Premises belong to those who use and maintain them. The capitalist concept of property as an instrument of speculation is anathema to our philosophy.

The Local Federation of the CNT-AIT Madrid* is facing eviction from its historic premises – premises which its unions purchased, which it paid for and maintained. The Spanish union of CIT has used a sneaky manouevre to present itself as the owner of the premises by registering a ghost union to convince the courts that it is actually the owner – a fraud which the State is apparently eager to turn a blind eye to in its attempt to weaken the anarcho-syndicalist CNT-AIT, in favor of a more compliant alternative.

Like many of the premises that were acquired by CNT-AIT unions, the work and cost of getting them was carried out by the local unions. These were not purchased by the national organization and, in the case of the premises in Tirso de Molina, the Local Federation of Madrid only later received a loan. From the CNT-AIT. This is important because it comprised the largest part of the CNT-AIT for years, thus, the money used was also money which largely came from their own dues. Not from an outside source, not from an organization called CNT-CIT.

Despite these facts, the CIT union refused numerous times to make an agreement about these facts, insisting that any property which ever was owned by any union being federated in the CNT-AIT has become property of the CNT-CIT. And this is clearly not the case. Not only by anarchist principles, but even by bourgeois property laws, under normal circumstances. Unfortunately, the corporate raiders of the CIT unions will manipulate facts and use any small oversight to take over the premises of the CNT-AIT unions.

The following is a statement of the Local Federation of the CNT-AIT Madrid. We have added a few explanatory notes, as not everybody may understand a few details. The Spanish version of the text, (printed here https://madrid.cntait.org/sobre-la-propiedad-de-los-historicos-locales-s...) includes documentation about the facts presented and information about the attempts to discuss with the CIT union.

IWA Secretariat

* The Local Federation currently consists of 3 unions: Education and Social Intervention, Various Trades and Metal, Mining and Chemical.

Text of the Local Federation of CNT-AIT Madrid

On the ownership of the historical union premises at Tirso de Molina

Madrid, September 1, 2025

CHAPTER 1. WHO BOUGHT AND PAID FOR THE PREMISES?

INTRODUCTION

At the beginning of this summer, we reported on the eviction ruling issued against the Madrid Local Federation (FL) of the CNT-AIT. We were ordered to voluntarily vacate the premises at Tirso de Molina 5, 2nd floor left, and 6th floor right, within one month. These premises, as we explain in this chapter, were first rented and then purchased in the name of two unions of the FL Madrid. The purchase was made by agreement of the FL Madrid , that is, of all the unions in the town. At all times, the Madrid Local Federation as a whole was responsible for paying the premises' expenses (loans, mortgages, taxes, community fees and assessments, water and electricity supplies, and liability insurance). Until six years ago, the Permanent Secretariat of the CNT CIT, through an administrative maneuver, took over our premises and prevented us from continuing to cover their expenses.

We must clarify that this ruling does not imply an immediate eviction. There are legal deadlines that must be met, and at this time we cannot specify when the eviction by police forces will take place. It could happen this fall, or perhaps it will be delayed until later. The ruling is not final, and naturally, we will appeal it.

Below, we'll tell you in detail everything related to our premises and how we've reached this inexplicable and immoral situation, in which we will likely be evicted from our premises by the State's repressive forces, despite having paid for, maintained, occupied, and maintained them for decades.

TIMELINE

1977 – The Various Trades Union of the Local Federation of Madrid (CNT AIT) informs the other unions of this Federation that it has found some available premises for rent in the Plaza de Tirso de Molina and proposes to share the rent with them. Finally, the contract is formalized in the name of the Madrid Construction Union (6th floor from the right) and the Madrid Metal Union (2nd floor from the left).**

** (It should be understood that these unions were named on the leases but in fact, responsibility and use of the premises always belonged to the Local Federation, the de-facto owners even if on the contracts there were names of some of its constituent unions.)

1988 – The Madrid Local Federation purchases both premises, which until then had been rented. Since the unions holding the rental contracts had priority in the purchase, the premises are placed in the names of those unions (Construction and Metal).

The premises are purchased with two bank loans for a total of 17,000,000 pesetas (equivalent to approximately 102,000 euros). This purchase is made with the approval of the Local Federation meeting in plenary session. The CNT does not intervene in any way. ***

(*** The nation organization is not involved.)

1994 – December. The CNT-AIT grants a loan to the Madrid-based Federation for the settlement of its mortgage, for the outstanding amount of €90,000. By that date, the Local Federation had already paid off more than 10% of the mortgage.

