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Vol. 4 Issue 81 www.theolivepress.es May 29th - Jun 11th, 2020
Pic: Allan Binderup
The
OLIVE PRESS MALLORCA
We expose fugitive gun nut Brit Page 2
SUNNING IT: Mallorca’s now-open bars and restaurants are full of places to sit, but one chilled out Palma resident has other ideas
Inside Spain’s TV hit, White Lines Page 3
Spaniards block roads Page 6 in protest
My best mate’s gone!
Dad pays heartfelt tribute to his tragic daughter Danielle, who ‘lived to sing, laugh and party’
ETA terrorist behind Page 9 Killing Eve
A BRITISH bar worker has been found dead ‘in her wardrobe’. Danielle Finlay Brookes was found at her flat in Magaluf by police. The bartender from Crewe, 23, lived near the famous Punta Ballena strip,
where she worked at the The Three Lions karaoke bar. Expat friends told the Olive Press she was always ‘cheerful’ and ‘full of life’. One, Meghan Tattersall, said: “You
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RIP: Brit Danielle found dead in Maga
By Isha Sesay
are my best friend and my angel high in the sky. I’m truly heartbroken. “I’m so proud to be able to spend everyday with you. Fly high my princess. RIP to my girl I’m so proud of. I love you.” Another mate, Rob Dury described her as a ‘beautiful young woman taken too soon’ and added: “No words can describe how much all your friends and family will miss that smile. Her father Michael meanwhile, wrote a heartfelt tribute which her friends have passed on to the Olive Press. In the emotional passage, he describes Danielle as his ‘best mate’ and they had shared an amazing relationship since she was a young child. He said she had ‘lived to sing, laugh and party’ and that they would go out together ‘at a drop of a hat’, singing their hearts out until the early hours of the morning. He added: “She loved Maga and ev-
eryone who drank in her bar. Thank you. Absolutely heartbroken. She will always be my baby girl.”. A GoFundMe fundraiser to repatriate the young Brit’s body has raised almost €7,000, but a friend told the Olive Press the family are ‘still a long way from bringing her home’. Police had been called to her block of flats after friends said they had not heard from her ‘for hours’. They said they had become worried when they noticed a change in her behaviour in the last few weeks and had called the emergency services after not hearing from her for several days. Her landlord gave police a spare key to her apartment, where they found her body inside a closet. Her father added he had to stay strong for her three siblings and Danielle’s mother who were described as ‘heartbroken.’ Those that would like to donate to help repatriate her body can do so by visiting: https://www.gofundme. com/f/for-danielle-brookesfamily
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NEWS IN BRIEF Bra stash TWO women have been arrested in Estepona for hiding marihuana, cocaine and heroin in their face masks and bras after police stopped their car at a checkpoint and conducted a search.
Terror raids POLICE have arrested two suspected terrorists in Ciudad Real who were planning to set up a jihadist cell through internet forums, just a few days after they detained an alleged would be ‘lone wolf’ attacker in Barcelona.
Hot on his heels British fugitive who escaped from a UK court tracked down by cops to a rural bolthole A FLEET-FOOTED criminal who bolted from a UK court has been arrested in Spain, the Olive Press can exclusively reveal. Louis Robinson, 25, jumped the docks of Manchester Crown Court back in 2014 just moments after the judge handed him 12 months for attempted burglary and aggravated vehicle taking. Robinson had pinched scrap metal from a skip outside Harpurhey Shopping Centre,
EXCLUSIVE by Joshua Parfitt in Puerto Lumbreras
before crashing a stolen vehicle, aged just 19. The wanted man nearly escaped justice again when, in April this year, he escaped Spain’s Guardia Civil by climbing over rooftops from his home in Puerto Lumbreras, Murcia. A spokesperson for the Guar-
Brit nabbed Pair snared for A BRITISH fugitive wanted on suspicion of conspiring to murder two men has been arrested in Barcelona. National Police arrested Jamie Rothwell, 33, from Manchester, at an apartment block on Sunday morning. A European Arrest Warrant had been issued against him in October 2019 for allegedly conspiring to murder two men. The UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) liaison officers in Spain traced Rothwell, passing the information on to Spanish police. Rothwell appeared in a Spanish court on Monday and was remanded in custody while waiting for an extradition hearing.
May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
Brit’s slaying
AN expat in Murcia has been snared in connection with the shooting of a British businessman on the Costa del Sol. The man, based in Murcia, has been charged with the death of Peter Williamson, 39, from Manchester, who was killed outside his Mijas home last November. The gunman and an accomplice picked up in the UK had been lying in wait to ambush him as he pulled up in his English plated Audi after going to the gym. He had been shot seven times, with one bullet entering his heart. Williamson (above)had a history of drug trafficking and was allegedly linked to a smoking club in Fuengirola that was the subject of police interest for the alleged sale of hashish and marihuana. He was also being investigated for his alleged involvement in a plot to send cannabis packages via courier services.
PICKED UP: Gun-loving Robinson and wanted pic dia Civil in Murcia told the Olive Press he had acquired residency using a false name with the initials LWJ. Armed police later tracked Robinson down to another hideout in Albox, Almeria, from where agents cuffed him and sent him to Madrid for extradition on April 27. A spokesperson for Madrid’s High Courts of Justice confirmed Robinson had ‘accepted’ extradition back to the UK and is awaiting transfer. Robinson was described as ‘extremely violent’ and ‘armed’ by police who were acting on a European Arrest Warrant. In 2018, UK police had sent out an appeal describing him as a ‘prolific offender with a history of robbery and burglary offences’ who ‘knew’ police were after him and actively ‘evaded’ capture. Neighbours of Robinson’s bolthole in Llano del Espino said they had ‘no idea’ a fu-
gitive was hiding out in their tiny hamlet, 15 minutes north of Albox. “Suddenly the Guardia Civil turned up with guns and binoculars to stake him out from the other side of the valley,” one neighbour, who asked to remain nameless, told the Olive Press. “We had no idea a wanted criminal was living out here.” Another neighbour said she had ‘never laid eyes on him’ and was ‘shocked’ when the Guardia Civil turned up outside her house. A local Guardia Civil source said Robinson’s trail had been picked up during a random police road block for the coronavirus state of alarm. He is currently awaiting an extradition hearing in Madrid. Did you know Robinson? Or seen him around? Contact newsdesk@theolivepress.es
Phone tragedy! EXCLUSIVE By Joshua Parfitt
THE British Foreign Office (FCO) thought a British holidaymaker suffering dementia on the Costa Blanca was ‘drunk’ and just needed to ‘sober up’, the Olive Press can reveal. A Freedom of Information request concerning the death of British grandfather Philip Pearce, 68, shows the FCO’s emergency contact centre believed he was ‘not vulnerable’ just hours before his death in a ditch in Benidorm. Documents seen by the Olive Press show Spanish cops telephoned a Malaga-based call centre asking for assistance with Philip, who had lost his bearings after going out for ‘cigarettes’. He had been taken to the station around 10pm on September 9, last year, by a concerned British tourist who spotted Philip in a ‘disoriented state’. Police asked a consular contact centre assistant what to do with Philip, who did not speak Spanish, and whether the FCO could figure out where his hotel was. But an internal FCO report reveals Philip, from Bridgwater, in Somerset, told the FCO officer he ‘couldn’t remember where he was staying’. Furthermore, he couldn’t even remember ‘where he lived in the UK’. Making matters worse, it was during the horrific ‘gota fria’ storms, which saw temperature highs of 28 degrees followed by torrential rain-
fall and flooding. As the Olive Press revealed in a front page story in November, Philip was believed to suffer a sudden onset of vascular dementia, perhaps brought on by the weather, and was not well. Yet, incredibly, Benidorm Police let Philip leave the station at 3am on September 10, leading to his son Lee Pearce, 41, to insist the Spanish police had ‘failed’ in their duty to protect him.. “But I think in that phone call the FCO had the power to keep Dad alive,” Lee told the Olive Press this week. An internal email seen by the Olive Press shows clearly that he was not well, with a consular official confirming in the following days that he ‘kept saying he was in England’ and had ‘no clue’ he was in Spain’ during that fateful phone call.
Vulnerable
Despite these signs of senility, a spokesperson for the FCO told the Olive Press they were ‘not made aware that Mr Pearce was vulnerable’. An internal report on Philip, a former joiner, just says ‘Police will hold onto [Philip] until he sobers up’. Philip’s later disappearance made headlines in the UK and Spain, until he was identified in February from a ‘severely decomposed’ corpse found just 2km from the police station. The corpse carried the same amount of money as when Philip was registered in the station, a death certificate
Bar battle arrest A BRITISH ‘cocaine dealer’ has been arrested after a brutal pitched battle at a Costa del Sol bar. Zathon Dale Williams - who is wanted in the UK for various other crimes - was held for his alleged role in the knife fight at Steve’s Bar, in Mijas. Six Brits were cuffed at the British-owned watering hole, in Torrenueva, following the violence, which took place on the first day after lockdown. Over a dozen people were involved in the fight that left one man with his ‘guts hanging out’. Williams, 28, is wanted in the West Midlands for drug offences. The other five Brits arrested are believed to be aged between 25 and 40 and were all released on charges.
Gangland returns
A YOUNG Brit was facing emergency surgery after being shot in the legs four times this week. The 27-year-old was admitted to Costa del Sol hospital where he is believed to be in a stable but serious condition. The Brit was driven to the hospital in the early hours of the morning by a friend who told doctors he had been shot in both of his lower limbs.
Street row
TRAGIC: Philip Pearce revealed. Philip’s son, Lee, told the Olive Press: “It leaves me speechless how a 68-yearold man with clear signs of dementia was let go in the worst storm for 100 years. “You wouldn’t let your own dog out in that weather. “I believe that had the authorities realised my dad was not drunk, but had got dementia, he would still be with us.” A spokesperson for the FCO maintained that Philip was the ‘responsibility’ of the Spanish authorities. “We class a British national as vulnerable if they cannot protect themselves from significant physical or emotional harm, or be protected by others,” he said. “Our Global Response Centre provides emergency support to British nationals globally when embassies and consulates are closed. “Mr Pearce was with the Spanish authorities, who were best placed to provide assistance, and we were not made aware by them that Mr Pearce may be vulnerable.” An FCO spokesperson said staff have access to ‘detailed guidance and training on a wide range of issues, including mental health and mental capacity’. Despite this,
TENSIONS boiled over when locals rowed with a group of 25 people huddled together at a popular bar in Palma during the de-escalation phase. Police were called to separate the two groups who got into a heated row on Calle Sant Magi in Santa Catalina. Locals claimed the drinkers were tightly packed around tables placed outside the establishment without adhering to social distancing rules. Police eventually asked the bar to close down with the local association of Bars, Restaurants and Cafes (CAEB) warning there could be serious repercussions for business owners who don’t adhere to safety measures. The association claims many bars in the centre of Palma acted with ‘ignorance’ by breaching the 50% capacity rule. Palma councillor Alberto Jarabo meanwhile confirmed police have already handed out several fines to establishments which failed to comply with the rules. “Those who think they are above the law will face the consequences,” he said. there are zero guidelines for dementia patients abroad on the FCO’s website. It comes as Philip’s body will be buried in Bridgwater today (May 29), with just a maximum of 10 people due to the coronavirus pandemic. A report from the UK’s Alzheimer’s Society this year also revealed emergency dementia admissions to UK hospitals are up 35% in the last five years.
