15-M movement holds first popular forum in Madrid

The 15-M movement on Monday held a series of meetings in Madrid's Retiro park after a weekend during which the spirit of the May protests returned to the capital. Thousands of protestors converged on the central Sol square over the weekend after a 34-day march beginning at various points across the country.

On Sunday, 35,000 people attended a rally in the city before an ad-hoc popular assembly on the steps of Congress. Monday's meeting was attended by between 200 and 300 activists with the aim of hammering out a form of alternative Constitution.

Among the themes debated were international policy, the environment, education, feminism, participative democracy, the economy, culture and health. "The future of the movement lies in recovering the values that the political class has lost and the rejection of violence," said one attendee.

In Barcelona, an offshoot of the 15-M movement that has attached itself to the Platform for the Mortgage Affected attempted to prevent the eviction of a couple from their apartment. Seven Mossos d'Esquadra and a 52-year-old man were injured during the stand-off, which was attended by 200 protestors.