Free Radicals: Mallorca's other politics

An almighty great row kicked off in Sa Pobla at the end of last month. The cause of the row was the presence of one Laura Riera at a meeting organised by a group called Pinyol Vermell in a bar run by the town hall which is also that used for pensioners in Sa Pobla.

Laura Riera and Pinyol Vermell are? Riera left prison in August last year, having spent nine years inside for collaboration with ETA's Barcelona unit. Pinyol Vermell (literally red stone) is a youth organisation in Sa Pobla, its membership comprising those with an "independence ideology". The theme of the meeting was one of anti-repression and of inviting the "democratic state" (of Spain) to improve human rights.

Since the meeting on 29 December, there have been calls for the mayor of Sa Pobla, Joan Comes, to resign, which have been rejected. Comes, for his part, was said to be furious when he learnt that Riera was attending the meeting. He has said that Pinyol Vermell has "had a laugh" at the expense of both the town hall, who agreed to let the organisation have the bar, and the town. He has also withdrawn the grant that Pinyol Vermell gets from the town hall.

As for the meeting itself, reports of what took place are sketchy. It would appear that Riera did not discuss her links with ETA; instead she spoke about herself and her experiences of prison. What has made it more sketchy is the fact that a press photographer was not allowed to take photos, the reasons being that Riera didn't want them being taken and that Pinyol Vermell was concerned that they might be used to imply some relationship between it and ETA. The organisation has, on its website, stated that it condemns ETA violence.

While this is all something of an embarrassment for Sa Pobla, it isn't really anything more than this. No offence was committed. But there was more to this meeting than the appearance of Riera. Its timing coincided with the end-of-year celebrations for Jaume I, the same celebrations that saw violence on the streets of Palma, provoked by independence activists.

What one has to ask is whether we are witnessing the emergence of radicalism in Mallorca. Pinyol Vermell has its independence ideology; it is one that it shares with other groups in Mallorca, such as the Obra Cultural Balear. But for every ideology of a distinct type, there is another which opposes it.

While researching the background to Pinyol Vermell, I came across a reference to it on the blog for the MSR in the Balearics. And what is the MSR? The letters stand for Movimiento Social Republicano. It was at those celebrations in Palma - to offer a real alternative to the drive towards independence (its words). If you want a flavour of where it comes from, then the fact that it is associated with the British National Party tells you all you need to know.

The MSR seems to have only recently sprung up in Mallorca. As a party it has existed since the start of the century in Spain and defines its politics in terms of the so-called Third Position, i.e. beyond the politics of left or right but usually considered to be neo-fascist. In its declaration on its blog, it says, among other things, that it defends the languages of the Balearics, such as Mallorquín, and Castilian. It is the same position as that espoused by the local leader of the Partido Popular, José Ramón Bauzá.

While he himself is not extreme, Bauzá's stance on language can be styled as being so. It is also not without danger, as it gives succour to more extreme views, be they of the MSR or those of the independence movement who flatly reject his opposition to Catalan.

There is a sense in which battle lines are being drawn ahead of local elections this spring which promise to be more interesting than normal. Or should this promise be a threat? There is an intensification of more radical opinion, one to which, knowingly or unknowingly, Pinyol Vermell has added. At a time when ETA - and all that it represents not just in terms of terrorism but also separatism - is on its last legs, it was provocative for it to have invited Riera. She may not have spoken about ETA, but her links were sufficient to raise temperatures. Her mere presence can only have added fuel to the views of groups who oppose independence, such as the MSR.

Politics in Mallorca are many things, but extreme is not one of them. Until now. This may be the year when politics get a bit tasty.


Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.