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Spain News Archive - June 2009

Malaga June 30th. Jack Pierson at the CAC in Málaga. United States artist, Jack Pierson, who is from Massachusetts, but who lives and works in New York, has his first solo exhibition of his sculptures at the Contemporary Arts Centre, CAC, in Málaga. The artist who is best known for his photography associated with the post Stonewall gay movement in the United States, says that his work represents the grand subjects of life, love, sadness, longing, memory and mortality. His works in plastic, wood, glass, metal and neon are often abstract and can be seen at the CAC until September 27. Free entry.

Barcelona June 29th. Pride Barcelona. An estimated 50,000 turned out for Barcelona's first Gay Pride Parade yesterday. We were there with a float advertising GaySitges.com with the super stud Sergio for the boys and Super sexy Maria for the girls. Everything went perfectly, though the one comment we've heard from several people is that it went a bit too fast, only lasting 2 hours.

Spain June 28th. Government U turn on beach Chiringuito restaurants. The Ministry for the Environment has completed an about turn and announced that Chiringuito beach bar restaurants are to be allowed to remain on the sand in Spain. Only those where a move is easily possible off the sand will do so, and then only if the owner is in agreement. It’s a new concession on the part of central Government who had announced plans to impose the 18 year old Ley de Costas, Coastal Law, which indicated that all the beach was public land and the restaurants should therefore move off it.

Spain June 27th. Carrefour eliminates the plastic bag. The French owned Hypermarket chain is the first company to do so in Spain. Hypermarket chain Carrefour has decided to eliminate all plastic bags from their stores, and becomes the first large company to do so in Spain. The removal of the bags will be made gradually, and during the change over shoppers will be given a reusable raffia bag. It’s been estimated that a single shopper who uses a reusable bag, saves more than 18,000 throwaway bags over their life. In Spain the average use of plastic bags per resident is 238 a year. These bags take 400 years to decompose and only 10% of them are ever recycled.

Spain June 26th. Spanish power companies facing fines for complicating competition. Spain’s competition commission has threatened to fine the electricity companies for putting obstacles in the way of clients who want to change supplier. Endesa, Iberdrola, Hidrocantábrico, Unión Fenosa and E.ON have carried out ‘possible anti-competitive practices’ by allegedly holding back data from competitors. The measure comes ahead of the liberalisation in the sector which is set for July 1. From that date clients who have less than a 10kW supply can chose between the five suppliers designated by the Government.

Valencia June 25th. Valencia health service warns of high summer temperatures. The regional health service in Valencia has issued a warning ahead of the forecast for high temperatures and scant rainfall in the region this summer. Weather forecasters say that August will be hotter this year than last, and average temperatures will be two degrees higher than normal at around 30 degrees daily along the coast during July, and with a couple of temperature spikes of some four degrees more than that in August. Summer storms, which used to affect the region once or twice a week, are expected to be scarce this year. The health authorities say that care must be taken to protect those at greatest risk from the heat, children, pensioners and the ill. The advice is to drink a lot of liquids, avoid large meals, and use light and lightly-coloured clothing.

Malaga June 24th. Red slicks seen off Málaga coast identified. The red slicks which have been on some parts of the shoreline on the eastern part of Málaga province in recent days have been identified by scientists as non-toxic algae, which pose no danger to humans or to the environment. Identified as Noctiluca scintillans phytoplankton, a spherical, single-celled alga, whose size and shape can be confused with a fish egg. When conditions are right, what is known as an ‘algal bloom’ can occur, when the algae accumulate rapidly near the water’s surface. The blooms occur when temperature, water salinity and light act together, with the red colour produced by enzymes reacting to the light. It’s a phenomenon more commonly known as a red tide, or ‘marea roja’ in Spain.

Malaga June 23rd. Andalusia responds to lower tourist numbers. Following the publication of latest foreign visitor numbers for Andalusia, showing a 12.2% reduction this year so far compared to last, the Junta de Andalusia has announced a new publicity campaign to be shown in 24 countries. The regional tourist board is to spend six million euros on the campaign which was announced on Monday in Málaga by the Secretary of State for Tourism, Joan Mesquida. For the first time Andalusia will be promoted alongside Spain for the first time in countries such as France, Poland, the Czech Republic and Korea. 13% of the campaign will be spent online.