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Hedonism, drugs and corruption - but the smash hit Ibiza series White Lines is actually mostly filmed in Mallorca, the Olive Press can reveal EXCLUSIVE by Isha Sesay in Cala d’Or
IT is the stunning beachside home that has left millions cooing about the beauty of Ibiza during the lockdown. The sumptuous abode appears regularly in Netflix hit drama White Lines, about a DJ from Manchester who gets mixed up in drug-dealing on the Balearic gem. Except the multi-million hideout is not on the White Isle at all… it’s in Mallorca. Sitting in exclusive Cala d’Or on the south of the island, the four bedroom villa is actually named Can Pirata. Owned by a wealthy Catalan woman, who lives between Madrid and Barcelona, it boasts jaw-dropping views and has direct access to the sea. Renting on Airbnb
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RISING STARS: Zoe (Laura Haddock) and (left) Axel (Tom Rhys)
Photos by Cristian Montoro
Read between the lines
May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
STARRING ROLE: Villa home of DJ Marcus (left) is a TV hit from around €1,200 a night, it also counts on expansive gardens, an outdoor pool and now, the real bragging rights factor. Unsurprisingly, estate agent Montse Serradell from La Calma Rental Homes, who manages the property, has been inundated with requests to rent this summer.“The interest has been huge since the White Lines crew reserved Can Pirata for 20 days in May and June for filming last year,” Serradell told the Olive Press. The show is one of the most popular crime series of the year so far. Penned by Alex Pina, the creator of the highly successful Money Heist, the story revolves around Zoe, as she attempts to find out what happened to her murdered brother whose body has just been found dumped on the mainland in Almeria. Offering a heavy dose of sun and sand in a world of hedonism, drugs and corruption, the 10-part thriller takes viewers on a rollercoaster ride leaving
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RICH: Grosvenor and girlfriend Harriet
many pining for a holiday on the beautiful island. Yet the vast majority was filmed in Mallorca and features the infamous Restaurante Illeta in Andratx, the Son Oliver villa in the Serra de Tramuntana mountains, Tito’s nightclub, in Palma, as well as Michael Douglas' Valldemossa S'Estaca estate where a raucous orgy takes place in the first episode. Although the show has already received much acclaim from critics, it has however upset a proportion of Ibiza residents due its neighbouring island being used for most of the key locations. British expat Gavin Harris who has lived in Ibiza for 15 years believes it has ‘taken advantage of the Ibiza brand but has given nothing back to the island.’ “Yet again people are trying to get rich off our island and not investing anything in return,” he told the Olive Press. “It also hasn’t put Ibiza in a particularly favourable light and is solely centred upon the boring stereotype of sex parties and drugs which for anyone who lives here, knows that is not what our island is all about.” The reason to hop across to Mallorca can be understood however when taking into account the excessively complicated bureaucracy in Ibiza where it is notoriously difficult to obtain licenses to film from local town halls. “Mallorca is a lot more production friendly than Ibiza with a greater pool of specialist crew and way more locations to choose from,” Philip Finnegan, an audio-visual technician based in Ibiza, added. “There are also hundreds of productions shooting all year round in Mallorca and it is known within the industry to be much cheaper.”
Hugh goes huge! A MASSIVE Andalucian estate and a few blocks of central Madrid have helped to catapult the young Duke of Westminster into Britain’s wealthiest top 10. Property mogul Hugh Grosvenor, the 7th Duke of Westminster, has edged his way up the Sunday Times Rich List, thanks to the COVID crisis. The latest edition of this annual wealth parade values the world’s richest 29-year-old at €11.57 billion. It puts him at the 10th richest person on the 2020 list, having been 14th last year. It comes after the Olive Press revealed that the Grosvenor Group has ploughed more than €300 million into Madrid, over the last few years, while the Duke himself owns the sprawling La Garganta hunting estate in Andalucia. He and his family already own more land in Britain than Elizabeth II – 0.22% compared to the Queen’s meagre 0.03%. Unlike many Rich-Listers this year, the group has increased its wealth amid the pandemic.
PROPERTY: Madrid block and Andalucian estate
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Up in the air REGIONAL airline Air Nostrum has revealed that it will resume flights with Pamplona and Valencia from July 1. It has already resumed inter-island flights with its first service launching this week between Mallorca, Ibiza and Menorca. The service comes after a two-month hiatus due to the COVID-19 lockdown. The airline’s president Carlos Bertomeu praised the positive step to ‘return to normality.’ He said: “Without a doubt, this is a significant step towards a return to normality that we all desire.”
May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
Hope on the horizon By Laurence Dollimore
HOTEL searches in Spain soared by around 150% over the weekend fol-
Holiday planning surges as Spain gears up to open for tourism
lowing the news that the country would be reopening tourism from June 22.
According to Spanish travel agency Destinia, the spike occurred between
On with the thong!
Abusive
The Minister of Finance, Maria Jesus Montero, assured that the government will carry out audits on flights to ensure airlines do not implement ‘abusive hikes in prices’. Despite residents benefiting from a 75% discount on travel between the islands and to the peninsula, it was revealed earlier this year that airlines had increased the price of flights by 40% for residents and 7% for non-residents. “We will monitor the prices of flights that are subsidised by the government of Spain to ensure they are respected at all times,” concluded Montero.
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2pm and 7pm on Saturday, just after the weekly appearance by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on TV. The PSOE leader told those in the country to ‘plan their holidays now’, vowing that ‘there will be a tourist season this summer.’ He encouraged hotels to begin preparations to reopen before adding that foreign tourists, too, can plan their holidays from July, a week or so later. The most sought after towns were Benidorm, Salou, Lloret de Mar, Torremolinos, Benalmadena, Gandia, Mojacar and
Puerto de la Cruz. But it wasn’t just beach hotels getting a look in, with rural hotel searches also experiencing a big spike. Director of Destinia Ricardo Fernandez described it as ‘very positive’ news for Spain. “On the one hand, it sends an international message that we want to remain relevant as a favourite destination in the Mediterranean, and on the other, it pleases the general public by letting them know we will have summer and we will be able to travel,” he said.
Back in the ring GET out your bucket and spade and flip flops. It’s time to go back to the beach. But beach-goers are being reminded to keep their distance and adhere to a strict set of rules as they can return to the beaches as part of Phase 2 of Spain’s COVID-19 de-escalation plan. You can now go to the beach as and when you want as long as you follow a variety of different regulations, that vary by town hall. In Palma, you can sunbathe, swim and practice
other sports at any time from Cala Major to Playa de Palma. But you must maintain a two metre distance from others with no more than 15 people congregating in each group. There will be no marks in the sand to ensure social distancing, but there will be informants and a police presence to guarantee the rules are complied with. The use of public showers are strictly prohibited.
SPAIN’S bullfighters are set to return to the ring in August – provided they can get the official go ahead. It comes after key figures met at the Sevilla home of Peruvian-born superstar matador Andres Roca Rey. They were trying to come up with a plan to tackle the crisis which the bullfighting industry has been plunged into by the coronavirus lockdown. Part of the proposals include a drastically reduced capacity at fights, as well as some financial aid from the government to protect the ‘artform’. Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez however, has said he was uncomfortable with classing bullfighting as an art.
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May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
Flagging the flames
PALMA de Mallorca was left at a standstill at the weekend after thousands of people joined a demonstration to protest the government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis. Called upon by far-right party VOX, the mobilisation aimed to highlight the social and economic consequences of the state of alarm. Insisting it was being used to ‘promote a socio-communist agenda’ it certainly got hundreds of cars out on the streets blocking the city. I watched as just before midday on Saturday, thousands of people headed to the capital in their cars and on motorbikes to circulate around the centre of Palma with their vehicles draped in Spanish flags.
Ferry good BALEARIA has re-launched its ferry service linking Denia, on the Costa Blanca, to Ibiza and Mallorca, in the Balearics. The first fast ferry disembarked from Denia for Ibiza last Monday with 183 passengers on board. The company also re-started connections between the Balearic Islands, linking Alcudia in Mallorca with Ciutadella de Menorca, and Ibiza with Palma de Mallorca. It comes as the Balearics moved into phase 2 of Spain’s coronavirus de-escalation, also last Monday. Balearia president Adolf Utor said his company was ‘determined’ to contribute to Spain’s desperate economy.
Pics: Allan Binderup
Anger
Sounding their horns and shouting insults at the government, the significant turnout caused an immense collapse of the roads due to the number of vehicles present. A heavy police presence didn’t impede the protesters who were clearly allowed to simply ‘get on with it’. While the anger was palpable in the air, we did not witness any fines being handed out. Balearic VOX party leader Jorge Campos described it as the ‘largest car rally in the history of the Balearics’ and later insisted his ‘expectations had been exceeded’. The protest had been organised in a bid to shut down the key cities across Spain, asking that citizens demonstrated in their cars to protest against the government’s management of
Thousands shut down Palma de Mallorca in protest organised by VOX against government’s handling of COVID-19 crisis, writes Isha Sesay
the coronavirus crisis and to ask for the Prime Minister’s resignation. There were large protests in Madrid, Sevilla, while smaller ones took place in Barcelona, Malaga and Valencia. It came out of the so-called
‘casserole protests’ that have been spontaneously erupting around Spain over the last month. It is reported that VOX party leader Santiago Abascal had obtained authorisation to organise the protest, with the exclusion of four provinces in
Catalunya and Castille y Leon. Vox has consistently claimed that these mobilisations were ‘spontaneous’ and a response from citizens who were ‘fed up with the government,’ and that they had the full support of the party.
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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 Cracks in care ALZHEIMER’S and dementia have become the UK’s biggest killers in recent years. It’s a disease that, with no known cure, and tragically far too common, doesn’t always make newspaper headlines. But in the same way that more than half of COVID-19 deaths in Spain have been in care homes, the death of Philip Pearce must be a symbol of the need for dementia awareness. Neither Police in Benidorm nor the UK’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) recognised the grave vulnerability Philip was facing. Nor did his family, who told this newspaper Philip, 68, worked at a joinery right up until his trip to Benidorm and only had a mild spell of ‘memory loss’ back in 2018. In a story that saw a six month search and today a tiny coronavirus-controlled burial far from the family’s preferred church, blaming someone might help the grief. But, if anything, it’s the way this disease slips through the cracks that must face the biggest blame. Closing all those cracks is the only way to prevent another disaster in memory-making Spain. At present, there is no science linking onsets of vascular dementia with a holiday in the hot sun, but this is at least the second time in six months a British holidaymaker has gone missing with dementia in Benidorm and the FCO can play a massive role in stopping it.
Pot calling kettle The protesters on the streets of many cities this week have a very valid point. But the way their anger has been hijacked by the far right party Vox is nothing short of shameless. Until the weekend, the so-called pot-bashing ‘casserole protests’ were an outpouring of anger at the country’s draconian clampdown that even stopped residents from leaving their homes for exercise for six weeks and led to a million fines. While they were initially spontaneous, a police investigation found, they have been turned into a political rant at the left wing government. Whatever your leanings the government needs to be questioned over its extreme lockdown measures, but it shouldn’t be used as a political tool by the shady far-right.
