Quiet In My Town

Alcúdia old town. Towards the end of March. Not long before Easter. It is late afternoon, kids are kicking a ball near to the tourist information office, which is closed. A dog is on the terrace above El Limón. It barks at every passer-by and then scrapes the green shutter door, which is closed. There are people around, but not so many. Manuel at Sa Caseta says there's no-one, but he is at least open. And so he should be, the pizzas are to die for.

People stand out because there are not so many of them. This was once his town. What happens when you cease to - in effect - run the place? What happens when you head off to another post? Elsewhere. In Palma. And then suddenly you don't have that either. Not that it was your fault. You did it because it was a career move, I suppose.

He looks tanned. Maybe this is what you do. Go away on holiday. Get away to some warmer sun than Mallorca has to offer in February or March once you've lost your job. How does it feel though, do you suppose, knowing that this used to be your town? Someone stops him and has a brief chat. Everyone knows him of course. For many, he still does run the town. Or so they might think, but then remember that he doesn't. Perhaps they feel a bit sorry for him.

He's walking with his daughter, at least one presumes it's his daughter. There is a little dog, a puppy that races up and sniffs my shoes. I say hello. He knows he knows me, but can't quite place me. I want to stop and actually ask him how it feels, but somehow that seems tactless. I walk on. It's possible that it doesn't bother him, but you wonder what he's doing, other than strolling in the streets of Alcúdia on a late March afternoon.

I go into the Constitution Square. I'm waiting and just looking. Staring at the tops of the pink and orange buildings, at the brown shutters and at the coffee and cake board for the German late-afternoon in March tourists. I watch. He walks past the chemists, down what we would call the high street. The town hall, the Casa Consistorial. The doors are closed.

Who is he?

Miquel Ferrer, the former mayor, the former tourism minister, strolling past the shut-tight doors of the town hall building of the town that he used - in effect - to run.


QUIZ:
Bit obscure maybe, but this is a US-based South African indie group.

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You Just Can't Get Agreement - Antich And Other Politicians

There was an interesting little thing tucked away in "The Diario" yesterday. Interesting, not because of what it said, but because of what could be extrapolated from it. The article referred to a meeting between Francesc Antich, the regional government president, and the hotel federation. The headlining element was that Antich suggested it was easier to reach agreements with business and unions than with political parties. From that, one can infer that it is not always easy to reach compromise with coalition partners. He is not wrong. But this was not the most interesting aspect. Antich is also reported as saying that "the political situation impedes the taking of measures that allow for greater tourism competitiveness". In other words, the very nature of the system is a constraint on Mallorca's most important industry.

Now, just think about this, and take into account also the fact that the hoteliers made a number of demands to Antich, one of which was for the improvement of public transport to Alcúdia, i.e. the train, the train that was effectively vetoed by Alcúdia town hall. Think about it. Who is now the new tourism minister? The mayor of Alcúdia, Miquel Ferrer, the one who stood in the way of the train because the town hall would not go along with the government's preference for the siting of the Sa Pobla rail extension.

The political system - the coalition - acts against the best interests of the tourism industry, including those to do with transport infrastructure. This is what Antich is saying. The coalition comprises three parties, one of which, the Unió Mallorquina, is represented in the tourism ministry, as it has been throughout the Antich administration, albeit by different politicians. Do we infer from this that the UM has been obstructive in tourism development? No, this has not been the case. But now that Ferrer is in charge of tourism, will he see the train in a different light, i.e. one that takes account of a wider interest than merely a parochial Alcúdia one of self-interest, as was manifest in the protests by the finca owners of the Son Fé area of Alcúdia? It is not for Ferrer, as tourism minister, to decide anything where transport is concerned, but he must have an opinion or be asked for one. Will this now change?

