches from Plaza Elíptica to the CIE, a route lasting about three hours through the heart of Carabanchel. The protest denounces deportations, institutional racism, and the continuity of authoritarian practices from Francoism to the present. Chants and megaphones break the imposed silence of the area, turning the site into a space of resistance. This recording captures the march under the station bridge, just before the final walk and concentration in front of the CIE. The protesters’ voices resonate through the structure, while curious people waiting for buses stop to watch. The combination of chanting, shouting, and ambient street sounds reflects both the determination of the marchers and the urban context surrounding the detention center.