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VALENCIA / COSTA AZAHAR FREE Vol. 1 Issue 31 www.theolivepress.es February 10th - February 23rd 2022
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TO LILIBET WITH LOVE IT was a very special day for Queen Elizabeth, and her distant cousin King Felipe was not about to be left out. He and wife Letizia sent their congratulations to Queen Elizabeth II as she celebrated her Platinum Jubilee. It was a warm and affectionate message commemorating the seven decades since Elizabeth’s coronation. “With this message, we would like to join you in celebrating this remarkable anniversary and wish you all the best for the years to come. With much affection,” it read. The Spanish royals are known to have a warm relationship with the British Royal family, calling Queen Elizabeth ‘aunt’ and her late husband Philip ‘uncle’.
The two royal families have close blood links. Queen Elizabeth is the great-great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria, while King Felipe VI is her great-great-great grandson. Romantic ties began when Spain’s King Alfonso made a state visit to Britain in 1905 and met Queen Victoria’s granddaughter, Princess Victoria Eugenie. The pair married, the princess becoming Queen Ena of Spain, and their grandson no other than Spain’s former King Juan Carlos I. Juan Carlos I abdicated in 2014 in favour of his son, King Felipe VI. Opinion Page 6
NO TIERS
A WEDDING planner the Olive Press exposed as a conwoman in Spain a decade ago has been jailed in Ireland. Expat Sue Danker has been found guilty of deception and theft over a series of weddings in Andalucia. The Irishwoman pleaded guilty to fleeing Spain, leaving a trail of debts in 2012, before reappearing on a reality TV show in Ireland. We revealed how Danker had left countless couples high and dry on their big day when she ‘vanished’ from the Costa del Sol after her company, Spanish Dream Weddings, went bust. But rather than coming clean and telling clients about her financial problems she carried on trading and failed to return deposits. The 48-year-old and husband Howard Danker had previously featured in an Irish TV documentary in 2007 called The Great Escape, about their move from Dublin to Marbella to set up their wedding business.
Open every day Closed Monday
Expat wedding planner who shattered dozens of couples’ dreams led down the aisle… to prison By Kirsty McKenzie
She later appeared in the reality TV show Clubland, The Wright Venue, in 2015, after she fled from Spain amid the financial scandal. We first reported that Danker had run into financial difficulties in October 2012, after a string of expats revealed they had lost their dream weddings thanks to the planning scam. Danker admitted in a Dublin court that she continued to trade until September 2012 when she no longer had enough money to pay contractors. She pleaded guilty to three counts of deception, and three of theft on dates
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between September 7 and 10, 2012. Her victims included Sarah Foran and Colm Moriarty who paid her €10,000 to organise their nuptials. Detective Garda James Codd told the court that Foran discovered that none of the contractors had been paid a week before the big day.
TRAGIC: Yana and Hoseyni
Handed in
Church
The list included a florist, a DJ, a videographer, a singer and a flamenco dance troupe. In addition, church fees had not been paid. “We are both reasonable people and would have worked with Suzanne,” said bride Sarah, adding that because Danker had cut off communication,
Elena Goçmen Rueda
FLASHBACK: Our 2012 front page on Danker they were left feeling powerless at an important moment in their lives. Danker had continued to seek payments from the couple and the court heard that she was ‘scrambling and floundering, trying to offset deposits and commissions from one wedding to fulfil obligations to another wedding’. Her defence insisted that she had successfully organised about 200 weddings but had been let down by an investment of €12,000 promised earlier that summer that never materialised. We later revealed how Danker had landed herself a plum job as the PA to Irish multi-millionaire Michael Wright in 2015 and went on to appear on Irish TV. Danker had her threeyear prison term suspended after €9,500, was paid into court. She must pay another €5,000 over the next two years.
AN American accused of killing his wife and burying her near Valencia has returned to Spain to face the music. Michael Martin Hoseyni allegedly murdered Yana Rose while on holiday in Cadiz, before driving her across Spain and burying her at Christmas in Alzira. An international manhunt was launched to locate the 55-year-old, who was last seen at a rental car office in Milan on January 11. Yana, a Hari Krishna, had been missing since Christmas Day when she last spoke to her mother from Los Barrios.
Ankles
Iranian-born Hoseyni was arrested on January 28 at Madrid airport after returning on a flight from his home in Colorado. The US citizen, who ran a car repair business, had fled after burying his wife in a shallow grave in woods near Alzira hospital. After an FBI manhunt he voluntarily decided to return to Spain, where if convicted he will spend less time in prison. Hoseyni was allegedly seen on CCTV ‘dragging the victim by the ankles and putting her in the boot of a car’, reContinues on page 2
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CRIME
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NEWS IN BRIEF Going nuts A MAN from Castellon is being investigated for allegedly faking the theft of 56,000 kilos of almonds worth €61,000 just a few months after he had increased his theft insurance cover to €75,000.
Global gang AN international drugs gang of Cubans, British, Dutch, Romanians and Spanish who smuggled marijuana from Alicante to Holland has been shut down with eight arrests made in Polop and Orcheta.
Bar stabbing POLICE have arrested three men and a woman aged between 30 and 50 after a bar brawl in Valencia that left three people injured, one of them stabbed in the back.
Road tragedy CHANGING his flat tyre proved fatal for a man aged 40 when he was hit by a lorry on the A-7 near El Puig. He was certified dead at the scene.
On the hoof
FOUR stools made from African elephant feet have been seized by police in Alicante. A pair of Spaniards, 39 and 67, are being investigated for breaking animal protection laws. They face up to two years in prison and a substantial fine for selling the stools for €600 each.
Expats scammed by Russian posing as bogus cop A RUSSIAN has been arrested for posing as a police officer to trick people into paying him for help in getting Spanish documents. The 45-year-old fraudster brandished a Policia Nacional badge and ID card, on various occasions in the Calpe area. He has been charged with three counts of fraud and one
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
Bouncy castle probe
SICK: The offending stools
THE person in charge of a bouncy castle where two children died was a teenager. Parents claim that he was between 17 and 20 years old. The two victims, aged 4 and 8, were blown off the castle in Mislata in high winds. Police are investigating the cause of death and who was reponsible.
Beast from the east! of impersonating a police office. Police started probing the man in October after receiving numerous complaints
A BENICASSIM resident’s complaint has led to the downfall of a teenage fraudster who netted €150,000. The boy and his parents have been accused of online fraud where identities were stolen to get bank cards and take out personal loans. They also sold non-existent high-end cars, phones, and even pets to more than 100 victims. The child from Barcelona, whose age has not been disclosed, operated on a second-hand goods site. When purchasers did not get the promised items, they contacted the boy who told them
from East European nationals in the area. His victims all needed help with getting official paperwork done, mostly residency
TEEN KINGPIN he did not believe they were the genuine buyers. He asked them to send a copy of their birth certificates for identification purposes. These were then used to open accounts in other people’s names and get credit cards. The boy’s activities got the full backing of his parents who also deceived online buyers. Police in Castellon got involved after getting a complaint from a man who lost €725 in a sham mobile phone purchase.
documents or driving licence applications. His knowledge of languages and his credentials as a cop helped build up trust. The man boasted of personal friends with senior politicians and in the judiciary.
Scams
He promised to 'speed up' the administrative processes for documentary submissions, with the help of a payment. At least three people lost over €4,000 while many more victims are likely. To avoid such scams, police advise expats to only use established legal channels or official offices.
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Killing vealed a police statement. Separate CCTV footage showed him buying an axe, a shovel, heavy duty gloves and a Stanley Knife from a shop in Alzira on December 27. The case has been referred to Algeciras court, where the investigation is being led. A friend from her temple in Denver, Divya Lila, told the Olive Press she had been an active member of the Krisna community. “It is very heartbreaking. She will be missed dearly,” she said.
Officially Dead A VALENCIAN official has been jailed for a year and a half for hiding the death of his exwife for over seven years. He had an agreement to pay her €1,948 per month as part of a divorce settlement. But when she died he continued the payments into her bank account to which he had sole access. This was to avoid having the cash taken to pay back a €240,000 debt to several banks. His son was also handed a one year sentence for assisting in the cover-up. The man divorced from his wife in 2009.