When Ferrer gave his first press conference the other day, one of the things he was not asked about was the train. Had he been, he would probably have deflected it by saying that it is not an issue for the tourism ministry. But he should still have been asked. Ferrer has been mute on the subject since the decision was taken to use funds earmarked the Sa Pobla extension for different projects. He has made something of a virtue of not saying things, but now he is tourism minister, he is going to be expected to be less taciturn. Though the train is effectively dead in the water until a new administration is elected, it nevertheless remains an issue, an issue for tourism development - as the hoteliers have made clear and, by implication of what Antich said, for the president himself, whose whole period of office was meant to have been celebrated as "the age of the train".

There is no collision course as such between Antich and Ferrer on the matter, as it has been shelved, but the very fact of the matter having been raised highlights - again - the difficulties created by different levels of government and different parties and also the potential complications for a politician elevated from a local environment to one of state (assuming one can call the regional government a "state"). Moreover, Ferrer will spend much of his time in discussion with the likes of the hoteliers federation. What will he say to them about the train? That Antich has had this meeting with the federation could be interpreted as a shot across Ferrer's bows, while a more active involvement in tourism matters by Antich, something I believe he should have, might be taken as either an admission of possible inexperience on behalf of Ferrer or of undermining him and also the UM.

Alcúdia town hall went against the preference of the government's transport ministry, one headed by a member of the Mallorcan socialists (Bloc), i.e. one to the left of centre, an area also inhabited by Antich. There is no love lost between the UM and the Bloc, and the train debacle was in so small part a reflection of this. Antich is widely admired for his patience and for his attempts at diplomacy, but one could forgive him just a touch of annoyance that one of his "big things", the train, was scuppered by the very person who is now his tourism minister.


QUIZ
Yesterday's title - Editors, "Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors", http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zLxTGjpDew. Today's title - "you just can't get agreement" from a song with a choir by a Genesis off-shoot.

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Swing Lowe - Vicious Sid And Real Mallorca

Sid Lowe. Not a stranger to a bit of controversy and not a stranger to this blog, as any of you will know who recall the ding-dong he caused when he drew attention to an advert in which the Spanish basketball team made "slitty-eyed" gestures at the time of the Beijing Olympics (18 August, 2008: Basket Case). Now it's the turn of Real Mallorca. The club has apparently sent him a letter expressing its indignation (so it is said in "The Bulletin") following something he wrote on his "Guardian" blog, which would probably not have caused much of a fuss had it not been picked up by the Spanish media.

Lowe, for those of you who don't know, is a journo based in Madrid and has made a career out of taking the rise out of Spanish football and sport. He is also a football commentator on Spanish TV, but he is of course British, and it is this - being British - that one suspects people don't like, some Real Mallorca supporters and officials, that is. There has also been a touch of lost in translation as well as selective reading of Lowe's piece in which he called Real Mallorca "rubbish" and sub-headed the piece by saying that "Real Mallorca are badly run, financially constricted and have a shoddy team". None of this is inaccurate, though he goes on to qualify this by looking at the recent farcical ownership fandango and by heaping praise on coach Gregorio Manzano for getting a team of average players to perform as well as it is - to fifth position in La Liga. In response to one of only, from what I can see, two comments taking him to task, he also qualifies the use of the word "rubbish", one that is typically used in throwaway terms by English speakers. He also said that the club has "no fans", which he then explains in the comments exchange; the club has a poor attendance record, which is undeniable.

It does all seem to boil down to who you are and where you write. Go back to the title of that previous blog entry about Lowe. "Basket Case" is a term I have used on more than one occasion to also describe Real Mallorca. Lowe's article is not a million miles away from stuff I have said about Real Mallorca, especially in respect of the ownership nonsense, the lack of money, the level of debt and the fans - I still find it hard to understand how the only La Liga club in Mallorca cannot regularly fill its stadium, one with a capacity of some 25,000. Actually I do understand, because many Mallorcans follow Barça or even one of the Madrid teams.

The mention in "The Bulletin" described Lowe's piece as "inflamatory" (sic - there is an "m" missing). It was nothing of the sort, and many Mallorca fans would probably agree with much of what he wrote. Indeed many have said much the same thing, especially with regard to the damage to the club's reputation caused by the likes of Grande, Davidson and the Martí family.