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FEATURE Photos by Allan Binderup
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A pot of
The COVID-19 pandemic has placed an easy target on the Spanish government’s back, and the opposition is in full attack mode with its ‘casserole-bashing’
I
T’S all getting a little bit tense in Spain. Large numbers of cars, driven (presumably) by right wing voters, clogged up a number of cities on Saturday calling for Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to resign and a ‘government of national unity’ to take control. They arrived in their thousands in Sevilla, hundreds in Malaga, Palma and Valencia, and supposedly tens of thousands in the capital Madrid. Flying Spanish flags and honking their horns, they drove around demanding a drastic change in the way things have been run for the last few months, and demanding the PM and his coalition partner Pablo Iglesias, of Podemos, step down. The new ‘unity’ government would be made up by three main parties: PSOE, the Partido Popular (PP) and Vox, with the PP and Vox effectively running things, even though voters in the last elections chose otherwise (albeit by a small margin). The pandemic and the lockdown are the key reasons behind the current protests, well, apart from the fact that no one likes their party losing an election. It all started reasonably enough – with city dwellers going out on to their terraces each evening at 8pm to applaud the stretched
HONKING: Demonstrators in their cars hospital staff, who have worked long hours in considerable danger to save many thousands of lives. Country Spaniards and most expats (if we can divide society into two for a moment) haven’t been as cooped up and were able to spend their time outside - picking the flowers, feeding the chickens and wondering at the strange antics of the townies. The appreciative city-folk appeared to be saying ‘Gosh, nurses and doctors are more important for our safety than pop stars, actors and footballers’. Perhaps, indeed, they always were. After a while though, people got a bit bored of the 8pm clapping, and took to singing or playing music from their terraces. And it was only a small step before some of those who
My thoughts by Lenox Napier
had voted for the opposition parties thought they could start bashing saucepans as a political protest instead. Everyone likes a spot of noise before dinner. They weren’t really in favour of a particular plan, but to let the rest of us know that they weren’t ‘socio-comunistas’. Saucepan bashing, with a stick or something which makes a satisfying ‘clank’, is an import from Argentina and is known both there and here as ‘una cacerolada’. The new government, which only took office on January 13, has been faced with an emergency that no one had any experience in handling. Rather than protecting the economy, as a conservative government might have done – they erred on the side of caution and, under the advice of epidemiologists and other medical experts, they went with the lockdown strategy. And after a short while the old right and left wing divides in Spain started to appear again. Some media commentators claimed that the 40 years of democracy after the Franco dictatorship have failed to dismantle the power of the negative Spain – that of the young wealthy gentlemen, the cardboard-generals and ‘the retrograde cardinals’. And of course the bishops have their own radio, COPE, and even a TV channel, Canal 13. They also have the tacit support of a number of conservative daily newspapers: La Razon and ABC among them.
That’s a fine mess! After it emerges Spain’s police issued 1 MILLION sanctions during the lockdown more than three times Italy and 100 times the UK - the Olive Press looks at who’s on the right side of fine. By Joshua Parfitt
I
T will come as no surprise to anyone who lives here that Spain leads the European league table in police fines during the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, the country’s administrative penalties broke the ONE MILLION barrier since March 14 when the nation went into a state of alarm. It is trailed by Italy with 310,323, and Romania, with just over 300,000 – until a Romanian court ruled the majority
of lockdown fines were ‘unconstitutional’ as they had no yardstick. Germany and Portugal had very few, while UK police have, so far, only issued just over 14,000 fines to people breaking the lockdown restrictions. Without a doubt, this makes Spanish police the most draconian and over-zealous of all law enforcement organisations in Europe. When you get fined €600 for walking your dog just 150m from your house AN expat in the middle of nowhere, €1000 for in Torre del Mar, in the walking too slowly, or €800 for stopAxarquia, ping to chat to a neighbour on the was fined way back from the supermarket, it is €600 for takunderstandable there has been a lot of ing his dog for a walk outrage. The application of the law has just over been entirely varied though, between 150m from utter leniency to ridiculous behaviour his home. by local police, who are normally not Apparently taking your meant to do much more than watch dog for a the parks and deliver legal letters. ride in a We have had dozens of reports of our convertible is readers being unfairly fined or treated during the lockdown. One Olive Press reporter meanwhile, zz MADRID police declined to fine a couple caught having sex in a was threatened with a fine for arguing car because they ‘couldn’t find intimacy’ at home. Policia Local that he could not do his job at home located the couple in a parked car ‘in full view’ on a street in watching the TV and from the internet. Villaverde, but the couple complained there were ‘too many The same police force, the Guardia people’ in their house. Police let them go, after asking them to Civil, in Gaucin, in Andalucia, enforced dress a print media blackout, by stopping its local petrol station from picking up zz A SHAME-faced man in Motril was fined €650 after he was newspapers on the coast, just 20 minfound guilty of going to the shops unnecessarily when police utes away, for OVER a month! found a stale loaf of bread in a plastic bag on the front seat and nothing else Now, as Spain struggles through its disparate de-escalation from the coro-
THE FINER POINTS
7
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I TORN RIGHT: Protestors aiming to change government It is argued that the current outpouring of anger is nothing more than a ‘Revolution of the Rich’ led from the smartest neighbourhood of Madrid, Barrio Salamanca, where the saucepans were being most enthusiastically bashed over the weekend. Said to be waving ‘their hammer and golf-club’ banners, the leftist eldiario.es writes: “What’s happening with the revolution of the rich has nothing to do with the ravages of the pandemic, or the devastation of the economy, or the temporary lack of freedom; what is happening is a manifestation, however freaky, of the struggle of the young gentlemen to hold on to power.” A more cynical version comes from Meneame, which coined it as the ‘Cayetano revolution’ (this
being one of Spain’s poshest names, similar to say Quentin, in the UK). The website said the uprising ‘consists of a group of people who live in the most expensive neighbourhood in this country and who have never come out to demonstrate until they have had their vacations in Bali or Formentera cancelled’. It continued: “Dozens of Cayetanos are demonstrating without keeping the required social distance, endangering their lives and that of their families, and inevitably that of the health workers who will soon have to care for them.” Let’s not forget, after all, that anyone can fall sick from the virus (our Eton-attending Boris
did after all), and the lockdown is only a partial solution to the current COVID problem. However, it’s more comfortable in a large apartment than a small one, or, for some poor folk, stuck for months in a car or a shack. The economist Marta Flich reminds us that ‘the virus has no ideological preference’. I couldn’t help but spot a sad video-clip on social media of a woman rooting through a dustbin as the flag-wearing ‘militants’ passed her by ignoring her completely. Another clip showed a fellow in the back-seat of his chauffeur-driven convertible slowly nosing through the brightly dressed crowd while howling ‘resign, resign!’... A man of few words. A meme from the left says: “Why bang an empty saucepan when you can fill it with stew and give it to your neighbour?” Can one protest against the government without wearing a Spanish flag as a cloak? The point is, the Government is seen as a mixture of the wrong kind of socialists plus the Venezuelan influenced extremists of the extreme left (Podemos to you and me), plus the nationalists, which in Spanish terms are the anti-nationalists – the boyos from Catalunya and the Basque Country.
‘Traitor’
HELD UP: A bicycle courier stopped by a police patrol while working in Barcelona
zz THE Guardia Civil in Alicante created an unauthorised list of 26 foodstuffs, 16 other products and 12 services that justified someone leaving the house back in early April. The list led to the fining of a man in Elche who told police he was going to the supermarket to buy ‘Nocilla’ – a chocolate-hazlenut spread – and this was written on the police report. Spain’s Minister of the Interior later retracted this fine and prohibited agents from using a list z z AN Elche man was sent to prison in April after receiving 47 police fines during the coronavirus state of alarm. The man was said to have ‘all kinds of addictions’ and suffered from an inability to lie successfully. On one occasion he told agents he was going to a town in the opposite direction to where he was walking; on another he told agents he was ‘walking his dog’, but had accidentally left it at home z z A POLICE officer was spotted ‘punching’ a young man carrying beer on a street in Spain last April. “A beer is not a primary need, stop taking the piss,” an officer was heard shouting in a video that went viral alongside condemnation of police brutality. Reports later revealed the boy was carrying a weapon in his belt, which he tried to withdraw after police asked him to empty his pockets. z z A MAN was investigated for serious disobedience after videos online showed him dancing ‘Sevillanas’ dressed as a woman in sunglasses. The Alicante man wanted to honour Sevilla’s Feria de Abril, but police traced him via social media and hit him with a fine of €601. zz A SERIES of brazen penitents were fined after being caught enacting a Semana Santa parade in Utrera, near Sevilla
Then there’s the republicans, who don’t like the royal family and have their own flag. That’s why we wear a Spanish flag, they say, because the others, the 51%, are traitors. All good clean fun perhaps, and worth a few column inches. The ultras are on the warpath. Yawn. But they are good at manipulation… and Facebook and Twitter are full of their propaganda. As Donald Trump or Cambridge Analytica can tell you, the point is to be read. And seen. And heard. Truth is in the eye of the beholder, and fake news often works better than the real thing. So we come to Saturday’s protest. A clever idea to make it a demonstration with cars (poor people don’t own cars). Some 6,000 cars and motorcycles, bedecked with flags of course, jammed the centre of Madrid. The leaders of Vox were conveniently on their stage, at the symbolic Plaza de Colon: Columbus Square. “We want to bring down the traitor Pedro Sanchez and imprison him for crimes against the Spanish people,” shouted Santiago Abascal, the leader of the far right party, wearing a nifty lapel pin of half Spanish colours, half black mourning. The leader of the larger PP is now struggling for space on the political perch. Pablo Casado is trying to woo the far-right voters back to his colours with, as one left-leaning newspaper calls it, ‘his total war against the Government’. Whether the Government, evidently inexperienced in matters of pandemics, has done or is doing a good job is irrelevant. They will be judged once it’s all over. Right now, they are facing two dangerous enemies: the virus and the opposition, both set on scoring maximum damage. The fact is that the conservatives are winning the war at the moment – and Spain most certainly does not need a second open conflict.
Scraping the barrel
N early April a report in a rival newspaper insisted it was ‘pressing times’ for the Olive Press and it was ‘mourning’ our demise. In its poisonous fake news rant, the downmarket ‘scraping’ media group, criticised us for launching a donation page on our website to help pay for the 20-plus journalists and writers who produce it. Well, we clearly haven’t vanished...and to use a famous phrase from Mark Twain ‘reports of my (our) demise have been greatly exaggerated’. Indeed, as we start easing out of lockdown, the Olive Press is waving the flag for our brave, vibrant and innovative expatriate community. Be they British, Scandinavian - or even German! - we are helping them to nurture their businesses back to health, by offering competitive advertising packages utilising our website with millions of visitors a month and our FIVE regional newspapers that go from strength to strength. Yes, the lockdown has been hard for us, like every other media group around the globe… and yes, we did launch a donations page on our website. But this has had a great response with an amazing 300plus donors generously giving significant amounts to allow our journalists to get out and about as far and wide as Salamanca and Barcelona during the lockdown. So cheap attacks by jealous rivals are anything but helpful.
Unbelievable To put you in the picture, our media rival claims to have had 10 million hits on its website in April and fast approaching 20 million in May. It also crows that it is the ‘42nd best website in the UK’, putting it two places behind the Daily Mail and in front of the Telegraph, Mirror and Times. And, of course, this is not the case. But do you know why? Well, it is because, in the words of a UK media lawyer, they are a classic ‘scraping’ site that simply hoovers up stories from other newspapers and presents them as their own often just minutes after they are published by the original site. But worse than that they fail to credit the source and also often use identical headlines, introductions and even captions. It is called plagiarism as we can see clearly from the Times, as an example, this week. But tragically, it is not just the paper’s stories that are stolen… it is even its very own opinions. Take last week’s ‘Our View’ (left) which lifted entire paragraphs from the Guardian newspaper.