NEWS
www.theolivepress.es COMEDIAN Jimmy Carr, who has recently caused a storm over a routine about the Holocaust on a Netflix special, is bringing his controversial brand of humour to Gibraltar. His gag about the murders of hundreds of thousands of people from Europe’s traveller and Gypsy communities has been described as ‘truly disturbing’. UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said his jokes were ‘abhorrent and they just shouldn't be on television’. The offending line was that people only ever spoke
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
Carr crashes in
Elle of a girl
about the murder of Jews and never about the killing of Gypsies. This he said was one ‘positive’ of the Nazis. He has now added Gibraltar as a venue for his Terribly Funny 2.0 show. And judging by the promotional material for the October 8 and 9 dates at St Michael's Cave, there will be no holding back with his material. He promises that the show will ‘contain jokes about all kinds of terrible things, terrible things that might have affected you’.
CHINWAG OVER THE CHORIZO! IT was a usually busy Saturday night in one of Ronda’s most popular restaurants. As the noise levels were shifting up a gear in came the middle-aged couple, who had booked via their hotel. Squeezed in among their fellow diners, they chose a typical range of local dishes before chatting and joking with the table next to them. They put on no airs and graces and spoke a mixture of English and Spanish. So, it came as a massive surprise for staff at Almocabar when they discovered the couple were the King and Queen of the Netherlands, no less. King Willem-Alexander and Maxima had been on a 20th anniversary tour of the region, where they first met and fell in love in Sevilla.
Incognito
“We were as surprised as everyone else - they came in incognito and booked a table through the hotel … we had no idea who they were,” owner of Almocabar Monolo Arias told “They were just really friendly…she is Argentinian and spoke to me in Spanish, perfect Castellano, while I spoke to him in English. “They ate wild grilled asparagus, fresh foie with berries, Rabo de Toro and roast lamb accompanied by a €150 vintage of Pago de Carraovejas,” continues Arias, a self-taught chef, whose restaurant has been a local dining secret for two decades. He added they were ‘very normal’ and chatted easily with other diners, even later posing for photographs with staff.
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EXCLUSIVE: ‘Like any normal couple’ the King and Queen of Holland booked a restaurant and chatted to tourists and staff in Spanish and English
HUNGARIAN supermodel Barbara Palvin has featured on an industry-first NFT front cover for Spanish Elle magazine. The photo shoot, which took place in Sevilla, has been transformed into an NFT which will be sold at auction. NFTs - Non-fungible tokens are virtual collectable tokens that cannot be copied and are bought and sold using cryptocurrency. In recent years they have exploded onto the market, and have been endorsed by a range of high-profile celebrities. The cover was created by Catalan crypto artist Gala Mirissa whose unique brand of photography combines art with ‘motion graphics’. The cover, titled Mujer ELLE, will be auctioned off later this month with the proceeds going to the Childhood Cancer Organisation.
By Jon Clarke
“They were squeezed in like everyone else (it was actually quite uncomfortable as we were very busy that night) but they didn’t complain… they chatted to a couple of tables next to them in English - a British guy and his girlfriend from La Linea and they never guessed they were royals. “However, a Dutch couple sitting on a neighbouring table did a double take when they recognised them! They couldn’t believe it and came HAPPY COUPLE: Willem-Alexander and Maxima over later to say hello.” The culmination of their trip, troversial as Maxima’s fa- The couple have three which also took in Cordoba, ther, Jorge Zorreguieta, had daughters, the PrinJerez and Granada, found been a prominent member of cess of Orange, Printhem staying in the Parador of the Argentinian military dic- cess Alexia, and PrinRonda at the weekend. tatorship. cess Ariane. It was a romantic return for the couple, who first met during the SPAIN’s most acclaimed film director Pedro Almodovar could April Fair soon add another statue to his already heaving awards cabinet. in SevilHis latest film Parallel Mothers, starring one of his favourite acla in 1999 tors Penelope Cruz, has been nominated for Best Forand mareign Language Film in the 75th edition of the Bafta ried three awards (British Academy of Film and Television Arts). years later The film, which has had rave reviews, delves into one on February of Spain’s most enduring wounds by focusing on the 2, 2002, in tens of thousands of people who disappeared Amsterduring the civil war and still are buried across dam. Spain in unmarked graves. At the He has already won three Baftas for All About t i m e My Mother (1999), Talk to Her (2002) and The the marSkin I Live In (2011) as well as an Oscar for r i a g e Best Original Screenplay for Talk to Her. was con-
Mum’s the word
CATE Blanchett will receive the first-ever International Goya Award at the Spanish film awards gala two go with her two Oscars. The Australian actress will collect her award in person at the ceremony in Valencia. The Spanish Film Academy has created the award for ‘personalities who contribute to cinema as an art that unites cultures and spectators from all
Goya Cate
over the world’. The 52-year-old was chosen as ‘an extraordinary figure’ and ‘an actor who has played unforgettable characters that are already part of our memory and our present’ said an academy spokesman. Last month it was revealed that Blanchett will produce and star in Pedro Almodovar’s first feature in English, an adaptation of Lucia Berlin's book, A Manual for Cleaning Women.
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NEWS
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Birthday treats TERRA NATURA’s oldest tiger has celebrated his 20th birthday with a slap-up meal. Keepers hid boxes filled with tasty meat morsels around Alonso’s enclosure so he could slowly find them and enjoy the treats inside. The Asian tiger arrived at the wildlife park in 2015 after transferring from the Aqualeon park in Tarragona. The average lifespan of the species, which is in danger of extinction, is between 12 and 15 years in the wild. There are cases of the species living for up to 25 years in captivity. Alonso used up one of his nine lives in 2016 when he became the first tiger to have a successful tumour operation in Spain. The surgery to his eyelid was a total success allowing Alonso to resume his life normally.
Shut down VALENCIA'S fraud agency has ordered seven bar-restaurants on popular Arenal beach in Javea to close. Javea’s town hall has been given three months to shut down the group, including Bambula, Baltasar and Aqua. The authorites ruled they do not have relevant licences, and had not informed the coastal authorities of their usage of protected land. A thumping 39-page resolution slammed the town hall for not closing the bars when ordered to in September. It alleges inspectors found ‘health risks’ including a lackof fire escapes. The case must be finalised within three months.
Spain to probe church sex abuse with independent national commission SPAIN is launching a nationwide investigation into Catholic church sexual abuse - after its clergy chose to hush up the issue. The country’s ombudsman is being brought in to oversee the investigation after an Episcopal Conference ruled out compiling its own nationwide report in December. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez stepped in after the church merely agreed to set up commissions at diocese level to hear complaints from abuse victims.
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
Son of America’s Cup VALENCIA will host the first European circuit for a world renowned sailing race. The race in April is specifically designed for the 69F’s lightning speeds. The 69F race will hopefully eventually compete with the America’s Cup, the oldest sailing competition in the world. The ‘little beast’, as the boat is known, is a sailboat with wing-like foils mounted under its hull which allows the boat to skim across the water at high speeds.
CLERGY SEX PROBE LAUNCHED By Fiona Govan
“The victims cannot be silenced,” said Sanchez. “It is time to heal our wound and prevent it from happening again.” He added the government was ‘committed to not letting
the abuses go unpunished’. It comes after El Pais handed over a dossier to Pope Francis cataloguing abuses of 1,237 victims by priests over a 75-year period in Spain. The ombudsman Angel Gabilondo will be joined on the commission by two MPs, one each from the PP and Podemos parties. The move comes a week after Spain’s Attorney General, Dolores Delgado, ordered 17 regional chief prosecutors
to send details of current judicial probes into child sex abuse.
Dossiers
The regions have been given one week to send their dossiers to Madrid. All criminal investigations involving the Catholic Church must be reported, as well as any other complaints that may not have reached the courts.
Gong for Valencia VALENCIA is to host the 36th year of the Goyas this weekend. The celebration of Spanish film this Saturday will feature the likes of director Pedro Almodovar, as well as actors Antonio Banderas, Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz. Bardem – famous for his roles in No Country For Old Men, Skyfall and Dune – has already picked up five Goya Awards. Valencia meanwhile, will be paying homage to its own cinematic stars, the most famous being Luis Garcia Berlanga who would have celebrated his 100th birthday last year. Berlanga won an Oscar for best foreign film in 1962 (Placido) as well as three Goya Awards and four Palme d’Or awards in France. A slideshow celebrating Berlanga’s life will be broadcast on the town hall between 7:30pm to 10:30pm on February 11. Musicians will also play music from his films with 12 bands playing at 12pm on February 12. The town hall has also organised a route of ‘cinema menus’ in which 40 restaurants offer meals in homage to Berlanga.
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A DECADES-long infrastructure project in Valencia port is set to be completed in May. The Logistics Activities Zone (ZAL) will create 2,000 direct and indirect jobs. Half of the ZAL area will be dedicated to bike lanes, noise screening, green pedestrian walkways
Teen’s dozen death count AN Algerian minor has been charged with 12 counts of reckless homicide after a dinghy transporting migrants sank 22 miles off Alicante. Only five people, including the boy survived the trip from Algeria after they were pulled out of the sea by the Salvamento Maritimo.
