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SOUTH EDITION
30 MAR-04 APR 2012
Important! The Easter edition of RTN will be available next Thursday morning.
Insult to earthquake victims
Flight chaos as strike bites
fearing the country could be brought to a standstill, airlines cancelled hundreds of flights ahead of the general strike p4
Beware of Leishmania
Leishmania, known as the Silent Disease is a potentially fatal disease affecting dogs and is worrying local vets p6
by louise clarke MORE THAN 10,000 people were left devastated by last year’s devastating earthquake in the Murcia city of Lorca; removing the foundations of daily life for all those affected. Despite almost eleven months of waiting, all those who were made homeless by the 5.1 Richter scale tremor that killed nine people, have never received the promised aid from the state and as the months have passed, their patience has begun to run out. Many of them joined the ‘Assembly of Lorca Neighbours affected by the Earthquake’ last Saturday to protest in the city of Murcia. An estimated 4,000 affected Lorca residents made their way down Gran Via in the regional capital with banners accusing the government of retaining the aid that has been designated to the earthquake victims.
Safety net strengthenseuro stability and confidence has been brought back to the single currency after the fears of its imminent collapse p30
Wardrobe malfunctions
read our new monthly fashion column to help you avoid fashion blunders p46
NetSecure SmartSwipe Gadget Inspector takes a look at the future of online shopping p57
GROUND ZERO
Some of the First Team
League leaders the Castillo de Conesa Petanca Club are having a new club shed built and the first team has won first place in the top division of the Salinas Petanca League . Read the full story on page 16.
Shouting “A united Lorca will be rebuilt!”, the residents held placards and banners that made the city streets a sea of colour and demonstrators were boosted by the solidarity of Murcia’s residents who applauded the procession as it made its way through the city. Some banners simply read: “Why do we have no home?” But behind every one of those placards and banners lies a story of helplessness, disappointment and hardship with no end in sight. Many of the victims, who hail from the neighbourhood of La Viña, or what is now known as ‘Ground Zero’, made their way to Murcia on a convoy of coaches and met just before noon in the Jardín de Floridablanca. Continued on page 3