People’s paper But then, what would you expect from the so-called ‘people’s paper’ that doesn’t even know the year it was born. Why, for example celebrate its 21st birthday, last month, with a big fanfare, when Wikipedia states the paper’s first issue was in April 2002, making it 18?. And to make matters worse its boss announced his 23rd work anniversary with the paper, just last week, on Facebook. That would be FIVE years before it even launched. When it comes to figures, will anyone ever believe anything it ever writes or says again? As they say, people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.
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Spain issues a ‘go-electric’ order with plan for a ban on petrol cars and coal
The Media Group on the move!
By Laurence Dollimore
Office wizard some g for a sorcerer to weave The Olive Press is lookin expand again into new regions. we magic in its head office as ceful and become the glue in the young
our You’ll be energetic and res Personable and bi-lingual you will have a m. tea ing and exp idly literate. rap and iable and naturally computer good phone manner, be soc
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The Olive Press also needs reliable, quick and talented graphic designers for its office in Sabinillas. You’ll have a great eye for detail, plenty of job experience and a good record for turning up on time and working to deadlines
SPAIN will ban the sale of all new petrol and diesel cars from 2040. The measure is part of a draft climate change action plan, which aims to make Spain’s electricity system 100% renewable by the middle of the century. The proposal, which needs to be passed by parliament, aims to make the country carbon neutral by 2050. Immediate action would also see all new coal, oil and gas extraction projects abandoned. Direct subsidies on the fossil fuel trade will be ended and all new vehicles made emis-
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LAST, but definitely not least.. we also need wordsmiths too... can you turn a phrase and/or turn up on a doorstep on time? We are looking for qualified, hard-working hacks and writers around the whole of Spain
If you think you have what it takes to help the Olive Press expand to the next level, please get in touch at accounts@ theolivepress.es at the first instance, sending your CV and a covering letter. These jobs could be part time or full time and will suit either man or woman of any age or colour
MALLORCA
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Vol. 4 Issue 80 www.theolivepress.es May 15th - May 28th, 2020
THE MAN WHO BEAT COVID TWICE
GIFTED: Trevor and Pauline are fighting on LEAVERS: Trio of Brits in Spain
An expat from Alicante has proven you can catch coronavirus a second time... and still survive
Every cloud
Find out how on P5
DISASTER TOUGH AS OLD BOOTS: Ian Tanner
Down the pecking order
has twice been diagnosed but cheated
death
The likely cancelation of summer holidays for Brits in Spain will ‘catastrophic’ for the Balearics be
THE European Union is making a desperate bid to salvage the holiday season for Spain. By Laurence Dollimore and It comes after Brits were warned Isha Sasay abroad this summer are ‘very likely’ that holidays to be cancelled. The move has been received with Health Secretary Matt Hancock broke asthe potential- tonishment ly devastating news for Spain the tourism by those working within sector in Mallorca, with during an appearance on ITV’s hoteliers and business associations This Morning on Tuesday. publicly criticising the decision. AN emu has become the latest “We haven’t made a final de- The president of the Business Assovictim of coronavirus. cision... but it is unlikely that ciation of Balearic Travel Agencies The flightless bird in Verdegas, big, lavish international holi- (AVIBA), Alicante, has been left homedays are going to be possible the movesFrancesc Mulet, described as ‘completely wrong’, less after its owner died of COfor this summer,” he told hosts claiming that the quarantine period VID-19. Holly Willoughby and Philip would ‘completely destroy the BaleIt was part of a menagerie of Schofield. aric economy.’ animals, which also included27 The move, if confirmed, would “Health a llama – since re-homed in Barbe a huge blow for the Spanish applied protocols should instead be celona – that were left abantourism industry, and more so This wasat airports,” he insisted. doned. for Mallorca and the Balearic Labour, echoed by the Minister for Commerce and Tourism, A concerned local called in Islands as a whole, a region Iago Negueruela, El who stressed the Refugio del Burrito donkey which is heavily reliant on the need to implement a health passsanctuary in Cordoba, which hundreds of thousands British port. has been sending supplies tourists who visit every sum- This would for monitor variables such the animals to be fed. mer. as the temperature of visitors, thus When it comes to being Some 12% of the country’s giving the rehomed, the emu has been left GDP is from tourism, while in sess the authorities a way to ashealth of those arriving to firmly down the pecking order. Mallorca it generated 14.6% of the islands. Nicky Cohen, from the refuge the region’s GDP in 2019. However, said: “The problem is that you According to the president of hope for there is still a glimmer of need a special zoological the Government of the Balear- nounced tourism after Ryanair anlithat it would restart apcence to own an emu. ic Islands, Francina Armengol, proximatey 40% of its flights across “If there is anyone who does the autonomous community Europe from July 1. have the right papers, will suffer the most, foreseewe would love to hear from them.” FREEDOM: Palma residents finally ing a 30% drop in earnings this get to enjoy a drink on a restaurant teryear. race as Mallorca enters Phase 1. Positive See full story on page 6/7 Largely attributed to a loss of tour- In more positive news for Mallorca, ists, if the prediction rings true, the the airline also revealed that it inBalearic economy will shrink three tends to commence its first routes to times more than the rest of Spain. Palma’s Son Sant Joan airport from The revelation by Hancock came the end of June. just hours after the central govern- Flying out of 80 bases, their destiment announced a mandatory 14- nations and the probability of them day quarantine for all international filling up will depend on agreements UK BASED travellers arriving from May 15 between countries. same measure announced by the the The UK has already UK confirmed, for on Monday. example, that quarantine measures This would mean that tourists would will not apply to those travelling have to stay inside their accommo- from France or Ireland and there dation for two weeks, before having will be considerable lobbying by the for Spanish to quarantine once again when ar- Spanish tourism industry and airriving back to the UK. lines over the next few weeks. residents “It will most likely continue This week, the European Union throughout the de-escalation www.globelink.co.uk confirmed it would do everything peit riod,” confirmed Health Minister could to help. Salvador Illa. It proposes a phased approach For those without second homes across the European Union that and who don’t plan on staying 96 626 5000 for sweeps away closed borders and months at a time, it makes a holiday travel restrictions. +44 (0) 1353 699082 to Spain practically impossible in The Commission said it is looking to the short term.
At least you can do this at last..
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ON THE HUNT OF THE NAZI GOLD a Nazi U-boat base in the Hot on the heels of our dispatch onGold Trail to Madrid and, Canaries, we investigate the Nazi light on a shady chapter in allegedly Gibraltar, shedding new See Page 10 history that has never been fully resolved.
Unlock the Rock! by the public through social media and broadcasting. PHASE FOUR
By Diexter Thomas
on The fourth phase is set to start June 16 and will see people finally able to go to bars and cafeterias. to These establishments will need get a permit, much like the opening of restaurants in phase three. Picardo said he expected the bathing on beaches to be allowed by midof June, depending on the progress March. the virus. The ‘Unlock the Rock’ plan was un“I want to be clear that our ambiveiled on Tuesday, and will consist tion will be to see a normal bathing of four main phases, with two reseason with normal beach going,” view stages to see if there has been Picardo revealed. any increase in cases. “We do not want to see any restricThe ‘Rock Unlocked’ phase could on our ability to whatsoever tions 1, August be in full effect from attend beaches, but this will require with over 500 emergency beds still common sense from the public. available in case of a relapse. “You will have to pitch your tents Gibraltar is currently undergoing further away from each other than the first phase of the strategy, with we are used to. the second phase set to start on “We will not be able to crowd May 21. around the shore and the best spots esThe second phase will see free as we each like to do, this will be muwith re-established movement sential.” seums, exhibitions and galleries opening again. Bathing But it is not good news for everyone. He warned that if there was a spike Chief Minister Fabian Picardo inin active COVID-19 cases, the Govto sisted that people with a BMI of 30 ernment would reserve the right or or above, who are older than 70 ‘re-impose restrictions.’ have a weak or compromised im“We are considering making Europa mune system - are recommended pool in the bathing pavilion at NASA the Rock to be completely open must adhere to the rules for to stay at home as much as possible. exclusively available to our elderly DAWN: Locals can go out but “This will take effect from the 21st NEW app will start to kick citizens. without long 60 day hia- contact tracing bathe a to after them list mobile allow of this month if things are progresswill waiting sites people’s “It into force, using in Some schools, construction members of ing well, and we see no increase phones to alert them if they come mixing with younger gyms could also see a return in tus. added the Chief infection rates,” explained Picardo. and 2, with the latter ‘subject to into contact with someone with the community,” “We will continue to have rules Phasecontrols’. PHASE THREE Minister. COVID-19. five and six will about large gatherings so the law strict health services will restart This is also the phase where people Finally, phases third phase is set to take place will be able to eat at restaurants, serve as phases for reviewing those will still restrict the constitutional Many screening for patients on the GHA’s The and gyms from June 1 freedom of association.” be limited to a 50% occu- restaurants, cafes, bars and will see which will only if they have a permit that continue to remain closed. religious ser- pancy, but has gone well, everything Health. of “Assuming Department the taking from then we vices Road will partially be which is a big assumption, place ‘under Line Wall Chatham Counterguard will move to ‘Rock Unlocked’ - phase very strict dis- closed and off as part of previ- ‘new normal’ as we head into the autancing con- will be shut the ous announcements to reduce air tumn,” said Picardo when we must trols’. “That is the moment traffic to help with The Govern- amount of be most alert of how things progown quality. ment’s UK BASED Public transport will be ress.” and coming with bus routes It is around then that weddings normal atseeing new timetables for funerals will have almost tendance figures returned. passengers and drivers. Theatre performances will take place behind closed Opinion Page 6 doors, but will be viewed
FREE movement will be allowed in Gibraltar from May 21 - with the lockdown to be ended in August. The Chief Minister announced the proposed ending of COVID-19 restrictions on the Rock after steering clear of a serious pandemic in since the first case was recorded
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May 14th - May 27th 2020
THE MAN WHO BEAT COVID TWICE An expat from Alicante has proven you can catch coronavirus a second time... and still survive
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DISASTER TOUGH AS OLD BOOTS: Ian Tanner
THE European Union is making desperate bid to salvage the holidaya season for the costas. It comes after Brits were warned that holidays abroad this summer are ‘very likely’ to be cancelled. Health Secretary Matt Hancock broke the potentially devastating news for Spain during an appearance on ITV’s This Morning on Tuesday.