Dinghy
Each of the victims paid up to €2,500 to secure their dangerous passage. The craft drifted for six days after the engine failed and bad weather then capsized the dinghy. The teenager was a member of a migrant trafficking gang that organised the journey that the police described as 'impossible to achieve'. January's fateful voyage was made on a five-metre long inflatable boat with a tiny engine working off a low fuel supply.
Cricket showcase THE European Cricket Network, dubbed the ‘Champions League of cricket’ is underway in Malaga. The tournament sees 30 European nations battle it out in fast-paced 90 minute cricket matches at the Cartama Oval. Five Malaga schools are attending the tournament with around 30 students each. The tournament has been designed to ignite the interest of kids in keeping with the tournament slogan: ‘Cricket’s Cool’. Spectators can have their photographs taken with the European Cricket League trophy and have the option to act as ball retrievers in the live games. The children will also be able to go ‘behind-the-scenes’ of a live broadcast to see how cricket is broadcast in real time. Students will be taught the basic skills of cricket, with sessions laid on by two qualified coaches.
JOBS BOON
and recreation areas. The construction of a new section of bike lanes is planned to link the ‘green corridor’ of the southern area of the Nazareth Special Plan with the towns of Punta and Pinedo.
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NEWS FEATURE
www.theolivepress.es Voted top expat paper in Spain
A campaigning, community newspaper, the Olive Press represents the huge expatriate community in Spain with an estimated readership, including the websites, of more than two million people a month.
OPINION TIME FOR A ROYAL VISIT AS Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her Platinum Jubilee, becoming the first monarch ever to mark 70 years on the throne, isn’t it about time she paid a visit to Spain and Gibraltar? When Spain’s King Felipe and Queen Letizia made their first state visit to the UK in July 2017 it raised anticipation that the British monarch might make a trip to their country in return. It’s been a long time since 1988 when she made her one and only trip to Spain, a country where she is widely respected and shares none of the scandal that taints her distant cousin King Juan Carlos. She received rapturous applause when she addressed Spain’s parliament to pay tribute to the nation’s peaceful transition to democracy on the death of Franco in 1975. “The democratic Parliament before me, and the manner in which it was achieved, will stand out as one of the brightest pages in your nation’s long and proud history,” she said. And there is obvious affection between Her Majesty and King Felipe as revealed in a poignant condolence letter on the death of Prince Philip in which he wrote to his ‘Dear Aunt Lilibet’. Of course she is adored in Gibraltar, where she made her only state visit as monarch in May 1954 joined by the Duke of Edinburgh and their two eldest children Prince Charles and Princess Anne. We can blame the thorny issue of Gibraltar’s sovereignty for preventing her repeat visit to the tiny British outpost at the foot of Spain, fearing a royal visit could flare up diplomatic tensions. But what better sign of the ‘strength of friendship’ and the ‘resilient spirit of cooperation and goodwill’, to quote the Queen’s own speech at the state dinner for King Felipe, than a final tour of the Iberian peninsula? Viva La Reina!
THE HIGHWAY TO It is 85 years since Franco’s forces massacred thousands of civilians as they fled Malaga in the exodus known as La Desbanda, writes Tallulah Taylor
I
N one of Spain’s darkest along the coast, with orders chapters, thousands of to take Marbella and then civilians were massacred Malaga, before swooping while fleeing from Mala- inland towards Granada. ga to Almeria in what has Just 12,000 troops stood been dubbed ‘southern in their way and, with little hope of holding out, the Spain’s Guernica’. decision was Men, women made to evaand children, cuate Malaga. from babes in Hemmed in in arms to elderly by mountains, Hemmed by mountains, grandparents, were subjecthere was only there was only ted to machine one viable one viable gun fire and escape rouescape route te - the N340 bombing coast road that both from the hugged the sea and air - as they tried to escape to safety shore for 201 kilometres to Almeria. 85 years ago this week. They were making a des- So on February 7, 1937, perate attempt to evade the the citizens of Malaga set clutches of the Nationalist off, carrying what they could forces of Franco bearing as they abandoned their down on the hopelessly out- homes in an event that has numbered Republican units become known as La Desbanda, (the disbanding). defending Malaga. The fascist troops - bolste- The fascists under General red by Italian and German Queipo de Llano showed air support - had crushed little mercy to the city, which the government forces who was severely bombed, and had attempted (and failed) even less to the refugees as a last ditch defence of Ron- they struggled on their long da and were now sweeping trek to what they hoped
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bruary 9 - two days after the refugees had set off and a day after Malaga
Given the bird
Jon Clarke, jon@theolivepress.es Dilip Kuner dilip@theolivepress.es
would be a safe haven. The general himself made a radio broadcast on Fe-
B
They share the skies above us but the relationship between birds and airplanes is not a happy marriage
IRD strikes are a growing problem ther of modern-day environmentalism’ as they have become frequent, and television personality, was the first very expensive and sometimes to introduce falconry units to Spanish fatal. airports. In 2019 alone, there were 16,000 report- In 1968 he teamed up with airport safety ed incidents, averaging more than 45 officials with falconers in an attempt to per day. The problem of bird strikes has rid the airport of bird strikes. cost the aviation industry an average of The falcons are trained to circumnavigate $50,000 per incident or more than $1.2 the airport at various times of the day billion a year. making a time-tested stateInterestingly, some creative ment that they, the falcons, efforts are under way at are in control. 95% of major various Spanish Airports Falcons have exceptional airports in to mitigate this problem. powers of vision with a viLet’s take a look…. sual acuity 2.6 times that Spain use Airport safety committees of the human eye. Furtherfalcons as a throughout the world have more, their ability to change experimented with various direction is unprecedented. deterrent methods of controlling the Combine these attributes number of birds that pose with the fact that falcons a danger to air transport. are the fastest moving creaExamples include controlling the number tures on earth with a diving speed of 200 of local bird populations, removing local miles per hour! surface water and eliminating food sourc- Instinctively other birds like pigeons, es (eg, land-fill dumps). doves, sea gulls, geese and other waterOfficials have also tried flying drones that fowl, will sense extreme danger and flee emit sounds to repel troublesome birds. the area to stay well clear of their natural Additionally, they have tried using pyro- enemy. technics, flashing lights, loud speakers, Today, 95% of the major airports in Spain poison, bird detecting radar - all with lim- use falcons as a bird strike deterrent. At ited success. Madrid’s Barajas airport, a ‘fleet’ of 70 Ironically, the most promising attempt at Peregrine falcons have been trained to bird strike mitigation involves bringing in patrol their runways. more birds! In this case, birds of prey - From the Barajas control tower, authorities namely falcons. can call for the help of falcons to keep the Felix Rodriquez de la Fuente, Spain’s ‘fa- sky clear if controllers decide there is a
bird strike possibility. Similarly Barcelona’s El Prat, an airport which averages some 22 bird strikes per year, employs a team of 80 falcons as an integral part of their safety programme. Aside from their regular patrol, the falcons are on alert and often released in response to reported sightings of birds by pilots. This practice has not gone unnoticed at the Castellon Costa Azahar Airport (Valencia Province) where €90,000 of its safety budget is allotted to falconry. Malaga’s Costa del Sol Airport - Spain’s 4th busiest - has an established 30-year falcon programme with a safety record that continually trends positive thanks in part to its falcon fleet. Falconry has a 2,000-year cultural heritage in Spain. Records indicate that the use of falcons was introduced to the Iberian Peninsula by the Moors where it has been practiced as the ‘sport of kings’, a military weapon, and as a way of hunting. To this list we can now add airport safety to the legacy of falcons in Spain.
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
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HELL
7
LEADING FROM THE FRONT A focus on Olive Press editor Jon Clarke
T HORRORS: The people of Malaga fled the bombing of their city that killed many (above) while General Queipo de Llano (top) crowed in a radio broadcast about ordering his airforce to attack the civilian columns
had fallen. His words - that showed not an ounce of compassion -
are chilling. He crowed: “A report from our air force told me that large masses of
DANGER: The perils of birds to planes have long been known (right)
people were fleeing at full speed towards Motril. “To accompany them in their flight and make them run faster, we sent our air force to bomb them, setting fire to some trucks…” The air force did more than set fire to a few lorries. The columns of refugees were gunned down from air, land and sea in a massacre that left around 5,000 corpses lining the highway. Many of them were women and children. No one is quite sure how many people were making the tragic journey. The generally accepted figure is 150,000, but more recent estimates are as high as 300,000,
with the numbers of Malagueños bolstered by around 80,000 refugees from elsewhere in Andalucia. They had fled with good reason. Many of those who chose to stay were killed, raped and buried in many of the mass graves which have come to define Franco’s rule. And those who survived to reach Almeria found no haven. The city closed its gates to the refugees out of fear that Malaga’s fate could be visited on Almeria if it came to their aid. Some managed to get onto trains that took them to Alicante and Valencia, but many had to turn around and make the long walk back home to Malaga and face the forces they had made such a desperate effort to escape from.