Read Sid Lowe's article here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2009/dec/07/mallorca-managerial-magic-sid-lowe


Ferrer's first interview
Rubbish, nonsense, the Spanish have a word that can mean both - "tonterías". It was a word used by new tourism minister Miquel Ferrer during his first press engagements. Politicians should not be wasting time on nonsense was how the interview in "The Diario" was headlined. It was, unfortunately, an uninformative piece. It lacked bite. There needed to have been more grilling of Ferrer and his qualification for the post, while the issue of the all-inclusive was ignored. Ferrer believes that 2010 will see an improvement in the tourism market, that there is an excellent marketing plan in place and that the Rafa Nadal promotional campaign will be continued. Good for the still Alcúdia mayor. The coming season should indeed be better (one would hope), but as for the marketing and the promotion ... ?


The popular Popular
A poll suggests that, were an election for the regional government to be held now, the Partido Popular would be returned with a majority. "The Bulletin" points out that this would be despite the party being implicated in corruption cases, most obviously that involving former president Matas. Though the turn-out would, in all likelihood, be low, perhaps an indication of voter disaffection caused by the various political scandals, the fact that the PP might regain power probably says more about what really matters to the electorate. As ever, "it's the economy, stupid", and may well reflect attitudes towards the central socialist government as much as those towards the regional socialist-led coalition.


QUIZ
Yesterday's title - Alan Rickman, Sheriff of Nottingham, "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves".

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Go Now

So, returning to yesterday and the breaking news that occupied the top of yesterday's entry.

The regional government's threat to go elsewhere with their train money seems not to have been an idle one, even if the location of that elsewhere has probably taken a lot of people by surprise, including - one hopes - the mayor of Alcúdia. The central funds earmarked for the rail extension to Alcúdia now may well end up finding a solution to a bit of local difficulty in Manacor where there has been all manner of opposition to the redeveloped route to Artà. That the regional government would appear to have lost patience with Alcúdia town hall is perhaps understandable, but the diversion of funding to Manacor means the worst of all worlds. There remains just the germ of a thought that such a diversion may be a ruse to flush out Alcúdia town hall which will now face its own backlash if the train does not arrive there - ever. Nevertheless, the central ministry in Madrid that ultimately oversees such projects appears to have accepted the changed use of the funding.

The Manacor-Artà redevelopment (there used once to be a line between the two towns) has, unlike the Alcúdia train, been dogged by significant popular opposition. Many people argue that it is unnecessary. If one takes the tourism angle (which has been a plank of the Alcúdia town hall argument in favour of the southern route), this does not apply in the Manacor case. Apart from anything else, Artà has hardly any tourism industry worthy of the name. It is nowhere town, where no-one goes. Only if the line were to be extended on further, to Cala Ratjada (which is the intention), might the tourism factor become consequential, but even then to nothing like the degree that a train to Alcúdia might. When the mayor of Manacor referred to the "outcry" in Alcúdia, he was being disingenuous in two ways: there has not been the sort of popular outcry in Alcúdia that he suggests, yet there has been in his own municipality as well as elsewhere.

The case of the rail lines is a farce. It is a farce for different reasons. The regional government can be seen as being petty by not seeking a rapprochement with Alcúdia; the transport ministry can be seen as having wished to foist a route on Alcúdia that it did not want; Alcúdia town hall has been petty by not being willing to back down; the use of funds for the Manacor line will be for something which does not have popular support; the Manacor line will not serve tourism; the Alcúdia line would serve not only tourism but also residents of the town, Puerto Pollensa and the playa region of Muro; the Alcúdia line would be more widely beneficial in terms of the island economy; the political fighting will have bitten Alcúdia's mayor who stands above all other parties as being responsible for the loss of the rail line. All assuming that the diversion of funds does indeed get ratified. If it is, then Mayor Ferrer should either resign or be booted out. Whatever spin the town hall will try to put on the loss of the rail line, it will have been the obstructive nature of the town hall's opposition to the government's preferred route that will have been the cause of this loss, to the detriment of Alcúdia, its immediate neighbours and the island as a whole. Though it can be argued that the transport ministry sought a fait accompli when it announced the northern route, the alternative southern route - that which the town hall wants, especially were it to end up at the Es Foguera ruin - has no great advantage, if any, over the northern route. But this will serve also to expose the absurdity at the heart of this farce - that a town hall can effectively block an important infrastructure development. The fault in all this lies at one level with political pettiness but at another with the political system, to say nothing of possible self-interests that may or may not have played a part in Alcúdia's obstructionism.