By Laurence Dollimore and Joshua Parfitt
“We haven’t made a final decision... but it is unlikely that big, lavish ternational holidays are going to inbe possible for this summer,” he told hosts Holly Willoughby and Philip Schofield. The move, if confirmed, would be a
AN emu has become the latest victim of coronavirus. The flightless bird in Verdegas, Alicante, has been left homeless after its owner died of COVID-19. It was part of a menagerie of animals, which also included27 a llama – since re-homed in Barcelona – that were left abandoned. A concerned local called in El Refugio del Burrito donkey sanctuary in Cordoba, which has been sending supplies for the animals to be fed. When it comes to being rehomed, the emu has been left firmly down the pecking order. Nicky Cohen, from the refuge said: “The problem is that you need a special zoological licence to own an emu. “If there is anyone who does have the right papers, we would love to hear from them.” FREEDOM: Palma residents finally terrace as Mallorca enters Phase get to enjoy a drink on a restaurant 1
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SALES & RENTALS SPECIALISTS Moriara•Calpe•Jalon•Javea•Denia•Altea
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death
Expats describe the likely cancelation of the summer holidays for Brits in Spain as ‘catastrophic’
huge blow for the Spanish tourism in- “To have to wait four dustry, with the costas heavily reliant fallow months on the tens of millions of British tour- and then have the summer taken away from you… it’s catastrophic.” ists who visit every summer. He added: “A number of entertainers Some 12% of the country’s GDP is may be forced to go home, from tourism, while in the Comunidad though I do Valenciana it is the biggest employer, believe it’s a question of staying strong generating 14.6% of the region’s GDP. in body and mind. When it does open up, Benidorm will be ready like a ragThe revelation by Hancock came just ing bull.” hours after Spain announced a mandatory 14-day quarantine for all inter- There is still a glimmer of hope for national travellers arriving from May tourism, with Ryanair announcing that it would be restarting around 15 - the same measure announced by 40% of its flights across the UK on Monday. Europe from It would mean tourists having to stay July 1. Flying out of 80 bases, their destiinside their accommodation for two nations and the probability weeks, before having to quarantine of them filling up will depend on agreements once again when arriving back to the between countries. UK. “It will most likely continue through- The UK has already confirmed, for out the de-escalation period,” con- example, that quarantine measures firmed Health Minister Salvador Illa. will not apply to those travelling from France or Ireland and there will This could run into July. be For those without second homes and considerable lobbying by the Spanish tourism industry and airlines over who don’t plan on staying for months the at a time, it makes a holiday to Spain next few weeks. practically impossible in the short term. Flexible The moves were described as a ‘disas- Last night the European Union conter’ by the Costa Blanca’s leading hotel firmed it would do everything it could association, Hosbec. to help “If the quarantine is still in place in It proposes a phased approach across July and August, we can wave goodthe European Union that sweeps away bye to any hopes of British tourists closed returning this summer,” its president, The borders and travel restrictions. Commission said is looking to Toni Mayor, said. give people the ability, confidence and “For places like Benidorm that safety pend so heavily on UK tourists,de- “Free to travel again. it movement and cross-border would be a disaster.” travel are key to tourism,” insisted He added: “I don’t see international spokesman. a flights to Spain resuming until July at But he warned: “This approach must the earliest. It’s a body blow.” also Local expats are certainly in agree- bilitybe flexible, including the possito reintroduce certain measures ment. if the epidemiological situation reFormer West End star and leading quires.” Benidorm entertainer Jamie Somers, Germany is now studying an agreesaid he’s already seen ‘thousands in ment with Mallorca, while a corridor losses’ and won’t make a penny until is already set to open up between ‘July or August’. Czech Republic and Croatia, takingthe in The singer, who performs 14 times Austria and Germany. week in the summer, added: “Whata Whatever happens, it will be a maspeople tend to forget, is most in the sive blow for Spain if the usual British entertainment game live hand-toinflux does not happen in July and mouth from November until the season picks up. Continues
Photo by Allan Binderup
Down the pecking order
has twice been diagnosed but cheated
on Page 5
sion free by 2040. The aim is to reach the goal of reducing emissions by 23% from 1990 levels over the course of the next 10 years. The country also aims to see
POLLUTION in Spain decreased by a third in April, one of the highest drops in the world. Carbon Dioxide emissions dropped by an enormous 32% compared with 26% globally. “Emissions fell on average between 20% and 30% in most countries,” said Joeri Rogel, at Imperial College London. During the first days of April, pollution levels fell to lows that hadn’t been seen since 2006. And some 17 million fewer tonnes were released into the atmosphere on April 7 alone, compared to the same day in 2019. However, experts still do not believe it’s significant enough to make a difference to the atmosphere in the long-term. “It won’t make any significant difference in the long-term”, added Rogel, who believes that there will be a rebound with an even greater emissions trajectory, once we emerge from the crisis.
Mallorca Issue 80
After three months of hard work we opened our gift shop in Puerto de la Duquesa. political as a from essentia our cusEU,with sees the praise muchlly, Moore Rose l start a wonderfu We had The ser7). pg 325, Issue needed proud, much and and ent (Leave hip environm dictators lovely the for tomers reality vice. is the opposite. There are 28 sovereign states, due to the to become to close chose 13, welyhad voluntari March which UK,on later, Four daysthe including lockdownd.. Steve Dunne believes that the UK would associate hadtogot so who wifeso.Pauline going for myNot I’m not shockterms. quite It was onaWTO better fair and chapter quoting by excited. page letters your down weigh be working. and it seemed her idea looks into the It was but nd that toSteve I recomme verse, a gift horse lookTrump going toThat pun, we were the industry Still, forgive he knows. that not of any specifics shop too. an online about we set the mouth, UK should an EU-free withcreating deal to get asotrade isintrying friends and up with family catch Trump’s timetotoknow: the used also We deals trade want you all you tell friends Legionfor Britishspeaks Royal my and cing conferen video by Mahler Brent labels. Finally, have US-first zooming. wary of an EU armed force met through of UK citizens number aAlso e. has been most supportiv our landlord ideas arethe However closer evernot an it’s and fact that gifted by we are, these easy, but beenunion. So yes I am from policy. EUgreat not and specific people byremained floated support had and virus-free we have insidious atinthe worriedity more . 40-plus years of proSabinillas the commun h, the by the EEC/EU the job despite against great Telegrap a Mail, paganda done have Spanish the think We did What Sun. The course, of and, Times Express, difficult time. so antihe waseach day and asked why he was sanitised say when the streets Murdoch to see We feel lucky into I gocontrol. “When under lines of:things thekeeping along police EU? clean andg the keptSomethin No. 10 they do what I say: when I go to the EU.” The he had to ask for an appointment! implication is that Trevor and Pauline Andrews, Puerto de la Duquesa
A GANG who exploited baby eels to sell to China has been shut down. A total of 16 illegal fishermen that snared the fish in the River Guadalquivir and sent them live to Asia have been arrested. The elvers, as they are known, are a highly lucrative catch, especially on the Asian blackmarket. Criminal gangs made millions smuggling the stilllive creatures by air to sell in China. Fishermen have to use nets with a mesh of just 1mm to catch the glass eels that fetch the highest price. They scoop up all aquatic wildlife along with the elvers, causing untold damage to the ecosystem. During Operation Ave Fenix, the Guardia Civil seized 16 sets of specialised fishing rigs.
Off the roads! renewable energy account for between 32% and 42% of total energy consumption by 2030. To hit this target clean energy sources will have to make up at least 70% of the electricity mix by the end of the decade. Efficiency measures will also be brought in to reduce energy consumption by 35% over the course of the plan. This would be done mainly through renovating and improving homes and commercial premises. The Pedro Sanchez-led government claimed that the plan could generate €200 billion in new investment in the next decade and create up to 350,000 new jobs. It also forecast that these carbon-cutting measures would boost the country’s economic growth by 1.8% by 2030 compared with business as usual.
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What a bummer Readers react to a Spanish sexpert warning against ‘rimming’ and French kissing as Spain emerges from lockdown (Dog days aren’t over, Issue 14, pg 16)
Ignorance is bliss I thought I knew a bit about this, but what the heck is ‘trimming’? No don't tell me – I'm too old at 76 years! Pauline Laverick, Torrevieja
Worth the wait That’s the funniest article I’ve seen during the whole lockdown. It’s almost been worth being inside all this time just to read this! Hilarious. Thank you Olive Press. Sharon Dolman, Malaga
Help me, Google! OMG, I actually spat my tea out! I confess, I had to Google ‘rimming’. Jane Burgess, Marbella
Light relief The best article I’ve read in a long time.
Kelly Ainsworth, Blackburn
Has anything piqued your interest in this week’s Olive Press? Have your say on the matter by emailing letters@ theolivepress.es or message us on at www.facebook.com/OlivePressNewspaper or Twitter @olivepress
EELS: smuggled in case
Keep it up! Dear Olive Press, I just wanted to say how much I love the paper and would like to thank you for your informative articles during the crisis. I enclose a €20 donation in cash, as I don’t use all this PayPal malarkey. Keep up the good work!
Brian Snell, San Fulgencio
Misunderstanding I read in your paper some criticism of a vet who thought it wise to put a cat to sleep (Claws out, Issue 14, pg 2). I would like to say the Butibamba vet is one of the very best on the coast. I suggest that the owner was very stressed and hysterical, hence there was a row between her and the vet. I had two dogs in his care. He was recommended to me and I have been a client of his for six years. Unfortunately I was not a witness to the incident but know him to be highly intelligent, gentle and very caring. I can’t believe it is in his nature to be aggressive at all and can only think that the woman concerned was in a highly emotional state and provoked him in her grief.
Nina Jones, Mijas
Bones, a testimony to pain THE medieval inhabitants of Muslim Granada suffered from terrible teeth, bad backs and painful joints, scientists have concluded after the remarkable discovery of 40 ancient tombs. Archaeologists uncovered the graves in a suburb of the city, which was the last stronghold of the Nasrid dynasty whose greatest monument is the Alhambra Palace. Nine specialists from the University of Granada and the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), analysed the skeletons of 40 males and females ranging from newborns to 60-year-olds.
LA CULTURA
Making a killing Smash BBC TV drama is based on one of Spain’s most evil female terrorists
By Laurence Dollimore
Hard labour
They had been uncovered during excavations in the city’s ancient San Lazaro neighbourhood. They found that the inhabitants of Middle Ages Granada were relatively small - on average 163.28cm (5ft 3”) for men and 157.95cm (5ft 1”) for women. The experts concluded that the people analysed had led lives of hard physical labour, shown by evidence of inflammatory diseases to their joints and bones. Many were afflicted with painful arthritis in their spines, fingers and feet. Poor dental hygiene meant they also suffered cavities, loss of teeth and tartar build-up. However, infectious diseases were practically non-existent, at least in the bodies most recently discovered. This surprised the analysts as they knew that the Black Death, or plague, wiped out a third of Granada’s population between 1348 and 1349, when it was still under Nasrid rule. It had been assumed infections were widespread. It was the last of the Muslim dynasties in Spain, founded by Muhammad ibn al-Ahmar in Granada, and it endured for two-and-a-half centuries from 1238 to 1492.
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Song and dance THE Granada International Festival of Music and Dance will launch on June 25, despite the crisis, it has been announced. The 69th edition of the festival will be held ‘against all the odds’, the first such event to take place in Spain and in Europe. It is going ahead, assuming Granada has entered Phase 3. It will open in Granada Cathedral with the city’s orchestra and choir, under the direction of Andrea Marcon, performing Mozart’s Requiem to raise money for the Food Bank of Granada. On July 9, the Festival’s Medal will be awarded to the Spanish healthcare system. All shows are only permitted to have audience numbers at 50% capacity and cannot exceed 800 people.