Paying respect
William Shakespeare was a falconer and his word choice (especially in The Taming of the Shrew), reflects this fact. For example, to be ‘hoodwinked’ (deceived) is putting a leather hood on a falcon so it can’t see to fly. ‘Fed-up’ (disinterested) is when a bird has eaten too much of its prey.
‘Under my thumb’ (control) comes from falconers holding a falcon in such a way to restrict flight. And American aviation pioneers, the Wright Brothers, noted on their second flight in 1905, that they ‘hit a bird’ with their top wing.
DID YOU KNOW?
To mark the tragedy of memorative mileston La Desbanda a comnext to the Barranco e has been placed route of the old road de Maro bridge on the Each year modern dato Almeria. along a section of they Malagueños march ignated a Place of His route - officially desdalucia - from this sptorical Memory of Anthe thousands of the ot to pay homage to in February 1937, fleir forebears who died eing the violence of the Civil War. The marker post, se tural Association ant up by the Socioculbanda, Nerja City Cod Hiking Club La Desof Education and Cuuncil, the Department honour these civil wa lture, is intended to r refugees.
HE Olive Press counts on over 20 journalists and writers spread around Spain. Over 75% of our staff work in editorial… and there’s a good reason why. The paper’s editor and owner, Jon Clarke, is a journalist who leads from the front on a daily basis. Rolling up his sleeves - particularly around deadline days - he is the driving force in finding exclusive stories and interesting content for every issue. And it’s not just for the Olive Press. The former Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday staffer has been an investigative journalist for over two decades. Passionate about exposing corruption, crime and injustice, he has interviewed hundreds of VIPs and celebrities from Jamie Oliver to Joe Strummer and Gordon Ramsay to Abba. He has also covered some of the biggest global stories, from Chernobyl to the death of Princess Diana and from the Brian Epstein scandal (see below) to the abduction of toddler Madeleine McCann. It’s why he is frequently found on Sky News and the BBC and, most recently, with a German TV documentary on the prime suspect in the Maddie case (see promotional poster above). As well as publishing three books - the most recent on Maddie - he loves travel writing, food and wine, and has penned a lot for the UK national press. He fell in love with Spain after living in Madrid in the 1990s and now divides his time between Marbella and Ronda with a wife and two kids.
The top five most read stories on www.theolivepress.es in the past two weeks are: owner who failed to pick up after 1- Errant her dog on Spain’s Costa del Sol tracked down to home. Spain’s Modelo 720 will change in 2- How2022 and can you claim back fines. MUST READ: European court of justice ru3-lesLaw against Spain’s Modelo 720 Foreign Asset including a system of excessive fines. for people traveling to 4- Easyjet warning Spain’s Balearic Islands. of missing American-Russian 5- Body woman found in shallow grave in Spain’s Valencia as husband goes on the run.
Get in touch today at sales@theolivepress.es or call us at 00 34 951273575 for more info
8
NEWS
www.theolivepress.es
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
WE SPOKE ON NIGHT! By Jon Clarke
would be driving his winnebago to Foral ‘from the town of Tomar’, 341 kms north (at least a five-hour drive).
Late
“I don’t know if he came late that night and parked his vehicle outside and slept in there, and left that morning again, or he did not turn up,” she said. She refused to admit if this was the critical 30-minute conversation
Brueckner had in Praia da Luz at 7.30pm just hours before Maddie vanished. But she did confirm he was ‘obsessed’ with young girls and liked ‘violent sex’. “He said he liked the bodies of girls before they reached puberty,” she told the Mail on Sunday. The winnebago is the same Tiffin
HOUSEMATES: The lovers lived in Foral home (left) and (above) Winnebago ‘big enough to hide children’
LINKS: Nicole was much closer to Brueckner than first let on Allegro Bay RV that Brueckner told Fehlinger’s father Dieter he could smuggle 50kg of marijuana or a ‘small child’, adding: ‘nobody can catch you’. Nicole added that Brueckner had speculated that Madeleine was taken by ‘the underworld’, understood to be a paedophile network, while adding ‘the police will never find her’. Police have twice investigated and shut down paedophile rings in the northern Portuguese town of Tomar over the last 15 years, one centering around a priest and another a lawyer. She added: “Looking back, his behaviour did not change and he did not look suspicious after Maddie disappeared – but he is a person who was good at hiding his feelings.” She had previously told German police that she was NOT a girlfriend of Brueckner and had only met him half a dozen times.
A German police source told the Olive Press this week: “She is definitely covering herself and being very selective with what she does and doesn’t reveal. “The German police are certainly closely exploring her links to Brueckner and his crimes.” She has already been accused by police of working with him to rob the homes of wealthy Portuguese on the Algarve.
Crimes
Fehlinger has refused to discuss a robbery of €100,000 she is accused of masterminding with him. The organised break-in of a luxury villa on the Algarve took place in the same year the British toddler, 3, vanished, in nearby Praia da Luz. The 17-times convicted sex offender, who is currently spending seven years in prison for the rape of a 72-year-old American in Praia da Luz, in 2004, is expected to be charged with three more crimes this month.
OP QUICK CROSSWORD Across 6 Long-distance digits (4,4) 7 Hue (4) 9 American aviator --- Earhart (6) 10 How one may be repaid (2,4) 11 Public passenger vehicle (7) 14 Men of the future? (4) 15 Strongbox (4) 16 Jogged along (7) 20 Attempt to tempt (6) 21 Harbour guides (6) 23 Very productive (4) 24 “Riders on ---” (The Doors) (3,5)
Down
OP SUDOKU
THE ex-girlfriend of Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner has admitted she spoke to him on the night the toddler went missing. Nicole Fehlinger confirmed he was on a long drive in his huge winnebago on May 3, 2007. The German, 46, who the Olive Press revealed was dating dangerous sex offender at the time, said he was driving from northern Portugal. But critically, she couldn’t remember if she had seen him later that night at their shared home in Foral, on the Algarve. She said Brueckner, who spent a lot of time in Spain, had rung to say he
Girlfriend phoned Madeleine McCann suspect as he drove on long journey through Portugal
1 Black Sea peninsular (6) 2 Be toppled from power (4) 3 One of 32 written for the piano by Beethoven (6) 4 Examination starting command (5) 5 Police surveillance (5-3) 8 Almost-perfect scores? (5) 12 Served at 30,000 feet (26) 13 Automated performer of computer tasks (3) 15 Mountain also known as Horeb (5) 17 Super toned (6) 18 Restaurant clientele teased teaser (6) 19 Manuscripts (5) 22 Diet-friendly (4)
All solutions are on page 12
GREEN
www.theolivepress.es
CASH UP FRONT
THE European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a deal with investment firm Ben Oldman, paving the way for a €114 million fund to finance new solar and wind energy projects in Spain and Portugal. It is estimated that the funding will provide enough renewable energy to provide for 200,000 households. The agreement will see the project funded by unitranche debt, a form of financing in which secured and unsecured debt are combined into a single loan, meaning they usually have a more predictable repayment schedule. Ricardo Mourinho Félix, EIB vice-president, said: “The Spanish and Portuguese markets have huge potential for renewable energy, and the EU bank is pleased to lend all our support to the investments needed to meet objectives on renewable energy generation and decarbonisation of the economy.” The EIB is one of the world’s
Bad idea SPAIN has said that the European Commission’s (EC) proposal to class nuclear and gas as ‘sustainable energy investments’ is a ‘big mistake’. The new rules would add gas and nuclear power as ‘transitional’ technologies towards the target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. But Ecological Transition Minister Teresa Ribera wants investment in renewables such as wind and solar rather than feeding the nuclear and gas industries. She did not, however, make a commitment to joining Austria and Luxembourg in legal action against the rules.
Multi-million deal for renewable energy investment
largest investors in green energy, having committed to ending its investment in all fossil fuel related energy projects. In January it announced it would finance energy storage company Gravitricity’s plan to build a renewable
energy storage facility in the Moravian Silesian region of Czechia.