Bilbao June 22nd. Spanish Film Acedemy gets new President. The new President of the Spanish Film Academy, Álex de la Iglesia, has presented his objectives for the future. The director from Bilbao says he wants to see Cinema as a subject taught in schools and that he will be asking the top Spanish directors, Pedro and Agustín Almodóvar and José Luis Garci to return to the academy fold. The Almodóvar brothers left after the academy ignored ‘La Mala Educación’ in 2004, and Garci left after he was accused of buying votes for his film ‘El Abuelo’ in 1999. De la Iglesia said that he was establishing a second deputy whose job it will be to strengthen the Catalan film industry, naming his two helpers as Iciar Bollain and Emilio Puna. He notes that Barcelona was the only place outside Madrid where the academy has an office, and that there are many active members in the city. He said that he wants to see a new income from legal downloads of films and the Spanish to be once again proud of Spanish cinema.

Bilbao June 21st. Bilbao turns out to protest at the latest ETA killing. National Police Inspector, Eduardo Puelles García, died on Friday when a bomb exploded under his car. The victim’s widow, Francisca Hernández said ‘ETA has only created two orphans and a widow’ while the President of the Basque Country, Patxi López, said he ‘had been assassinated for defending the freedom of the Basque people’. Earlier on Saturday both the Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, and the leader of the PP, Mariano Rajoy, visited the chapel of rest in Arrigorriaga. They did so together in a show of unity against ETA, having flown together from Madrid on a flight to Bilbao. Thousands of people turned out on the streets of Bilbao in the demonstration called in repulsion at the killing. It was headed by a banner which read –‘For freedom, ETA No’.

Alicante June 20th. Work on the Alicante AVE starts at the end of the year. Work to bring the AVE high speed train line to Alicante in 2012 is to start at the end of this year. The Avant company has organised a 77 million Euros credit to allow the start of construction in the first phase which is placing the line underground in the approach to the current station. Technicians from the state rail infrastructure company ADIF have said there are no problems for the line to be connected to Madrid by 2012, and RENFE predicts that once operational the line will gain 800,000 new passengers a year. Journey time to the capital will be reduced from the current 3 hours 35 minutes, to 2 hours 50 minutes, and local AVE’s will run to Elche and Murcia.

Malaga June 19th. The good, the bad and the dirty in Málaga. There’s good news and bad for the Costa del Sol in a survey carried out by Corona beer, as part of an initiative to protect Europe’s beaches. Results in the vote by foreign tourists put Málaga’s beaches as the third best kept in Spain, with 27% of the vote, after the Baleares and the Canary Islands. German and Italian tourists were the most impressed with the condition of Málaga’s beaches.  26% of Spanish tourists say, however, that they are the worst. 11% of Spaniards say they no longer visit the beaches of the Costa del Sol as they are 'dirty and polluted'.

Benidorm June 18th. Future looks bleak for Terra Mítica. It seems the efforts to try to avoid the financial collapse of the Terra Mítica attractions park in Benidorm could be at an end, with reports in the Información newspaper today saying that top members of the Regional Government have started contacts to try and sell the site. However reports indicate the private companies with whom contacts have been made are refusing to pay for the park, but have offered to take it on for free. 2007 saw it operating in the black, but the economic crisis since then has brought matters to a head. It’s understood the Bancaja and Caja Mediterráneo savings banks have been putting some pressure on the board to try and get the park sold.

Spain June 17th. Cigarette taxes go through the roof! A packet of Marlboro went up from 3.00€ to 3.45€ yestersday. Other brands have gone up by anything between 30 and 50 cents a pack. Its the governments latest measure to collect money to pay the over 4 million unemployed.

Spain June 16th. Málaga to Barcelona on an overnight hotel train. If you want to keep down the size of your carbon footprint or prefer not to fly, you can always take the train from Málaga to Barcelona. The AVE high speed service can now take you between the two cities without having to stop in Madrid, or now once again you can opt for a more leisurely pace overnight. The ‘Gibralfaro’ trenhotel, runs at speeds of upto 220 km/hour between Málaga, Córdoba and Barcelona, using both standard and high speed tracks, and has been re-launched with new carriages. The new service started on Sunday and is part of the RENFE plan to replace all their rolling stock by the end of next year. Travellers can take the service for less than 40€ using the 60% discounts available on the Renfe website.