ROLE MODEL: Comer’s character is based on killer Idoia Lopez Riano (left)
A RUTHLESS Spanish terrorist has been revealed as the subject matter behind one of the UK’s biggest TV hits of the last few years. Former ETA killer Idoia Lopez Riano - aka La Tigresa - was the inspiration behind Villanelle, the psychopath viewers just can’t get enough of. Played by Jodie Comer in the hit BBC series Killing Eve, she’s the cold-hearted killer for hire with an eye for fashion - and herself. Incredibly vain, but equally brutal and lacking in any empathy, the Russian mercenary embarks on a cat-and-mouse game-cum-love affair with an MI6 officer played by Sandra Oh. But in the real world, the assassin who inspired the multi-lingual Villanelle is the former terrorist who was found guilty of killing 23 soldiers and policemen - and rumoured to be behind many more. Luke Jennings, who wrote the novels behind the series, revealed that Comer’s character was actually based on Riaño, the infamous Basque separatist hitwoman, who was behind some of the worst bombings Spain has ever witnessed. Jennings revealed how he first came up with Villanelle while reading about Riaño, who was behind the death of 12 young policemen from one car bomb in Madrid alone in 1986.
She was allegedly so evil she would seduce off duty Guardia Civil officers in bars in Bilbao and San Sebastian to later extract key sensitive information during pillow talk. “She was clearly a psychopath and completely, completely without empathy,” Jennings said. The vanity of Villanelle, which sees her often staring longingly at herself in mirrors and shop windows, also rings true of Riaño, who once became too distracted by her own reflection while en route to kill a policeman. “At the key moment, Idoia, who was supposed to be doing the killings, didn’t actually see him because she was so entranced with the window of a fashionable store and her own reflection in it,” said Jennings. Indeed her vanity was even noted by her killer compatriots, including fellow terrorist Juan Manuel Soares Gamboa, who once said she cared more about her appearance than murder. In the TV series, Villanelle opts for female lovers who usually wind up dead or extremely damaged. Riaño, who began her killing streak at just 20 years old, hid out in Algeria for seven years before being finally snared in France in the 1990s. She is now 55 and is free after being released from jail in 2017 following a 23-year sentence. Having lived for some years in Andorra, where her sister lives, she is now living in Barcelona, where she works for an NGO.
Raffle-winner bags Picasso for peanuts
AN Italian woman has won a Picasso painting worth €1 million in a raffle. The painting, titled Nature Morte was painted in 1921 in Paris and is an oil-oncanvas depiction of a newspaper alongside a glass of absinthe. Claudia Borgogno from Ventimiglia, north-western Italy received the raffle ticket as a Christmas present from her son. Borgogno summed up her amazement: “I have never won anything before.” Her son Lorenzo Naso referred to it as the
best decision he’s ever made in his life. Neither Naso nor his mother had watched the raffle, in fact they didn’t even know when the draw was taking place. “When I arrived and I told her she had won she was like: ‘Please don’t joke’,” he said. The 51,140 tickets were sold for €100 each, with the proceeds going to provide water for villagers in Madagascar and Cameroon. The draw was originally scheduled for March, but that was delayed due to the
coronavirus pandemic. Although organisers valued the painting at €1 million, the art collector who provided it, David Nahmad, claims it’s worth at least two or three times that. Nahmad will be paid €900,000 for the work. The painting was the smallest of 300 works by Picasso that he owns, the largest private collection of works by the Spanish artist. The date and style of Nature Morte are reflective of the ‘crystal’ period in the artist’s career.
952 147 834 *Based on third par ty. Offer valid for new customers only. Subject to conditions. Ends 31/12/20.
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PROPERTY
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May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
Keys Isl nd to the
By Amanda Butler
Not phased WITH coronavirus figures plummeting around Spain, only two new cases reported and no deaths over the weekend in the Balearic Islands, things are looking very positive as we move closer to the summer months. There were celebrations in most households as we entered Phase 2 on Monday, permitting free movement to beaches and all sport activities, the opening up of bars and restaurants at 50% of their normal interior capacity and gatherings of up to 15 people. From my personal perspective it was wonderful to see the beaches starting to be enjoyed again – the waters are crystal clear and the sand pristine. Rather selfishly one could wish to maintain this resident-only status for the peace, tranquility and clear and clean natural habitat, but of course completely impractical for the majority of working inhabitants on
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All solutions are on page 12
Real estate agent Amanda Butler is leading Mallorca’s Phase 2 celebrations and is looking ahead to a property market revival
have been some sold virtuthe island who mostly rely ally which is quite unusual, on tourism to survive; that and there will always be includes the real estate the sharks that appear out market, naturally. of the water during these So good news for the tourtimes...circling to see if ist industry in the Balearics there are any bargains to that the two-week quarbe had in times of crisis. antine law will be lifted I certainly haven’t come from July 1 according to a across any as yet, being government statement recontingent on many asleased on Monday. pects including the coming President Armengol has summer season and global asked for an earlier start, economy a whole, particubut this as of yet has not larly where the higher end been agreed by Prime Minis concerned. ister Sanchez. But on a posiThe reciprocal tive note I quarantine did receive legislation Hope that my first post is yet to be lockdown lifted from the there are visit to an UK but with numbers go- people looking, exclusive listing I have in ing down and despite Old Bendinat since Britain is over a week uncertain times for €7.7m on Monday, from behind us this Germans livtoo will hopeing on the fully be lifted. island. Everyone arrived There will be many breathwith masks, and ensured ing a sigh of relief after we stayed well-distanced... businesses have been decit felt rather strange I must imated over this Lockdown say. But at least it gave me period. some hope that there are With business in April only people looking, despite unstanding at 38% of the certain times. norm GDP, we will only In case anyone has been know the true impact at following my previous arthe end of the summer – if ticles from the start of the this will have saved some year - I had been just about businesses, or whether too to sell this house before all little too late. What the regthis started, but the buyers ulations will look like durbacked out of signing just ing this time we of course as lockdown began...one don’t know as yet but will of the first business casuno doubt become clearer alties of the coronavirus over the next few weeks. chaos! There will also be numerA great shame for all. ous hotels and restaurants It is too early to say how dethat decide to stay shut mand in general will evolve, rather than scrape by at but sales completed since less than their ‘breakeven’ de-escalation have mainfor the year. Since the detained pre-crisis prices acescalation of the state of cording to my sources. the alarm started estate Until next time - wishing agencies in the Balearics you continued health, fithave reported some revival ness and a positive mental of interest in the market, attitude! which is hopeful. Colleagues I have heard from Amanda J Butler – an have said there is a flurry holistic approach to real of interest in small apartestate in Mallorca. ments with gardens and MJC Associates - +34 terraces which was pre690075169, ajb@mjcasdictable, with sales being sociates.net closed unusually quickly. On the higher end, there
Airbnb get off free
THE Supreme Court of Justice in the Balearic Islands (TSJIB) has annulled a €300,000 fine handed to Airbnb for advertising holiday rentals in Mallorca that were not registered. The Ministry of Innovation, Research and Tourism had slapped Airbnb with the fine in February of 2018 after determining that the rentals giant had ‘commercialised tourist homes illegally in Mallorca.’ According to the Ministry, Airbnb advertised accommodation without declaring a property’s tourist registration number. This became a legal requirement in the Balearic Islands in July 2017 when the government amended the General Tourism Law to step up their control over holiday rentals. In November 2017, the Ministry had made a formal request to Airbnb asking that they remove the adverts within 15 days. Further checks on the website showed that the online platform continued to violate the regulations which they considered to be a very serious infraction, thus imposing Airbnb with a fine of €300,000.
Plagued
Airbnb had appealed the penalty, which was initially dismissed, forcing them to go to the Supreme Court. However, the TSJB ruled in favour of Airbnb, determining that they were not responsible for carrying out checks on all published rentals. The ruling stated: “Airbnb cannot be given the obligation to carry out an exhaustive and detailed review of all adverts published on their website.” It added that they are ‘protected by exemptions in liability, as per the Directive 2000/31/EC.’ It comes after a prediction was made that thousands of apartments across Spain could soon be returned to the traditional rental market following the collapse of tourism due to the coronavirus lockdown. Barcelona deputy mayor Janet Sanz said ‘a third or even half’ of the city’s 9,600 tourist pisos would likely become ‘normal apartments’ over the next three years. This she said would provide ‘hope’ for the city which has long been at war with Airbnb over advertising thousands of unlicensed holiday homes, therefore allowing the government to regain control of the market.
Corona viewings RULES on how to safely conduct property viewings have been laid out by an estate agents’ governing body. Agencies in regions that have entered Phase 1 of the lockdown exit can now show homes and open small (less than 400 sqm) offices to clients by appointment only. The General Council of the Official Associations of Real Estate Agents (CGCOAPI) says that at the moment viewings can not be arranged to people living outside the same province as the property. Homeowners will have to leave the premises at the time of the sales visit and it should be completed as quickly as possible. Masks and gloves should be worn by both agents and customers, and social distancing maintained at all times, particularly when going through communal areas of buildings.
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
Taste the balearics
Squid ink ravioli stuffed with sea bass and orange
A
Ingredients:
recipe: let’s start by making the pasta dough.
For the ravioli:
with your hands to make a dough.
·140g of flour ·1 egg Additonal yolk ·2g of squid ink
Home cooking with Chef Lorenzo Garrispani at Petunia Ibiza - Squid ink ravioli stuffed with sea bass and orange
For the filling:
·100g of sea bass ·50g of orange juice ·Orange peel ·6 basil leaves ·Salt ·Black pepper ·Olive oil
S part of a special home cooking series with the Olive Press, Chef Lorenzo Garrispani from La Mesa Escondida at Hotel Petunia Ibiza shares another of his favourite dishes inspired by the Balearic Islands. Last week we cooked up a storm in the kitchen making a delicious Cod Mantecado with pea and onion cream in vinegar. In this week’s edition, Lorenzo offers his recipe for an inno-
vative squid ink ravioli stuffed with sea bass and orange. For those not familiar with squid ink, it is an ingredient commonly used in Spain thanks to its rich flavour and ability to create a dramatic black colour. If you are fortunate enough to live in Ibiza, the dishes are also available to order through the restaurant’s recently launched home delivery service, or at the eatery itself when it reopens next week.
For the sauce:
·25g of butter ·50g of orange juice ·Salt ·Oil ·Black pepper
Can’t have your cake THE Mediterannean diet may be the pinnacle of a balanced diet, but neither olive oil nor fresh vegetables feature in the top 10 products bought by Spaniards during the lockdown. Cakes and confectionery instead hold the top spot for supermarket purchases during Spain’s state of alarm, according to a report. These are followed by spices, cheese and frozen fish. The report by consumer statistics site Nielsen found the top purchases during the beginning of the state of alarm, on March 14, included basics such as toilet paper, rice, pasta and beans. Then as a panicked public realised the supermarkets would
Anything but easy
EASYJET has announced that it will resume some of its flights on June 15, ahead of a bigger resumption on July 1. The low-cost airline is only starting routes where it believes ‘there is sufficient customer demand to support profitable flying.’ That includes only one Spanish airport, Barcelona, and 10 UK airports, among them London Gatwick, Liverpool, Glasgow and Belfast International.
x
But Spanish avoid Med diet staples in favour of comfort foods during the lockdown
By Joshua Parfitt
not sell out, sales of beer, wine and confectionary began to skyrocket. It comes as the Official College of Dietitians and Nutritionists of the Valencian Community is fearing an increase in obesity following the coronavirus lockdown. The increase in the purchases of chocolate, cakes and alcoholic beverages, together with a decrease in physical activity, could leave a lasting impact on the health of Spaniards. “Now that we are getting back to work, we are starting to see what’s ahead of us,” said Rafael Birlanga, the president of the college. “Some 80% of nutritionists who
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May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
You are a healthy lot! The 10 products with the highest sales include, in order: 1. Cakes and confectionary 2. Spices and flavourings 3. Grated cheese 4. Frozen fish 5. Dried fruit 6. Sanitary/ hygiene products 7. Sauces and condiments 8. Coffee 9. Beer 10. Tinned and preserved fish
have participated in a study of ours believe there has been a worsening in health and that levels of overweight and obesity have increased during this period of quarantine.”