Jobs The programme is also expected to create at least 700 jobs in the construction in-
dustry. The Spanish government is aiming to source 42% of its energy from renewables by 2030. It announced in December it had met its 2021 target of 20% of energy coming from renewables.
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February 10th - February 23rd 2022
Power on!
SPAIN has unveiled plans for a massive green energy project in the northeast region of Aragon that aims to meet 30% of the nation’s hydrogen demand. Development has been earmarked to begin in late 2023 led by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners in partnership with Spanish companies Naturgy, Enagas, Fertiberia, and Danish wind turbine manufacturer, Vestas. Dubbed ‘Project Catalina’, the energy plan aims to develop a total of 5 GW of combined wind and solar, producing green hydrogen using a 2 GW electrolyzer. “Once fully implemented, Catalina will produce enough green hydrogen to supply 30% of Spain’s current hydrogen demand,” CIP said. At the moment most hydrogen is produced using natural gas.
As electricity prices soar, end users might like to know about one of the fat cats cashing in
ABUSE OF POWER
S
PAIN’S electricity giant Iberdrola has in excess of 48 million customers worldwide. It made a profit of €3.6 billion euros in 2020 and is expected to see that figure rise to €3.8 billion euros last year. By 2030 it projects a giant profit of €7 billion a year. Great news for shareholders, but not great for consumers struggling after two years of COVID and an alarming rise in inflation and, in particular, electricity prices. The monstrously high electricity bills of recent months have risen by more than 400% in just one year. But, before you were thinking that a corporate giant like Iberdrola might find a moral and social conscience to help its customers, you better read on. The company, based out of Bilbao, has never been far from scandal for nearly two decades and is back in the news for all the wrong reasons. Let me explain. THE VILLAREJO CASE The links of former Spanish police chief Jose Manuel Villarejo to Iberdrola are depressing and predictable. It is an alarming story that says much about Spain’s lack of transparency and it will gather a head of steam in the months to come. National Police boss Villarejo has been dubbed ‘the Spanish state’s secret fixer’, and is now facing a series of criminal trials over dirty dealings linked to 25 separate cases. Remanded in custody after his arrest in Madrid in 2018, the authorities seized countless files and secretly recorded conversations, which showed exactly to what extent he would go to help his clients beat rivals and get away with skullduggery. A veritable Who’s Who of modern day Spain, these customers include public bodies, corporate giants and many politicians. Some you will already be familiar with.
Green
The main ones to have hit the media are: ● ●
●
The secret taped conversations with the ex-lover of former Spanish king, Corrina zu Sayn-Wittgenstein The Operation Kitchen case involving stealing documents from a former treasurer of the ruling PP party during Mariano Rajoy’s era. And now Iberdrola, after judge Manuel Garcia confirmed, last week, that he would allow a former executive, Jose Antonio del Olmo to give evidence on the company’s wrongdoing.
And there’s more….
The affair began 18 years ago when Olmo deposited a report listing ‘various irregularities’ at a notary’s office in 2004. It has taken a long time to get to court and the investigating judge has now extended the operation for six more months as he plans to summon 16 more witnesses and two defendants to testify… one of them, Enrique Victorero, ex-corporate security boss, when suspicious activity is alleged to have taken place at the company. The whole thing stinks and it is set to come out in the wash. Iberdrola certainly has previous form:
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Spain’s High Court placed Iberdrola’s CEO Ignacio Galan under investigation for bribery and fraud in 2021 as part of a probe into an alleged spying case dating back more than 15 years. The High Court will also investigate if Iberdrola hired Villarejo to spy on Real Madrid President, Florentino Perez, when his firm ACS was fighting to secure a seat on Iberdrola’s board in 2009 It will investigate whether Iberdrola hired Villarejo to repel local opposition to a power plant in Southern Spain, and if Villarejo was hired to obtain evidence about Manuel Pizarro, the former chairman of utility company rival Endesa.
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In August 2021 Iberdrola was accused of draining reservoirs to take advantage of high electricity prices in Spain. It was a ‘total scandal’ insisted Minister for Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera. A cyber security company filed a $110million lawsuit in New York in December, accusing Iberdrola of bid rigging and racketeering under an elaborate scheme to generate millions at the expense of its customers in New York, Maine and Connecticut. The company was accused of bribery in Iberdrola’s successful effort to win contracts for two power plants in Latvia in 2004 and 2008. The company was accused of fraud when it failed to tell the World Bank about its employment relationship with an agent in a power plant deal in Albania. Price fixing in Spain led to big fines in 2010 and 2014. It was fined €25 million for altering the price of electricity to make ‘an illicit profit of €20 million’ during a cold winter spell in 2013.
Yes, they are a greedy lot, looking after their bottom line. Corporate greed affects us all. Is it time you took a closer look at your electricity contract?
Martin Tye is the owner of energy switch company Mariposa Energy. +34 638145664 ( Spain Phone ) Email him at martin@mariposaenergia.es
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10
Dear Jennifer: Your future is created by what you do today
A
S many are aware, the rules for staying in Spain and the EU in general, and the regulations for making Spain your home, are now far more important and thorough. It is vital that you seek good advice before committing yourself to living in Spain or the EU. My company is knowledgeable regarding Spain, be it moving here to become a permanent resident or for extended trips as tourists, with or without holiday homes in Spain. New residency/visa applications have to be processed via the Spanish Consulate in the UK. Having chosen your location and started your application for your visa, my company is there to help with Health Insurance, which is a requirement for your residency. Jennifer Cunningham Insurance can then provide all your insurance, from fully comprehensive home insurance, car, pet and life, travel and funeral, to ensure all your needs are covered to keep yourself and your loved ones protected. We also work with trusted associates, such as lawyers, accountants and financial advisors, as part of our Expat Services division. Why Jennifer Cunningham Insurance? I established the company nearly 30 years ago, to provide a secure, professional service, with knowledge staff, created to provide the Expats here in Spain with the correct insurance policies with the cover they were used to, with unique Renewals and Claims departments to provide a full service and support in English for my clients. Both Liberty Seguros and ASSSA Health Insurance, in my professional opinion the best in Spain, provide special Expat policies, in your own language to make life easier for you. For those of you already settled in Spain, now is the time to check your insurance policies to ensure you have the cover you need. You can visit one of my offices, if one is nearby or telephone and my staff can assist you, checking and explaining your policies and special points of information that are necessary to make like simpler for you, such as the legal requirement to have vehicles insured at all times, whether they are being used or not and tailoring the policies for your family’s needs.
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BUSINESS
Give us our cash back! Punitive fines over foreign asset declarations outlawed
THE tax man has announced plans to modify Modelo 720 rules for declaring foreign assets before the March 31 presentation deadline this year. Spain’s minister of the treasury (Hacienda) Maria Jesus Montero told reporters of the rapid about-turn within 24 hours of a crushing sentence from the EU’s Court of Justice. The changes announced would affect Spanish tax residents in two major ways: significantly reducing fines related to late or erroneous Modelo
Form 720 is required to those who are tax resident in Spain when the value of any assets held abroad surpasses €50,000 including: ● Bank accounts ● Investments: including shares, securities, insurance… ● Properties
Verdict
It follows the verdict on the case of the EU Commission vs Spain that the Modelo 720 was ‘contrary to EU law’. The sentence labelled fines for late or erroneous declarations as both ‘highly punitive’ and ‘disproportionate’. Though the full effect of the
FIGURES for overnight hotel stays in Benidorm during 2021 showed occupancy rates well down on the pre-pandemic year of 2019. The study compiled by the Hosbec hoteliers association says occupancy for 2021 stood at 61.3%, a fall of 22.9% on 2019 numbers. Alicante Province as a whole, including Benidorm, experienced a fall in activity of 55.1%, since 2019. The biggest factor in the Benidorm totals was a 73.1% reduction in foreign tourists compared to 2019.
EU declares penalties for breaching infamous form 720 ‘disproportionate’
T
720 declarations; and opening the door to reclaim fines - although not everyone will be eligible.
Benidorm suffers
OUT OF ORDER HE 720 form is in question. This infamous and abusive Spanish tax form has been now declared contrary to the free EU movement of capital. The EU Court of Justice ruled on 27 January 2022 that the penalties imposed are disproportionate and are not necessary to guarantee the effectiveness of the Spanish tax legal system. On top of that, the power of the Spanish Tax Office to treat that information as an undeclared capital gain, even before the four years statute of limitation has elapsed, is abusive. Form 720 is still mandatory, and it should be prepared before the end of March 2022. However, the Spanish Government must modify the current penalties. This process is not going to take less than a few months. Del Canto Chambers is now considering potential legal actions to be brought against the Spanish Tax Office for those affected. Form 720 is a full declaration of absolutely all the assets held abroad by the Taxpayer, with heavy fines and penalties for lack of compliance.