Spain June 15th. Spanish Government admits the depth of the recession. The Spanish Government has officially admitted the depth of the recession and announced that they expect a 3.6% reduction in G.D.P. It’s quite a change from the previous forecast of 1.6% and came also with the announcement that the long period of reduced taxes is at an end. The Government now says that recovery will come in 2011, but also admits that unemployment is expected to remain above the four million level until 2012. The famous 400 € yearly tax rebate created by the Prime Minister is next year to be limited to those on low incomes, and a 4.5% reduction in the public spending limit for next year has been announced. The cabinet decided on Friday to make an immediate move to generate income by increasing taxes on petrol and cigarettes. The move will bring in 2.3 billion € as a packet of 20 cigarettes will cost 19 cents more and petrol and diesel gets hit with 2.9 cents extra tax per litre.

Madrid June 14th. Naked cyclists take the streets of Madrid. Cyclists stripped off and rode through the centre of Madrid naked on Saturday in a demonstration against the dominance of the car. Saying they felt naked in the face of other vehicles more than 100 riders made their point, much to the delight of passersby and tourists. They want more respect for cyclists; want cars to respect the speed limits, and the construction of more bike lanes in the Spanish capital.

Granada June 13th. Forest Fire in Granada. The first major forest fire of the summer broke out in Granada at midday on Friday in the Paraje Cerro del Serrallo, not far from the city itself. 42 fire fighters worked to bring the blaze under control using three helicopters and two planes as air support for their three vehicles on the ground, and while not out the flames are not expected to extend into any further areas. Matters were complicated by the current very high temperatures Spain is experiencing.

Spain June 12th. Spanish court rules assault in a lesbian marriage as domestic violence. A court in Santander has sentenced a woman accused of insulting and assaulting her estranged wife to seven months in prison, and has found her guilty of a crime of domestic violence. Criminal Court No. 2 in Santander has decided that Article 153.1 of the Penal Code can also apply to an assault involving two women, in the first ruling of its type in Spain. The woman found guilty of assault is also subject to a two-year distancing order, and must not have any form of communication with her ex partner for 18 months. The assault took place during an argument over the financial terms of ending their marriage, the paper said. The couple had been together for 17 years. Spain had its first domestic fatality this April, when a Moroccan man in Almería stabbed his Spanish ex husband to death and then committed suicide.

Spain June 11th. Temperatures set to soar in much of Spain. A sharp increase in temperatures is forecast from today, with thermometers set to reach 32 degrees in central Spain and as much as 35 in some parts of the South. It’s reported that some areas will see a difference of almost 10 degrees in the space of a week. AEHMET Spanish Meteorological Office said the change in temperature is not the start of a heatwave and described it as something which is not out of the ordinary for the time of year. Three provinces are however on yellow alert on Friday, when in Seville, Badajoz and Córdoba temperatures are set to reach as much as 39 degrees. 36 degrees are forecast for central Spain and the Ebro Valley. The situation will remain the same on Saturday, with some local storms in inland mountainous areas in the afternoon. More storms are forecast for Sunday, especially in the North, accompanied by heavy showers and a drop of around 4 degrees in temperatures.

Burgos June 10th. Baby jumping in Burgos. A small village in Burgos province, in the north of Spain, is home to what is probably one of Spain’s most bizarre festivals. It takes place every year as part of the Corpus Christi celebrations in the small village of Castrillo de Murcia, 41 kms from Burgos, in the north of Spain. Here, a character representing the Devil, known as ‘El Colacho’, protects babies from his evil influence by leaping over rows of infants born during the previous twelve months, who lie on rows of mattresses in the street. It’s an event which dates back to the 1620s, and is organised by ‘the Cofradía del Santísimo Sacramento’ – ‘the brotherhood of the Holy Sacrament’. Every year, one of their fittest members is chosen for the honour of playing the part of El Colacho in the village’s Corpus Christi festival.

Madrid June 9th. New Matisse show opens in Madrid. A new exhibition on the work of Henri Matisse opens at the Thyssen Museum in Madrid today. The exhibition, ‘Matisse, 1917.1941’, has brought together 74 works, paintings, sculptures and drawings, from the French artist from across the world, many of them the lesser known items from his career. Museum artistic director, Guillermo Solana, said that the exhibition defends the work of the painter which was ‘unjustly criticised’ towards the end of his life. ‘I thought it necessary to defend the mature Matisse’, he said. The exhibition at the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza continues in Madrid until September 20.

Malaga June 8th. Unions threaten hostelry strike in parts of Andalucía this summer. Andalucía faces a possible hostelry strike this summer if, unions say, employers fail to apply wage increases in line with the agreement which covers the sector. The strike threat also affects the sector of commerce where the two major unions say employers have also failed to apply the increase agreed four years ago. Half a million workers are reported to be affected across Andalucía, and a 500-strong demonstration protested the situation in Málaga on Monday, where it affects 13,000 staff in the two sectors. It’s understood that some hoteliers have applied the increase in Málaga, however, independently of the Aehcos hoteliers association.

