Teens decide to clean their streets after night riot and are praised by national president

Saturday night saw at least six people arrested in Logroño, the regional capital of La Rioja, after staging a mini-riot in protest over new restrictions on movement in an effort to contain the spread of the virus, and seven police officers sustained minor injuries.

Several of those involved were identified, although not arrested at the time, after blocking off roads with wheelie-bins and lighting fires in the street.

Piles of rubbish, graffiti, the remains of burning bins, and smashed-up street furniture created a grim panorama on the main Paseo de El Espolón on Sunday morning.

Disgusted by what an anti-social minority had done to his city, a 16-year-old man, whose mother is a street-sweeper, posted a video on social media calling for his friends – and anyone else watching – to join him in clearing up the mess.

“I don't think it's particularly normal that reinforcements have to be sent in to repair damage caused by a handful of thoughtless people last night,” the youth said when reporters from the national television and radio broadcaster, RTVE, interviewed him live.

“We're fed up, actually, with all of us young people having to suffer the consequences of the actions of just one small group.”

Dozens of teenagers joined him in sweeping and bagging up rubbish and moving damaged fixtures into safe places, repairing what they could with the means they had available, and putting bins, benches and other items back in their rightful places.

At a time when Spain's youth is, justifiably or unjustifiably, getting bad press due to the fact that at least a slim majority of Covid-19 cases are originating from social gatherings – particularly those where groups of friends fail to take precautions – national president Pedro Sánchez was quick to give the younger generations the praise they so often deserve.

“This is what the youth of today in our country is really like,” he tweeted.

“Generosity, responsibility, commitment. Values that make us greater as a society.

“Thank you for your admirable reaction today in La Rioja. Our greatest strength is being able to count on each other. Let's carry on beating the virus, united together.”

Of course, youngsters with such a strong community conscience are keen to do just that, and the footage of their mass clean-up operation shows them all in masks and surgical gloves as they filled bin-bags and swept up the pavements.

The above photograph of them is a screen-shot from the news clip retweeted by Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) and filmed by the La Rioja branch of RTVE (@RTVELaRioja).