February 10th February 23rd 2022
Claudio Rodríguez, Tax Counsel European Lawyer and Spanish Abogado (London)
new laws might not be seen until 2023, there is important news for the 60,000 Spanish tax residents declaring their foreign assets each year via the form. Spanish headlines are already ringing with the opportunity to win back cash already paid in fines – for example, former Catalan president Jordi Pujol’s (pictured) family will mount a case to get back nearly €2 million paid to Hacienda over Andorra-based assets following declaration errors. However, only certain cases will be eligible to claim their slice of the €230 million collected in Hacienda fines since the declaration was introduced in 2012. According to social media comments on Citizen’s Advice Bureau Spain, many British expats were fined €1,500, €1,600, €2,500 and €3,000 due to late submissions of the Modelo 720. According to current legal advice, these people will not be able to receive their money back unless they had appealed and the case was still ongoing.
But that’s not all. Any assets not listed on the form will be included in your taxable base as an undeclared gain. In that case there was a penalty of 150% applied to the relevant unpaid tax. Thankfully, this has now been declared illegal by the EU Court.
Del Canto Chambers has an in-depth understanding of international tax, legal affairs, property law and residence issues. We offer a Tax and Legal Residence Opinion service that will clearly set out your options with regard to living and paying tax overseas. To make a no-obligation enquiry, please either call us now on: +44 2070 430648 or Make An Online Enquiry at delcantochambers.com. We will come back to you within 24 hours and we will be delighted to help you.
SIGNS of a significant rise in new home construction are emerging in Alicante Province. Figures from the Alicante Quantity Surveyors, Architects, and Building Engineers Association (COAATIEA) show a 12% rise in new builds in the last three months of 2021 compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019.
Risen
It’s the first time that new constructions have risen above 2019 levels in the region, though the overall annual total is 21% lower than two years earlier. Work on 1,564 homes started in the last quarter of 2021, compared to 1,463 in 2019. It's also an increase on the third-quarter 2021 total which stood at 1,372 new builds.
SPANISH
LANGUAGE COURSES 5TH AVENUE ACADEMY SWORN TRANSLATION Spanish-English and English-Spanish
The fines imposed for not complying are: ● €5,000 for every piece of information that is not submitted, or if it’s not accurate. €10,000 is the minimum fine paid if this omission is detected by the authorities. ● €100 for every piece of information on the form when it is submitted by post, rather than electronically. €1,500 is the minimum fine paid if the individual does not complete the electronic form. ● €100 for every piece of information on the form when it is submitted after the deadline and before it is requested by the Tax Authorities.
NEW BUILD SPIKE
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Coining it A NEW gold coin celebrating one of the most emblematic species in Spain has been launched. The €1.50 coin features the endangered Iberian lynx. Just 12,000 units of the new coin are being released and are the first bullion coins in Spain. The coin isn’t going into general circulation so you won’t find it in your spare change anytime soon. The coins are emblazoned with the head of the cat.
Wild
They coin will be available worldwide, with collectors predicted to spend wild amounts to secure the Lynx collectors item. The Lynx faced near extinction at the beginning of the 20th century, with just 52 mature individuals in 2002. Thanks to the efforts of animal activists and a £24million programme partly funded by the European Union there are now more than 1,000 of the species in Spain.
LA CULTURA
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
INSPIRATIONAL PORTRAITS
Sorolla exhibition brings together private collection artworks for first time A MAJOR new exhibition by Valencia-born artist Joaquin Sorolla has been launched. Held at Madrid’s Sorolla Museum, it features 44 children and family paintings by the renowned artist and is on until June 19. Sorolla was born in Valencia in 1863 and studied drawing at the School of Craftsmen in his native city before he moved to Madrid.
After his death in 1922, his widow Clotilde Garcia gave the building to the Spanish State for the purpose of establishing a museum dedicated to him, which was inaugurated in 1932. Children were a major inspiration and subject of the painter’s works from the beginning of his career. Curated by Sonia Martinez and Covadonga Pitarch, the exhibition is divided into three sec-
THE Sagrada Familia has been crowned the most popular tourist attraction in the world, beating the Eiffel Tower, Sydney Opera House and Empire State building. The cathedral topped the list of both tourist destinations and reviews on TripAdvisor where it currently has over 160,000 reviews. The unfinished work of Spanish artist Antoni Gaudi is visited by three million people annually. Antoni Gaudi died in 1926, by which time the church was only a quarter complete. He had finished the iconic crypt
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tions: The Centre of the Family, The World of Children and The Other Childhood.
World class and the Nativity facade, which went on to be declared a World Heritage Site. Work has continued on the site since his death, with surviving models and drawings making it possible to continue the architectural feat. The pandemic forced work to be abandoned temporarily but the goal is for the church to be completed to coincide with the centenary of its architect’s death.
The first deals with Sorolla’s family portraits - his wife and his three children Maria, Joaquin and Elena. In addition, the exhibition brings together for the first time a selection of commissioned children’s portraits from private collections.
Beach
The second part shows how the younger children lived, studied, drew and played, with frequent scenes of the sea and the beach. Finally, the last section shows the darker side of being a child, including scenes of illness and children of humbler origins who had to work to help their families.
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12
LA CULTURA
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
LIVING IN INTERESTING TIMES COVID snuffs out Chinese New Year but ignites tiger-like rebellion, writes Heather Galloway
nese who are graduates and professionals and anti-racism activists. This movement is new.” With the first stirrings of resistance triggered by the BBVA scandal, when the bank blocked innumerable Chinese bank accounts, the movement was quick to respond to the hostility sparked by the pandemic, which, according to lawyer and activist Antonio Liu Yang, had people crossing to the other side of the street. “One guy shouted ‘Chino!’ at a friend of mine and ran off,” he recalls. No matter that the Chinese community is far more rigorous than the average Spaniard when it comes to vaccination and restrictions, with some even making their way back to China
to be jabbed before the vaccine pro- ring the pandemic. gram was rolled out in Spain, accor- First generation Chinese lack the tools ding Dr Chen. to combat such outrages. For a start, Or that the virus originated in Wuhan, they often don’t have the language. But almost 800 kilometres from Qingtian their descendants, the Chiñoles, do. in Zhejiang, the province where many Lawyer Antonio Liu Yang, whose first generation Chinese in Spain emi- J.E.D.I organisation focuses on inclugrated from. sion, was among those that kicked Of course, there have back against the stigmatisation linked to always been dodgy the pandemic with the jokes about the Chi‘There was a nese diet and a video #Nosoyunvirus campaign. “There was a of Chinese influencer very strong wave of hate coming Wang Mengyun, the wave of hatred our way,” he told the host of an online travel Olive Press. “Chineshow, tucking into what coming our se activism up to this looked like an entire way’ point had lacked unity, bat at the start of the but at that point we all pandemic didn’t help pulled together. matters. In fact, Wang was sampling bat in Palau, “At a dinner, about 40 of us decided a Pacific island nation about as far to take a picture of ourselves with a #yonosoyunvirus sign and post it on from China as Australia. But the slurs persist. In an echo of social media.” the former US president Donald He added: “My picture was picked up Trump, a recent tweet by ultra-ri- by the press so it became the most reght-wing Twitter maverick Alvise cognisable. And it worked, at least for Perez, who is credited with influen- those who wanted to believe it.” cing the result of Madrid’s The movement also includes influenregional elections last May cers such as musician Putochinomato give Isabel Díaz Ayuso a ricon (which translates as F*****g landslide victory, bemoans Chinese Queer, pictured far left) who the fact that we are discou- became so used to this insult as he raged from using the term went about his business that he adopted it as his moniker. His real name is China virus. Listing names given (presu- Chenta Tsai. mably by the left) to the PP Another making a stand while carving (Francoists), Vox (Nazis), bu- a niche in mainstream Spanish society llfighters (murderers), priests is cartoonist Quan Zhou and yet ano(paedophiles) and so on, ther is poet Paloma Chen. Once these Alvise writes: “Coronavirus: Chiñoles believed activism required don’t call it the China virus too much exposure. “For a long time, even though it comes from I didn’t feel I could expose myself like that,” said Liu Yang. China as it might offend.” It is called a political agenda, But now the pandemic has propelled claims the man behind the them into the fray. macabre video of Spanish Who needs dragons on the streets at Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez New Year when a whole generation is surrounded by corpses du- breathing fire?