It could be that the Alcúdia line is not doomed, if this is a ploy by the government. But for Ferrer to now back down would mean an enormous loss of face. He has a choice - loss of face or loss of support from people in Alcúdia who were in favour of the train, wherever it might have been sited. There is only one choice for him - he should go.


QUIZ
Today's title - before they became orchestral rockers.

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I’m A Political Man

Alcúdia’s mayor, Miquel Ferrer, may have moved a step closer to becoming the new leader of the Unió Mallorquina (UM), the nationalist party whose exiting leader is now president of the Balearic parliament. Until quite recently, it had looked as though Miquel Nadal (from Palma) would be that new leader (as noted on 13 November: Part Of The Union), but he has picked up his ball and withdrawn from the succession race - for now at least - citing dirty tricks on behalf of his two main rivals, Ferrer and Guillem Ginard of Campos. No matter where it is, a familiar story of political in-fighting.

Ferrer denies that there is a split between Palma and the rest of the island in the context of this political battle, but - retaining some caution ahead of the final decision perhaps - he has stated that his “obligation is to Alcúdia”, whatever that might mean. I don’t know Ferrer personally, but I have seen him often enough. I have said before that a strength of the local nature of Mallorcan and Spanish politics is that the mayor is visible. Inevitably, there are those who don’t have a good word for him, both in the town and elsewhere; a commentator in “Ultima Hora” describes him as a “born conspirator”. Perhaps so, but how many politicans are not.

This statement of obligation does though hint at the existence of a Palma/rest of island divide, and it reflects a facet of Mallorcan society that many visitors would be unaware of. It is hardly surprising that the island’s and indeed the Balearics’ main city should be a focus, but there are often rumblings about Palma-centricity at the expense of other parts of the island, and it is not Palma alone, as the perception is one of Palma and its rich neighbour Calvia (Magaluf, Santa Ponsa etc.) versus the rest.

Whatever the truth of the political intrigue, I quite hope that he does secure the leadership; and then let’s see the strength of his obligation.

Meantime, Ferrer has a diversion in the redevelopment of the old power station (27 October: Here I Dreamt I Was An Architect). It is a not insignificant diversion; a diversion of some 21 million euros in fact, the level of financing needed to bring it into being as an arts and science museum. Am I alone in finding it slightly odd that the architect pitch process has been undertaken and completed without financing of some sort in place?

Another local difficulty limps on - the Son Bosc golf course project in Muro next to Albufera (26 October: And They’re Messing With My Heart). A technical report argues against the licence to develop the golf course as the bulk of it would fall within a protected area. Seems pretty clear then. But there are local politicians who want to go ahead; the UM locally supporting it (which is quite intriguing as one would assume the nationalists would be against). The ongoing debate about Son Bosc does raise an issue of wider consequence. Golf is one of those things that has been promoted as a future tourist winner for the island (winter tourism and all). Other parts of the island have been declared no-go areas for golf courses, and one suspects that further mooted projects would run into similar objections. The Son Bosc case is quite important as it highlights the tension between environmental concern and economic development, which is perhaps the greatest issue facing Mallorca.


QUIZ
Yesterday - Chris Isaak. Blue? Puerto Azul - azul is blue. Today’s title - line from a song by? Famous blues group of the ‘60s.

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