Gibraltar June 7th. Spain wants to reach new agreement with Britain over Gibraltar waters. El País newspaper reports on Sunday that the Spanish Government wants to reach an agreement with Britain on the joint control of the waters around Gibraltar and that informal lines of communication are already open. It follows some incidents between the Spanish and the British navy which Spain believes only benefits the smugglers who are operating in the area. The matter will now go before the three way forum which will try and find a solution. It comes after the European Commission has described the waters to the south of Gibraltar as an ecological space, where both Spain and Britain are responsible. Gibraltar currently considers its waters stretch for three miles to the east and south of the rock, and to the middle of Algeciras Bay, but the Spanish have always we referred to the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, which only recognises the waters inside the port.

Spain June 6th. Spanish Palace disgusted by Ryanair advertisement. As everyone expected the Ryanair publicity department has taken advantage of the news earlier this week that Queen Sofía of Spain took one of their planes on a flight from Santander to Standsted. The Spanish press carries a Ryanair advert today, showing a picture of the Queen with the caption ‘Fly like a monarch’. She did so as it was the only flight to London from Santander last Sunday where she was when she heard that her brother was seriously ill in London. The appearance of a Ryanair advertisement in the Spanish press on Friday, using a picture of the Queen, has been attacked in a statement from the Zarzuela Palace which has said it is ‘disgusted and surprised’ by the use of the queen’s picture without permission in an advertising campaign.

Spain June 5th. Hot summer forecast for Spain. The Spanish Meteorological Office, AEHMET, has issued a long-range weather forecast which predicts a very hot summer. Above normal temperatures are forecast for the tourist coasts and all of the rest of the country with the exception of the far north. The forecasters have reached the conclusion after studying current land and sea temperatures with the computer prediction programs. However they say above normal summer temperatures are ever more common, when compared to numbers seen in the last century, and some think this is another indication of global warming. Last summer also saw some temperature records being set, for example on July 11 when it reached 40.8 ºC in Murcia.

Ibiza June 4th. Briton arrested on Ibiza after one of the island's biggest ever ecstasy hauls. Police have arrested a British man in connection with one of the island’s biggest ever hauls of ecstasy, when more than 24,000 tablets were seized. Europa Press reports 26 year old N.S. was arrested in Sant Josep on Sunday as part of the Ibiza Drugs Squad’s Operation Calm, which began in early 2009 when officers located a British-registered vehicle on the south western coast thought to have been used by suspected British drug dealers last year. Officers traced the vehicle to the British owner of an apartment on the urbanisation where, after a court-authorised search, they discovered large quantities of cash hidden around the flat: almost 230,000€ plus 15,400 pounds sterling. Police surveillance of the suspect’s known haunts led to his arrest last weekend when he returned to the island for the summer season. The biggest ever haul of ecstasy on Ibiza was in 2003 when 235,000 tablets were seized from an Italian drugs gang.

Spain June 3rd. Spanish electrician gets payout from British hospital over Fawlty Towers insults. A Spanish electrician has won an undisclosed payout form his former employers at a private UK hospital at an employment tribunal in Croydon, the Evening Standard reports this week. Thirty three year old Juan Ignacio from Barcelona sued HCA International, owners of the London Bridge hospital, and two bosses for racial discrimination, harassment and constructive dismissal, and was claiming almost 30,000 pounds. Neither the company or the two managers admitted to liability on the first day of the hearing, but HCA agreed to pay the claimant an amount which has not been disclosed.Juan Ignacio claims his bosses made fun of his accent and nicknamed him ‘Manuel’, taunting him with catchphrases used by the character of the Barcelona waiter in the TV series Fawlty Towers. ‘Que?’ and ‘I know nothing’ are those quoted.

Spain June 2nd. A queen on Ryanair. Spain's Queen Sofía took a Ryanair flight to London on Sunday night to visit her brother. While the political row continues in Spain over the Prime Minister using a small military jet to get to campaign meetings for the European elections, Queen Sofía has been setting her own example. Doña Sofía has gone to London on a private visit to see her brother Constantino, and chose Ryanair for the trip. Before the Irish airline publicity department gets into gear over this, it should be pointed out that the airline was the only option for Queen Sofía who was flying from Santander. The ticket cost her 15€ and took her to Standsted on Sunday evening.

May 2009

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