OP Puzzle solutions
Quick Crossword
Across: 6 Area code, 7 Tint, 9 Amelia, 10 In kind, 11 Taxicab, 14 Boys, 15 Safe, 16 Trotted, 20 Entice, 21 Pilots, 23 Rich, 24 The Storm. Down: 1 Crimea, 2 Fall, 3 Sonata, 4 Begin, 5 Stake-out, 8 Nines, 12 In-flight, 13 Bot, 15 Sinai, 17 Ripped, 18 Eaters, 19 Texts, 22 Lite.
SUDOKU
T
HE Chinese Lunar New Year on February 13, Dr Chen adds, “It is ushers in power and rebellion a shame. The New Year is a chance with the Year of the Tiger, but for us to open up to Spanish society.” the celebration in Madrid’s Chi- New Year in Usera is usually an natown in the southern district of Use- extravagant affair, celebrating a ra is a mere shadow of its former self. 5,000-year-old culture staged by a There are reams of Chinese lanterns diaspora generally known for its mild in this neighbourhood where 20% of manners and tendency to stand apart the population is Chinese, yet no giant from mainstream society. dragons or Chinese artists weaving But while the pandemic has muted their magic beneath them. the New Year spectacle, it has fuelled For the second year running, the fes- a different sort of engagement with tivities have largely miSpanish society, driven grated online. It may by second and third generation Chinese who be business as usual for The Chinese jokingly call themselthe Spanish whose decommunity ves Chiñoles and who votion to cañas and tapas ensures pavement are mobilising against is exercising cafés do a roaring trathe thoughtless stereotyping and racial slurs de across the rest of the extreme that have been coming capital, but the Chinese caution their way for years. community is exercising “The pandemic isn’t extreme caution against the first time a piece of the supposedly milder news has had negative repercussions Omicron variant of the coronavirus. “Usually at New Year, we have big fa- on the Chinese community,” Joaquin mily gatherings but we won’t be doing Beltran, an Asian oriental studies prothat this year either,” Dr Yale Tung- fessor at Barcelona University told the Chen, an Internal Medicine specialist Olive Press. at Madrid’s Puerta de Hierro Universi- A specialist in Chinese culture, Beltran ty hospital tells the Olive Press. “I can’t cites the case of Operation Emperor remember when I last had dinner with in 2012, when Gao Ping, a friend of friends.” the former King of Spain, was arresReferring to the subdued version of ted along with more than 80 others on money laundering charges. the event which culminates in an off-line “There followed a massive smear race down Macampaign spreading the idea that drid’s main drag, all the Chinese were mafiosos the Castellana, laundering money,” added Beltran. “At that time there was a reaction from the Chinese Embassy in Spain and the business lobbies. “The difference with the COVID smear is that the reaction has also come from second and third generation Chi-
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
End of Travel Tests
TRAVELLERS arriving in England and Scotland from Spain will no longer need to buy daytwo COVID tests, if they are fully vaccinated. The rules will change at 4am on Friday. It follows the axing of a pre-departure test for fully vaccinated travellers from abroad to the UK back in January. The moves may save families about £100 on visits abroad over the half-term period and boost the travel industry. UK Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps added the passenger locator form would be ‘easier’ and the window extended to three days for submission prior to departure. Unvaccinated travellers will still be required to do a pre-departure test and a Day 2 test, but will no longer have to quarantine on arrival or take a second PCR test after arriving.
Just terrible NO-FRILLS airline Ryanair has been named the worst for short-haul flights by a consumer watchdog. The budget airline was slammed as ‘consistently terrible’ by three-quarters of passengers quizzed by Which? Ryanair is the one carrier they would steer clear of. Flights from many of Ryanair’s UK hubs to destinations in Spain, including tourist favourites Sevilla, Malaga and Barcelona are available for less than a tenner. Yet with an overall score of 55 out of 100, just 47% of passengers told the watchdog they were satisfied with the way Ryanair handled refunds during the pandemic. It also received just one out of five stars for seat comfort and two for categories including the boarding process, cabin clean-
TWO groups have criticised the continuing lack of a rail link with Alicante-Elche airport. The Alicante Young Farmers Association (Asaja) and the Alicante Business Union (Uepal) say the ‘non-existence’ of a train connection has turned land around the airport into a 140 hectare parking lot. They claim the airport is one of the ‘worst connected tourist airports in the world’, ‘as bad as’ Marrakech in Morocco for poor
Ryanair and BA slammed by passengers in survey of shame
liness and range and quality of food and drink, along with three stars for value for money. BA was second from bottom with a customer score of 63% just behind TUI Airways.
Off the rails connectivity. The new airport terminal opened in March 2011 and had space allocated for a railway station along with an Alicante Tram stop. Nothing happened but in 2019, the Valencian government granted €50,000 towards a feasibility study in connecting the airport to the rail network. No progress has been made since then.
Their disappointing two-star ratings for food and drink and poor customer service led one passenger to describe BA as ‘a budget style airline at premium prices’. However, BA’s cabins ranked as joint cleanest alongside KLM and Jet2. Meanwhile Jet2 topped the charts, receiving the highest ranking score from airline customers. More than eight in 10 were satisfied with the outcome when their flight was disrupted. The editor of Which? Travel, Rory Boland, said: “Ryanair’s consistently terrible customer service has made it a fixture among the worst performers in our surveys for many years - but the airline plumbed new depths with its handling of COVID refunds.”
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
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CHEAP SKATES
A CATALAN ski resort has been named among the eight most affordable ski resorts in Europe by Lonely Planet. While the travellers’ bible chose Borovets in Bulgaria as the resort with the best party crowd and Vogel in Slovenia as the top choice for beautiful views, Boi–Taüll in the Pyrenees was named the best for après-ski culture for those on a tight budget. The resort in the northeastern region of Catalunya was praised as ‘crowd-free, family-friendly and north-facing – crucial for long-lasting snow’. It was also considered among the best value for money of all the resorts in Spain with a six-day lift pass in high season costing just €175. Boi–Taüll offers 45km of ski pistes mostly classified as red and black making it ideal for experienced skiers. Accommodation can be sourced for less than €450 a week and the local cuisine was also praised.
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FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
ELEBRITY forays into business haven’t always ended well. Just because you can kick a ball about or play Macbeth doesn’t mean you can launch a cologne – just like you wouldn’t expect a perfume maker to bicycle kick the winner at the Bernabeu. That said, David Beckham nets a cool €60,000 a day from his branding businesses, including Homme by Beckham Fragrances. While Lionel Messi’s MiM group is launching a hotel in Spain at the rate of one a year, the most recent in Sotogrande. With many of Europe’s most diamond-studded enclaves, Spain is a profitable place for celebrities or sportsmen to take the leap into the luxury hotel business. Even if economic recessions and poor business acumen haven’t been kind to them, here are 10 hotels you didn’t know were owned by celebrities in Spain.
SLEEPING WITH THE STARS
Business savvy or the wrong game? After Lionel Messi got caught in controversy over a new Spanish hotel, Joshua Parfitt asks if these 10 celebrities scored an own goal in the hotel game
T
erry Venables might be best known as the Dagenham-born former football coach of England and Barcelona. But while ‘El Tel’ told reporters in 2017 he still ‘regretted’ losing to Germany at Euro ‘96 he’s not stopped just yet. He’s been running La Escondida luxury resort in the hills of Alicante, about 35-minutes inland from the Costa Blanca with wife Yvette, since 2014. The couple initially bought the 500-acre plot with a rundown hostal over 20 years ago, before launching in 2014.
1 Cristiano Ronaldo Pestana CR7 Gran Via Madrid
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C
ristiano Ronaldo breaks records in his sleep. And not just in terms of goals… the Portuguese number 7 has entered the world as a Spanish hotelier in Madrid, having already opened one back home. Linking up with hotel chain Dionisio Pestana, the CR7 Gran Via nearly flopped before it had even opened. The company lost €340,000 over 2019 and 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic hampered opening. Now after a ‘soft launch’ in June 2021 it is currently
Spain’s former world no.1 tennis player has had a troubled run with his Ferrero Hotel in Bocairent, Valencia. The 5-star farmhouse resort boasting 120,000m2 of botanical gardens and wilderness has nearly collapsed at least once since opening in 2007. Built on an old convent,
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
open with prices just north of €120 a night. If Ronaldo has a bit of a reputation as an egomaniac, his first hotel in his Madeira island home of Funchal has even more so. Guests sleep under creepy illustrations of Ronaldo and his family, while Cristiano slogans like ‘to be the best you need the best’ adorn the walls. In Madrid, guests must only put up with Cristiano’s boxer short merchandise, while each floor is called a different name like #fairplay or #teamwork.