:First, place the egg, yolk and squid ink on a surface, mixing everything together Once ready, cover it with cling film and put it in the fridge
for 30 minutes.
cut it into similar Once cooled, use a roller to spread the dough out well, then knife. a with s square sized For the filling, ensure that the sea bass is both skinless and into very small squares with a knife.
boneless and cut it up
leaves, salt and pepper Mix the olive oil, orange juice, orange peel, chopped basil and coat the sea bass with the mixture. Let the fish marinate for approximately 20 minutes. a small spoon and Insert the filling into the centre of each square of pasta with e gets inside the possibl as air little as sure (make wish you that way close it the ravioli). of hot water for three Now it is time to cook the stuffed ravioli in a saucepan s. minute with butter, orange Once cooked, drain the ravioli and put into a frying pan heat. juice, salt and black pepper over medium Stir until you obtain a creamy sauce. Serve and add a few leaves of basil with black pepper. About La Mesa Escondida at Petunia Ibiza At the helm of Chef Lorenzo Gasparrini, the renowned La Mesa Escondida has been a staple of the island’s ever-evolving gastronomical scene. Recently acquired by Hotel Petunia Ibiza situated off the coast of Cala Carbo, the restaurant offers diners delicious Mediterranean cuisine in the backdrop of jaw-dropping views over Es Vedra. And it reopens next week!
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May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
Healing through Hummus Expats celebrated for helping to feed over 200 healthcare workers through two-month lockdown
CHICKPEA CHAPS: (left to right) Ronen, Mike and Antonio with some top grub
Bendinat Golf – Delightful Garden Apartment with views over Bendinat Golf Course
A PAIR of expats have whipped up a healthy campaign to reward the hardworking healthcare heroes who have battled the COVID-19 virus around the island. British-American expat Mike Hewitt and Israeli Ronen Levy joined Antonio Serra Garcia to launch the Healing through Hummus campaign to feed hundreds of frontline workers. Ronen, from Simply Delicious, and Serra, of Es Reco, in Santa Catalina’s mercado, came up with the nourishing dishes handed out to 200 workers at Son Espases hospital for the last two months. The idea was born from Hewitt, who wanted to give something back to those who were working around the clock to halt infections and take care of seriously ill patients. “I was eager to provide a lesson for humanity – to be good and to give back,” Mike told the Olive Press. After brainstorming the idea with Ronen, a mastermind in healthy gastronomy, and Antonio, who was legally allowed to deliver, they decided to make twice-weekly drops to the hospital. All that was needed was the
By Isha Sesay
rest of the community to jump in with donations and once word spread, residents jumped at the chance to donate anything from €5 to €400. “We were overwhelmed with the support and had enough donations to sustain hospital staff on low cost and healthy food for several weeks,” continued Mike. Ronen and Antonio weaved magic in their kitchens, creating delicious parcels of perfect on-the-go-food such as sandwiches, falafel and hummus. Although the campaign ceased this week due to the reopening of the hospital’s cafeteria, their efforts will be forever remembered by healthcare staff who praised the team for going above and beyond to help during the crisis. And the greatest take-home gift given to Mike was showing his young daughter Marlow the importance of humanity. “I have shown her that the smallest gesture can go a very long way,” he concluded.
Anything but easy
EASYJET has announced that it will resume some of its flights on June 15, ahead of a bigger resumption on July 1. The low-cost airline is only starting routes where it believes ‘there is sufficient customer demand to support profitable flying.’ That includes only one Spanish airport, Barcelona, and 10 UK airports, among them London Gatwick, Liverpool, Glasgow and Belfast International. Meanwhile, Easyjet’s lowcost rival, Jet2 will resume all flights and holidays on July 1, pushing back the original date of June 17. A Jet2 employee told the Olive Press that workers will have to go back to work a week or two earlier in order to get things running.
THE cost of living in Spain has dropped by 0.7% in April but the cost of up to 50 foods has risen. Lower energy prices have helped make overall living cheaper, despite surging food prices, as the Olive Press investigated last issue (Corona-rouges, Issue 343, pg 6). For example, fresh fish rose by 2.7% in April and now costs 10.5% more than it did at the same time last year. Something similar has happened to fruit, rising by 1.6% last month, 12.8% higher than last year. Other non-fresh food products have also risen significantly in price during the last month. Pizzas and quiche rose by 3.6%, seafood by 3.5%, potatoes by 2.6%, pasta by 2.5% and beer by 2.1%. In the case of electricity, the average household bill is around 20% lower than in April 2019.
2 Baths 100 m² - Living 100 m²- Garden Pool €550,000 Ref: 19014
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For a personalised and discreet service please contact Amanda J Butler on +34 690075169 or go to www.mjcassociates. net, email: ajb@mjcassociates.net
ANOTHER truce has been reached in the longstanding war on terraces in the capital. Bars, restaurants and cafes will now be exempt from paying the terrace tax until December 31 which allows business owners to ‘occupy the public way.’ Announcing the measure, councillor Alberto Jarabo explained that it was an important step to make to support the hospitality sector which has been ‘hard-hit by the coronavirus crisis’. It comes weeks after officials permitted terraces to expand into adjacent car parking spaces to aid social distancing through the de-escalation plan.
Food for thought
2 Beds
Beautifully presented southwest facing, with large master bedroom ensuite, open plan kitchen, dining room, lounge with fireplace, ‘live-out’ covered terrace, private garden, BBQ area, storage x 2. Secure community with 4 pools. Only 5 minutes from Portals, and 10 minutes from Palma. Viewing highly recommended.
Terrace truce
Autonomo payday THE Government of the Balearic Islands has passed an extraordinary measure to help selfemployed workers hit by the crisis. Autonomos will be able to apply for a non-refundable payment of between €2,000 and €3,000 from a pot of €11.4 million. This is on the condition that they continue their activity this year. There will be two types of self-employed workers eligible for the funds. The first are those who work all year round and who are able to justify that they have been registered with the Social Security office in the Special Regime for Self-Employed Workers (RETA) during the state of alarm. The second are seasonal self-employed workers who have been unable to start their activity due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The sum granted will vary according to the number of individuals that they employ. Those without employees will receive €2,000, those with up to two workers will receive €2,500, and those with more than two will be given €3,000.
BUSINESS
We will not fly
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May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
Offshore furore QUESTIONS have been raised over the Government of the Balearic Islands’ decision to grant over €8.2 million to entrepreneurs with offshore companies in tax havens in order to purchase medical supplies from China. An investigation carried out by El Mundo has revealed that the
Love nests to the rescue
Spain swaps foreign holidays for domestic breaks as tourist spending set to take corona hit HALF of Spaniards have said they will not go on holiday this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. A new survey has also revealed that four out of 10 ‘will not fly’ until a vaccine for the killer virus is developed. Domestic spots like the Costa del Sol, where 65% of holiday homes are Spanish-owned, are therefore the most popular option.
Of the 50% of respondents who intend to take a vacation, 41% will do so in Spain, according to the EY-Parthenon study of 2,106 people. An additional 8% who were due to holiday abroad, will now also take a break domesmuch less or nothing’. However, 16% claimed they would be willing to increase their holiday budget and 38% said it would remain un-
changed. On the other hand, 70% said they would be open to spending ‘a bit more’ if they were allowed more wiggle room over cancellations and booking modifications. The study also found that 70% of people would spend the same in cafes, bars and restaurants, with the other 30% likely to splash ‘less, much less or no cash at all’.
CRISIS-hit hoteliers in Mallorca have tapped into the romantic getaway market in a bid to stay afloat. Despite being the island’s entrance into Phase 1, almost all hotels have remained closed over fears of heavy expenses that cannot be offset by the usual influx of visitors. However, 32 hotels did decide to open their doors this week, including the renowned Can Bordoy Hotel in Palma. “We believe that there are clients from Mallorca who are eager to continue celebrating special dates, romantic reunions and birthdays, so we have decided to cover these expectations,” spokesperson Monica Cerda Gomez told the Olive Press. The hotel has optimal facilities to adhere to social distancing, including the largest private garden in Palma, spanning 700 square metres squared.
Balearic government handed over the significant sum to two businessmen with companies registered in Panama and Malta. The autonomous government first awarded over €4.5 million to Tyrval Import y Export SL, which is based in Valencia and specialises in the acquisition of goods for leading hotel chains across Spain. From this company, the Balearic government received five million surgical masks, 60,000 FFP2 protection masks, 100,000 FPP3 masks, six million nitrile gloves and 2,000 thermometers – all of which was purchased from China. However, according to El Mundo, Tyrval Import y Export SL is administered by a businessman named Jorge Manuel Tomas Romero who currently has an active company in Panama called Jardines y Estructuras SA. When questioned about his ties to Panama, Romero allegedly admitted to owning the company but stressed that it was ‘inactive’ and established 18 years ago with the intention to develop business in South America. Secondly, the Balearic government granted over €3.7 million to Soluciones de Gestion y Apoyo a Empresas SL. This company is managed by Jose Angel Escorial who, according to El Mundo, has two businesses registered in Malta.
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down kit should be kept in your vehicle at all times. The kit includes: a torch and spare batteries, warm clothes and blankets, high-visibility jacket, first aid kit, jump start cables, empty fuel can, food and drink, two reflective warning signs, a road atlas, and a mobile phone charger. OVER 20 YEARS OF EXPERTISE As Spain’s most experienced provider of insurance for British expatriates, Línea Directa has been keeping motorists on the move for over 20 years.
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2/8/18 17:01
14
May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
Snakes alive!
HEALTH
Stubbed out
Lisa Burgess
Lisa Burgess confronts her inner serpent during lockdown and puts it right back in its cage...
