They are innocent people who have bought their Spanish property in good faith, with all the correct documentation, having invested their life savings into their dream homes. Most of them are elderly.

The majority come from Britain, Germany and Scandinavia. They have come to Spain to enjoy their retirement years in peace and harmony. They take good care of their houses and gardens and are responsible citizens in their home communities in Spain. But one day, the paradise can become a nightmare.

The Junta de Andalucía, applying the new Law of Urban Planning, want to demolish houses built in open countryside on undeveloped land, and thousands of people see their dreams vanishing in a heap of rubble, because of past corrupt practices of local town halls.

Many of the houses were built on licenses granted by the Town Hall, but, unknowingly, without authority from the regional government. Most of the homes were built in the period 2001-2006 when Andalucía witnessed an uncontrolled construction boom and corruption flourished amongst government employees, builders, estate agents and the supporting professions (lawyers, architects etc.).

On the Internet I saw an article in Málaga Hoy with the title Rebelión de los Guiris. It was about a demonstration in Málaga by a pressure group called SOHA (Save Our Homes in the Axarquía).

I was shocked to read the interview with Les and Janet Nash, our former neighbours in Nerja back in the 1990s. Les and Janet, a British couple now in their late seventies, bought a plot and built a house in La Viñuela in 2001. They got all the permits and paid everything. They lived there peacefully for six years. Then, in 2009, they received a letter saying that the house was illegal and should be demolished, because it was built in a rural area where no construction is permitted.

Now, they find themselves in a trial, and cannot sell the house. If their house was illegal, why not tell them before building? Why give them the license? Why are they paying taxes and the IBI? There seems to be a lack of logic here. Also a lack of consideration for the human side of the situation.

Les and Janet are not alone. Tens of thousands of homeowners in Andalucía share their fate. Now, hundreds of these unfortunate homeowners have organized themselves and are fighting for their unquestionable rights with all possible means.

SOHA was formed in 2008 by a group of residents whose mission is the protection of the rights of the Axarquía residents in accordance with Article Eight of the European Convention of Human Rights to help residents to protect their homes with legal help and direct action. SOHA also actively campaigns for the establishment of an amnesty for honest homeowners in Axarquía, with campaigns, demonstrations and appeals to different authorities.

The ‘rebellion’ seems to have worked.

The Junta de Andalucía seems to have altered its stance regarding homes built illegally on rustic land in the Axarquía, paving the way towards legalisation.

This is a step in the right direction. Over the past 30 years, thousands of houses have been built illegally on country land in the Axarquía. According to the announcement, the new decree will mean that for 12,760 homes, a solution could be found for 11,025.  But about 800 of the homes affected have been confirmed as being built on protected land.

However, there are still many other obstacles. The announcement of the decree has sparked controversy with ecologists, declaring it “a sign of the Junta’s failure to uphold the law.” Let’s hope for legalization so the threat from the bulldozers can be stopped in a not too distant future.

I just saw a video of a demolition of a beautiful Andalusian-style house.  ¡Qué barbaridad!