2 Juan Carlos Ferrero Ferrero Hotel, Bocairent Ferrero redesigned the place with the help of Valencian architect Luis Sendra to make 12 suites, of which six have their own jacuzzi on the terrace. The complex went up for sale in 2012 with rumours
it had closed due to renovation costs. But by 2018 Ferrero had reopened under the same name, and you can bag a room with fine tennis courts from €100 a night in the off-season.
3 Terry Venables La Escondida, Penaguila, Alicante Taking inspiration from Venables’ parents’ own pub the Royal Oak in Chingford, Essex, La Escondida now boasts Michelin-star trained chefs putting on private dinners with a view. He originally wanted to turn the land into a football academy, which left the place with a pristine green lawn next to the pool. Prices start from a ‘bargain’ €100 a night off-season.
Lionel Messi MiM Hotels
Argentine superstar Lionel Messi invested in his first hotel back in 2017. The 4-star hotel in Sitges near Barcelona boasts a luxurious ‘hydrotherapy circuit’ with a DJ-stocked sky bar just 50m from the Mediterranean. Messi’s partnership with Majestic Hotel Group – MiM Hotels – has obviously been seen as succesful, as each year since they’ve bought a new hotel. The expansion began with Ibiza in 2018, Mallorca in 2019, Andorra in 2020, Baqueira Beret in 2021 and Sotogrande in 2022. Not everyone is as pleased as Messi, however. The recent purchase in Sotogrande at the emblematic Hotel Club Maritimo saw an unwelcome shake up with 40 staff dismissed. San Roque’s mayor called the move ‘unjust’, though local protests are unlikely to stop the new MIM Sotogrande Club Maritimo from opening in April 2022.
5 Miguel Bose Hotel Monasterio Rocamador, Extremadura
P
op singer Miguel Bose is another one who’s foray into hotels in Spain hasn’t turned out so well. Bose spent €5 million to buy up the land surrounding a 16th century convent before opening it in 1997, going completely native by also producing and selling his own jamon Iberico. The Hotel Monasterio Rocamador was a big hit for award-winning singer Alejandro Sanz and held the wedding of actress Aitana Sanchez-Gijon with sculptor Papin Luccadane. Effects of the economic crisis however led to it shutting down in 2012. And now after nearly a decade shut, a local wine business has invested and reopened its doors as a 4-star hotel.
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL S
February 10th - February 23rd 2022
6 Alan Sugar Byblos Hotel, Mijas
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10 Gerard Pique €50 million on not a lot yet
trictly, the Byblos Hotel should not be on this list. It has changed hands twice since British business tycoon and Apprentice star Alan Sugar sold it in 2016. It shot to fame after opening in 1986 as a celebrity hotspot, popular with the likes of the Rolling Stones and Antonio Banderas, among many others. It was here the paparazzi snapped the infamous pictures of a topless Lady Di just as she withdrew from public life following revelations of a relationship with James Hewitt. Julio Iglesias and the Saudi Royal family were also known to frequent the chic resort until it closed and Sugar acquired it in 2009. Though he reportedly bought the place for under €3 million, it had over €24 million in debts. He sold it on for €60 million and it is due to reopen this year as a Hyatt Hotel. It will fiittingly feature in the 5th season of Netflix drama The Crown.
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ARCELONA centre-back Gerard Pique is a household name in Spain for his hundred-plus Spanish caps and high-profile marriage to Shakira. He’s also attracted attention for his business ventures – and misadventures.
Bankruptcy
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Richard Branson Son Bunyola, Mallorca
9 David Silva Amadores Beach Club, Gran Canaria
Another Spanish footballing genius – the world cup winner and Man City legend David Silva – has shown better form than former teammate Pique. The Canarian-born player has owned one of Europe’s biggest
When British tycoon Richard Branson isn’t on his Caribbean island or homes in Kenya, South Africa, London, etc, he spends time in Mallorca. He once owned the La Residencia hotel there, in Deia, the name he also gave to his daughter Eva-Deia. He also owned the stunning Sun Bunyola estate covering 700 acres of land from the Tramuntana mountains to the sea. Then sold it, then bought it back. Today, it is one of Spain’s most exclusive hotels, effectively just three luxury villas, each with private pools and sunset views. Prices start at an eye-watering €17k per week – you’ve been warned!
8 Robert De Niro Nobu Hotels
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obert De Niro is well known for many things – and his hotel chain is now one of them. Partnering up with renowned chef Nobu Matsuhisa and American producer Meir Teper, De Niro helped launch the luxury Nobu Hotels chain. The business operates 5-star hotels in Chicago, Las Vegas and London among many other places, with three so far in Spain. Nobu’s hotels here are in Marbella, Barcelona and Ibiza, with San Sebastian set to open this year. The prices, in part, match the locations with Nobu Hotel Ibiza Bay starting at €550 a night from April.
A hamburger restaurant in Barcelona called Yours, closed in 2018 while the Blue Spot restaurant with 360-degree views of Barcelona’s beachfront filed for bankruptcy in 2020. Not one to give up, Pique purchased prime land in Malaga, on the site of the former Cine Andalucia in Plaza de la Merced, the birthplace of Pablo Picasso. The €20 million buyout will need another €30 million to build a planned 5-star hotel and make it third-time lucky for Pique.
beach club resorts. Amadores Beach Club enjoys 7500m2 of pools, bars and beach with everything from champagne areas to strawroofed cabins to snooze in the subtropical shade.
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FINAL WORDS
A MAN is in custody after stealing a car from an Elche dealership after a test drive before driving his new vehicle home only to find tipped-off police waiting for him on his doorstep.
Crops cops VOLUNTEERS at a food bank were left stunned after they were paid an unusual visit by well-meaning Malaga police who donated 19 tonnes of peppers and tomatoes seized during a drugs raid.
Silly politico A LABOUR reform was passed into law by a one vote margin thanks to Popular Party opposition MP Alberto Casero accidentally voting ‘yes’ in the chamber instead of no.
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VALENCIA / COSTA AZAHAR FREE Vol. 1 Issue 31 www.theolivepress.es February 10th - February 23rd 2022
Estrella Damned?
THEY say that no publicity is bad publicity and while a photograph showing Boris Johnson clutching a beer during a lockdown event at Downing Street might not be good news for the PM it certainly isn’t doing any harm for the Catalan brand Estrella Damm. Since the story broke that police had been handed footage showing Johnson kicking back with a can of lager in hand at his lockdown birthday bash last year, the brand rec-
How Boris birthday bash is proving great publicity for Catalan lager brand Estrella Damm ognition of Estrella Damm has soared. A can appeared on the cover of British tabloid The Mirror last Friday, with Estrella Damm tweeting out the story with a guilty ‘oops’ and an emoji with clenched teeth representing awkwardness.
In raTure
COUNCIL officials are hunting an anonymous sculptor after his latest work ‘two rats mating’ appeared overnight on a roundabout in Leon. Some wags have dubbed him the ‘Banksy of León’ but locals are less impressed after several ‘works of art’ with a sexual theme have appeared out of nowhere in the past few months. A previous one featured a concrete penis that was set up on a roundabout on the approach to the local hospital. Now council bosses say the artist faces a fine of €80 for ‘irregular occupation of the public road’. But they have to catch him first.
The photograph forms part of the ‘partygate’ investigation by Scotland Yard when alleged boozy get-togethers were held among staff at Downing Street at a time when such gatherings were forbidden under COVID rules. True aficionados of Spanish
A CONVICTED murderer, who escaped from prison and became known as Rambo because he survived in the woods using his army training, has finally been arrested after almost a year on the run. Alfredo Sanchez Chacon, 63, was caught breaking into a home in the town of Valdoviño in La Coruña province to steal food.
Raiding
lager might question Boris’s choice of tipple – many would argue that Spain has far superior brands, not least the rival Estrella Galicia, Alhambra or Madrid’s Mahou. But some jokers thought the scandal could be the focus of this year’s famous Estrella Damm summer campaign. One quipped that the new slogan should be:” Estrella Damm: Official supplier to the British government” while another thought” I’d break the rules for Estrella” could be a good tagline.
The homeowners alerted their nearest neighbour, who happened to be an officer in the Guardia Civil, after they heard someone raiding their kitchen in the dead of night, and he gave chase as the fugitive attempted to leave. He had been on the run after he failed to return to jail after day release last March and is thought to have been hiding out in woods ever since. His survival skills were gleaned while serving in the Spanish Legion and Army Special Forces which is why he earned the nickname ‘Rambo’, after the movie role made famous by Sylvester Stallone.