Police charge against peaceful protesters in Mallorca, Spain
Tens of thousands of people marched peacefully against over-tourism in Mallorca. The National Police charged after blocking access to Ses Voltes.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Police charge against peaceful protesters in Mallorca, Spain
The demonstration against tourist saturation in Palma went ahead without incident for hours. Not a single café terrace overturned, no graffiti on estate agencies, no serious insults directed at tourists. All too calm, until the National Police moved in and shattered it.
According to witnesses, it all began at Ses Voltes, when the police decided to close off the accesses, preventing tens of thousands of people from entering a venue that was still half empty. A decision that needlessly inflamed protesters who, until that moment, had kept a calm tone. The subsequent police charge produced images already being described as disproportionate, adding a new chapter of social tension in the islands.
The authorities of the Govern (the Balearic regional government) led by the Partido Popular had been expecting a violent ending to discredit the protest, but attendees erred on the side of excessive pacifism. The police operation, however, achieved the opposite: turning an exemplary march into a focus of criticism. The question that remains is who decided to block the access and why, in a context where housing and tourism are the issues generating the most tension in the Balearics.
The demonstration against tourist saturation in Palma went ahead without incident for hours. Not a single café terrace overturned, no graffiti on estate agencies, no serious insults directed at tourists. All too calm, until the National Police moved in and shattered it.
According to witnesses, it all began at Ses Voltes, when the police decided to close off the accesses, preventing tens of thousands of people from entering a venue that was still half empty. A decision that needlessly inflamed protesters who, until that moment, had kept a calm tone. The subsequent police charge produced images already being described as disproportionate, adding a new chapter of social tension in the islands.
The authorities of the Govern (the Balearic regional government) led by the Partido Popular had been expecting a violent ending to discredit the protest, but attendees erred on the side of excessive pacifism. The police operation, however, achieved the opposite: turning an exemplary march into a focus of criticism. The question that remains is who decided to block the access and why, in a context where housing and tourism are the issues generating the most tension in the Balearics.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (19 replies).
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