1994 – The Local Federation begins repaying this loan.

2001-2007 – The Technical Building Inspection detects serious damage to the building, and as a result, the Neighborhood Association of Tirso de Molina, 5 is required to carry out structural work on the entire building. For the Local Federation of Madrid, this work resulted in total cost of 50,238.11 euros on the second floor and 47,393.93 euros on the sixth.

To cover these expenses, several requests for loan extensions to the heritage fund **** were rejected, so the full amount of these works was paid by the Local Federation of Madrid.

(**** The money inherited by the CNT-AIT to compensate for historical patrimony.)

This period was also used to carry out interior renovations on the premises. Floors were laid, walls were plastered, bathrooms and all electrical and telephone installations were renovated, doors and windows were painted and varnished, and other work was done. Many of these tasks were completed thanks to the efforts of comrades from the Madrid Local Federation, but others, due to their scale and complexity, had to be contracted out. These works cost €46,442.65.

The combined costs for the two floors and the interior work totaled €145,025.97, which was paid by the Madrid Local Federation.

2017 – The Construction Union of the Local Federation of Madrid (with the deeds to the sixth floor were in its name) is dissolved due to lack of membership and merged into the Various Trades Union of Madrid. *****

(***** The deed was not transferred to sold to another union because the practice always was that all unions of the Federation used and paid for the space together and they could not predict the treacherous and fraudulent steps of their former comrades.)

2018 – The Local Federation of Madrid is expelled from the CNT CIT. In another chapter, we explain how this expulsion went against the organization's agreements and how it was achieved.

2019 – The CNT-CIT takes over the premises ****** through a notarized deed exchange. To do so, it uses bylaws formalized years earlier by the Metal Workers' Union on the second floor, in which the latter ceded the premises to the CNT national federation. This was done after strong pressure from the Permanent Secretariat, based on a 1996 agreement. ******** These bylaws had already been revoked in 2019, although, due to internal administrative problems, they could not be filed with the registry of union organizations.

(****** The premises are used and maintained by CNT-AIT.)
(******* This agreement was to transfer property owned by local unions to the national federation. The idea was to be able to keep or dispose of property in the case of the dissolution of a local union however this has been used to take over some properties of still functioning CNT-AIT unions. This was taking advantage of the good faith of local unions who trusted that the CNT-AIT was run in a fair way. After changes in that organization and the advent of CIT, it wasn't.)

The strategy to obtain ownership of the premises on the sixth floor consisted of attempting to reactivate (trans. - by CIT) the union that had been listed on the property deeds since its purchase in 1988: the Construction Workers' Union. However, it was a falsely reactivated union, which had not been active either before or after the notarial registration—since, as explained above, it had been dissolved in 2017—and which never appeared on the CNT CIT union lists. Thus, all they had to do was renew the secretariat in the registry of union organizations, taking advantage of the fact that the FL had not deregistered the union when it dissolved in 2017.

October 2019 – CNT-CIT, using the deeds amended that same year, successfully forced the property's homeowners' association to stop accepting our payments. Starting in 2020, it also prevented us from continuing to pay the property tax. Until this date, the Local Federation of Madrid had covered all expenses associated with the property (community fees, major works, taxes, etc.). Naturally, utility costs (electricity, telephones, etc.) continue to be paid by the Madrid Local Federation to this day.

2020 – The CNT-AIT began repaying (trans. To CIT) the loan amounts granted to settle the mortgage. Before that, (two years after our disaffiliation), we had already paid €67,730.47, representing 63.93% of the total loan.

As we believe is quite clear in this chapter, the aim is to divest us of premises that the Madrid Local Federation has paid for and maintained since they began being rented out in the 1970s. As we pointed out in the negotiation proposal presented to the CNT-CIT, included as an annex to this chapter, the Tirso de Molina premises were not acquired with historical heritage funds, but rather through a mortgage loan assumed by the unions of the Local Federation. To settle this loan, the CNT subsequently granted us a loan, of which, as mentioned above, we have repaid more than 60%. ************ In addition to the money invested in paying off this debt, the unions of the Local Federation have assumed significant expenses on major projects and the maintenance of the premises over all these years, as they have been essential to the functioning of our unions.

(*********** Again, the original loan came from CNT-AIT, thus from the dues money of the membership. Later, the CIT assumed that this money was owed to it.)

Trying to take away what we have built with collective effort is nothing more than an unfair and disloyal maneuver that, at this point, is indefensible from any minimally critical perspective. The locals, for those who sustain them and keep them alive.