Catalonia strengthens protocols against carrying knives in public
Police chief calls increase in stabbings "unbearable" as minister says legislation reform not needed
The Interior Ministry has designed a reinforcement plan against the possession of knives and bladed weapons in public.
Authorities in Catalonia will improve searches for such weapons and punish their possession more quickly and severely when they are found.
Minister Núria Parlon announced the plans on Thursday alongside police leadership and said that the current legislation is sufficient to tighten controls and penalties.
Director general of the Catalan Mossos d'Esquadra police force, Josep Lluís Trapero, said that the increase in the number of incidents involving knives is "unbearable."
Parlon said that the plan aimed to avoid the "normalization" of such weapons among citizens.
The plan establishes random police checks in leisure areas, public transport, or near schools with the identification and searches of citizens.
The previous version of the so-called 'Daga plan' against bladed weapons which is now being updated focused on detecting such weapons after there had already been a violent incident, but the new plan aims to detect possession before there are incidents through these random police checks.
A dedicated team in security administration will be in charge of the processing and imposition of sanctions.
"Not normalizing" bladed weapons
In the presentation of the new plan, Parlon remarked that the objective is for citizens to understand that they cannot carry knives in public without justification and that the plan will be applied "until the problem ends."
"We cannot normalize the use of bladed weapons in public," she emphasized, indicating that this "normalization implies an unacceptable risk".
Trapero considers that the plan is "enforcing the regulations" and that it envisages applying higher penalties already provided for in the law.
Between January and August of this year, 6,252 weapons have been seized by police, with most confiscated in the northern metropolitan area.
Compared to the same period last year, the number of weapons used has doubled. In 2020, 3,831 were confiscated and in 2024, the number is 6,252.