Dead Again: The Marquet case

Following on from yesterday and a reference to deaths in Alcúdia last year, the result of street violence, the accused in the case of Gabriel Marquet, who died after eighteen days in a coma, are to finally come to trial. The prosecution is seeking a sentence of twelve years for the main accused said to have delivered the blow that proved to be fatal; the charge is one of murder and not manslaughter.

The Marquet case aroused considerable passion. There were two demonstrations against violence that resulted from the attack on him in April last year. Whether much has really changed is questionable. As evidenced by the mass botellón at the weekend, the town hall’s attempt to outlaw street drinking has not worked. One reason is probably a lack of police.

Into this equation comes the whole issue of local financing. The town halls pay for the local police forces; the Guardia (and national police) is a separate, state-funded organisation. Right now though, there is the drive to cut costs in public administration. The central government has decreed that town halls cannot get themselves into further debt. The regional government of President Antich is challenging this, and he has support on the left of Mallorcan politics. The Mallorcan Socialists (PSM) held a conference at the weekend at which they called for increased financing of all levels of island government – the regional government itself, the Mallorca Council and of course the town halls.

The problem is that there isn’t any money sloshing around. The left’s calls are unrealistic, but they are not wrong when one considers the responsibilities of the town halls, such as police. In some municipalities and their more peripheral “villages”, e.g. Santa Margalida, even before cash got strapped the level of policing was a serious bone of contention among the residents of Son Serra de Marina.

Shifting demographics, the summer influx (for which there are normally additional police), recession and its societal impact, and a cultural change in terms of attitudes towards drink. These all place a strain on the local police. Now is probably not the time to be cutting their resources.

On a brighter note, it has been extremely heartening to get the feedback for HOT! It is having the impact I had hoped for. There are of course questions as to when the next one is coming out. This was never intended. Not this year anyway. But it is inevitable that a “newspaper” gives rise to an anticipation of something to follow. Oh that it could be done, but I don’t want to go there again – the issues of cost of printing, levels of advertising, free versus paid etc. etc. Just to say, thanks to those who have been complimentary, and to remind you that there is a specific Facebook page which will have regular updates throughout the summer.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.

The Day The Music Died: Puerto Pollensa and live music

On Sunday, the press was reporting on issues with bar noise in Puerto Pollensa. The reports had to do primarily with one particular bar and with the fact that music was going on till the wee small hours. This was the main aspect of the reports, but when I read them – the Spanish as well in order to check that “The Bulletin” hadn’t got it wrong – there was a piece at the end which struck me as being far more important. The mayor, it was reported, said that there could be no live music in bars in Pollensa. Can’t be right, I thought. Then, on Sunday night, plod did the rounds. At least one bar was told that they had to “see the mayor”.

Apparently it has never been the case that there could be live music. Seemingly, it’s one of those things that has just gone on. But to prevent it would be complete madness. There is a huge difference between live music that stops by or before midnight and a club or disco that goes on till four, five or six in the morning. Live music should be a feature of a thriving tourism resort, but one wonders, as ever, whether the town halls and others actually want this – thriving tourism. Noise is a facet of tourism resorts. It can be moderated, but it can’t be eliminated; nor should it be.

But how far does this apparent prohibition extend? The hotels with their entertainment, the church with its occasional concerts, the golf club with its proposed China Crisis concert? What about the music in the old Tango? The jazz sessions in the old Fat Cats? Under this “rule”, they should never have been happening. It would be utterly unfair if different rules were to apply, or in fact if one rule were to apply – that of no live music. It’s absurd.

Chances are that the town hall will see sense. Oh, what am I saying? But you can but hope. This isn’t necessarily an attack on Puerto Pollensa, as clearly this so-called rule applies everywhere. The bars in Pollensa town would also be affected. Nevertheless, it is indicative of a town hall that has a thorough lack of appreciation of tourism and of evening/nightlife in the port and the town. To all the other moans of the protest on Wednesday can be added another – the killjoys of the town hall. But you wonder if this move isn’t somehow coincidental. It might be construed as driving a wedge between factions in the port, those who do want and those who don’t want music and some noise. The town hall can say that it is “doing something”, unrelated to the items of the protest manifesto, but can attempt to take the higher ground. Whatever the motives, it sucks. Sucks big time.

HOT! Online
For anyone who might have been following my trials and tribulations, there is a version of HOT! that can be seen in its entirety on the net. Go to the home page of http://www.thealcudiaguide.com and you’ll see the banner to the right for HOT! Click on it and the PDF will download. Depending on your broadband speed, it might take a bit longer than in just an instant. The resolution is not the highest because this version had to be reduced drastically in size, but it’s ok. Oh, and I know that the ad for El Limón (page 17) has slipped down the page.

Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.