M
ENTAL health is often neglected in these dire times so to keep the brain firing on all cylinders I do frequent Zoom quizzes in Dulwich with my British, Irish and French friends. Friday night was girls versus boys and the subject was history. When asked what battle English Henry V won against the French, I was at the ready with the Battle of Agincourt but got stuck on what film was written and directed by Luc Besson in 1994? I knew it, it was on the tip of my tongue but my opponents got it: Leon (Lion). Talking about ferocious beasts, my Facebook Memories threw up a picture of me with a large snake and 3 Irish models from 5 years ago, when I worked on Ireland AM's morning show. It was a moment in time where I had to face my ‘ophidiophobia’ and get on with it, much like my carcinophobia (fear of cancer). Actually, the snake was charming! As I was browsing my happy
THE sale of menthol cigarettes has been banned throughout Spain. The ban is part of EU rules that were passed in 2016 and shops found selling them will face fines of up to €10,000. The ruling was passed as, while menthol cigarettes are seen as less harmful, they are actually just as bad for your health, if not worse. Menthol also has a dilating effect on the pulmonary alveoli, which causes a faster absorption of nicotine from tobacco by the consumer. This in turn has a powerful
SLIPPERY CHARACTER: Some of Lisa’s old TV friends memories there was a sudden thud from my washing machine. Let's put this in context: the fridge, cooker and washing machine have all had to be replaced recently due to their antiquity, much like myself and The Hundred Years War ensued when my fella Joffrey, a chef in case you don’t know, did not appreciate that my TWO dressing gowns were being held captive in the load, hiss spit. I commenced immediate social distancing from the kitchen and to say we were in a spin is an understatement but it was eventually resolved by Chef with a little help from Alexa. Prior to the laundry skirmish, we agreed Joff would trim my hair but I cast a beady eye on him hacking vigorously away at the onions and decided Mona Lisa should remain Co-
rona Lisa. We were looking forward to our first night out in Phase 1, courtesy of friends at a luxury villa in La Cala, for another fierce quiz clash themed on the animal kingdom. During my research, I found that spitting cobras can blind an adult male lion in seconds. I pondered on the subject of toxicity and emotional well-being, especially the tumultuous internal mind battle one faces under lockdown. The words of William Shakespeare's Henry V gave me some much-needed counsel: ‘men of few words are the best men’. It made me realise that my own human behaviour needs adapting so I intend to hold my asp tongue and be more subdued lioness at the quiz, the better to direct my focus on winning the lion’s share of the points!
Spain bans sale of ‘gateway smoking’ menthol cigarettes addictive effect, which indirectly increases the addictive potential of the product as a whole. “These flavours increase the attractiveness of the product and there is a false perception that they are healthier or less harmful than other cigarettes,” said a spokesman for Spain’s health ministry. “Some consumers choose this alternative instead of quitting permanently, which has
a negative impact on your health.” Campaigners have welcomed the new law on the so-called ‘gateway smoking’ products, as they encourage young people to pick up the habit. The EU regulations also state that health warnings must now cover 65% of the packaging and it also bans promoting tobacco products, e-cigarettes and ‘herbal products’ for smoking.
Here to stay
THE World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that the coronavirus may never go away. Even if a vaccine is found, controlling the virus will be a ‘massive effort’. “It is important to put this on the table: this virus may become just another endemic virus in our communities, and this virus may never go away,” said Dr Mike Ryan. There are currently more than 100 potential vaccines in development, but he highlighted how measles is still not eliminated completely, despite already having vaccines. However it is still possible to control the virus, but there is no guaranteed way of easing restrictions without triggering a second wave of infections. It comes as the UN warned that the pandemic was causing widespread distress and mental health, particularly in countries where there’s a lack of investment in mental healthcare.
Friends.
Reset.
Music.
At OD Port Portals we have our own star rating. In fact, we have all the stars of the Mallorca sky and we will enjoy them all together every summer night at OD Sky Bar, on our spacious terrace and at our restaurant On Top. A hotel full of local experiences, music, art, gastronomy, yoga, pre-parties, flea markets, brunches, concerts, Pilates, tardeo, sea, sun and all the stars. A hotel full of life.
Horizon.
Sunset.
Memories.
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AMBAS pil pil, crusty bread, beer, ensalada de pulpo, real cafe con leche, chips, alioli, tomato salad, jamon, olives – the list of local delicacies my palate has been pining for goes on. The prospect of eating out again in cafes and restaurants has dominated my existence in recent weeks. Yes I can easily have a coffee or a nice salad at home, but it’s just not the same is it?
15
May 29th - Jun 11th 2020
As Andalucia’s bars and restaurants reopen for business, it’s the perfect time to brush up on your Spanish ordering skills, writes Charlie Smith
Phase 2 is here and Spain ’s terraces are once again flung open for business – albeit at 50% capacity, with social distancing in place and, crucially, only if establishments can actually afford to start up again. But for those hungry for a meal outside their own kitchen, throw away that Telepizza flyer because restaurants and bars are beckoning. If there was ever a time to dust off your Spanish skills, it is now as
Feel the fear and do it anyway W Jonathan Holdaway recalls the crash of 87 and why you SHOULD be planning your finances during the current crisis RITTEN by Susan Jeffers, this is the title of one of the first ‘motivational’ books I received as a Christmas present in 1987, just over two months after ‘Black Monday’ on October 19. This was the first stock market crash I had experienced in my career, and was sudden, severe and largely unexpected. It came straight after the weekend of the great storm of 1987, and wiped off around 23% of the value of the FTSE 100 in two days. I remember going out to help save my father’s boat that weekend, as it was moored a little offshore and in danger of being set adrift and wrecked. At that time I was unaware that the markets were about to suffer a similar fate. At that time everyone thought it was the end of the world and yet, looking back at a chart of the FTSE 100 now, it is hardly discernible as a little blip on an otherwise relentless rise upwards. There is a standard warning which is often quoted about investments: ‘the value can go down as well as up’ and this would be one that appeals to the pessimists amongst us. However, as an optimist and with my experience of many stock market crashes over the last 30 years or so, I prefer ‘what comes down must go up again’. In fact, I would go as far as to say why wouldn’t you want to buy something at a 20 to 30% discount? Now is also a great time to do some proper financial lifetime cashflow planning - a key component of my wealth planning
proposition. My clients can literally see what their financial future may look like and discover their own ‘number’. This is the amount of money they will need, factoring in future expected life events in order to achieve everything they want to in their life. Bringing money to life. It allows them to incorporate any proposed changes and examine the impact before going ahead with them. ‘What if’ scenarios can also be included, to test the resilience of their plan, so that the effects of a future crisis, and another stock market crash can be assessed in the plan. It’s a highly successful, innovative way of connecting people to their money, allowing them to stay on track, no matter what the world throws at them. Ensure that your money doesn’t run out before you do – let me provide you with a plan and help keep you on track until you achieve your goals, and answer some of the questions previously posed by my clients. Can I afford to retire at 60, or at least move to a three-day week? Can we afford to give our kids £25k as a deposit for a house? If I retired at 60, how long could we maintain our lifestyle and when would the money run out? What growth rate do I need in my portfolio to meet my future plans? No lifetime cashflow plan can predict your future but as General Eisenhower once said, ‘Plans are a waste of time. But planning is essential’.
Contact me for a no obligation investment product and/or portfolio review and at my expense on +34 654 898 303/+44 77230 27864 or email me at jonathan.holdaway@chasebuchanan.com I’ll even buy the coffee.
Charlie Smith
you once again navigate la carta and share una broma with the barman, obviously from two metres apart. Under new rules, you may find you are allowed less time in said restaurant or bar, so you will need to take command with the camarero (waiter) from the get-go. First the drinks. When I started learning Spanish, quisiera was a word I used a lot. But I quickly realised that this is far too polite. Whether ordering your cafe, caña, tinto de verano, zumo de naranja or chupitos (shots), it is much better to state what you want and just tag ‘por favor’ on the end. This is still very polite though and many people cut the ‘please’ out altogether. Dame (meaning give me) and ponme (put me) are common when ordering – these do not sound at all demanding to the Spanish ear. Ponme is from poner, a great verb that Spaniards, as my Spanish teacher explained to me, use for everything: poner la mesa (to set the table), poner una multa (to fine), poner huevos (to lay eggs). But back to drinks, and if you are still thirsty, say otro de lo mismo (another of the same). This is very useful, especially if you find yourself a bit borracho with all the excitement of Phase 1. Catching a waiter’s eye, waving your hand and por favor can be used to get their attention, but in my experience it is generally better to holler perdona. On to food. There are myriad delights to Spanish cuisine: tapas, pintxos, a quick montadito, seafood and so on. But there are a few basics you will need first. ‘Soy alergico a ...’ will tell the waiter that you are allergic to something, perhaps nueces (nuts), mariscos (shellfish), or soja (soy). You may also be intolerant to gluten or lactosa, be vegetariano or perhaps even vegano. If you are vegan then good luck to you, as in Spain it is not uncommon to be served a ‘meat/fish-free’ dish which contains exactly that. Qué me recomiendas? is what you could say if you are bewildered by the menu’s numerous raciones and tapas. However in my experience it is usually better not to ask the waiter so that you can try new things – although a word of warning: if you see ‘carne mechada’, steer clear. Other pieces of restaurant paraphernalia useful to remember include cenicero (ashtray), aceite de oliva (olive oil) and sillita (high chair). Finally, you could tell a waiter that your food is quema (burnt) or frío (cold), but don’t be mean, they’ve only just re-opened! Better to loudly proclaim ‘estaba rico’ as you pay for la cuenta.
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FINAL WORDS
AROUND 200 chefs – including several Michelinstarred – have marched on Congress in Madrid in their whites to demand more help from the government during the coronavirus crisis.
Biting problem IBIZA residents are suffering from a plague of mosquitoes that have bred in stagnant hotel and second-home swimming pools left unattended during the lockdown.
Stuck fast TWO hikers in Cartagena had to be rescued by sea after they decided to try to reach a beach, but got stuck on a steep slope at the foot of Monte Roldan.
OLIVE PRESS
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Vol. 4 Issue 81 www.theolivepress.es May 29th - Jun 11th, 2020
A star is born
Speaking the lingo SPAIN can look forward to a rapid return of British tourists, according to internet search figures. And once they get here, many more will be able to speak Spanish. The country has been the most searched holiday destination online during the coronavirus
Lockdown Brits have been honing their Spanish skills for their next trip to the costas, study reveals lockdown in the UK. A survey by Holiday Extras named Spain as the number one place people wanted to
visit when travel restrictions are lifted. The same study also found that 81% of respondents were
Just the ticket
LOTTERIES have returned to Spain after two months of inactivity due to the coronavirus lockdown. Loterias y Apuestas del Estado (SELAE, Spain’s state-owned lottery operator) will begin selling tickets online and in person. Small ticket shops may now open – except for those in commercial centres that lack independent access. SELAE suspended ticket sales and pre-programmed draws on March 15. All suspended draws will take place in the next few days, with tickets having the same value and legitimacy as before. See our online article for the dates of all upcoming and rescheduled draws.
BETSON: Lottery shops reopen
looking forward to an overseas trip once free to do so. And with the news that Spain’s quarantine restrictions to be lifted on July 1 they are soon be able to fulfil their vacation dreams. But frustrated holidaymakers have not just been dreaming of a trip to sun-kissed Mediterranean shores during lockdown. Many have been preparing for their much anticipated journeys by learning Spanish during their long hours at home. Online learning platform Tutorful has noticed an 81% spike in the number of language lessons taken during April. Mark Hughes, CEO at Tutorful, explained: “We recorded a huge jump in our online language lessons, with Spanish taking the top spot. “There were four times as many Spanish classes taking place on our platform in April than in March.”
A SPANISH politician has become an internet hit – or rather the ostrich that photobombed him during a press conference has. Miguel Angel Revilla, the President of Cantabria, was totally oblivious to the special guest that ended up stealing the show. A video showed the inquisitive bird standing behind the politician and looking over his shoulder. The bird looked at everything that was happening in absolute amazement.
Homer
The incident occurred when Revilla held a press conference to speak about the reopening of a zoo. However, he did not notice the bird and continued speaking. It was only later that the politician noticed the inquisitive bird. Proving he has a sense of humour, Revilla posted on social media an image of the incident together with one of Homer Simpson in an uncannily similar situation.
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