Latest news with #DanielPardo
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
The male Greta Thunberg who's masterminding furious protests against British tourists in Spain: Jaume Pujol, 16, is as naive and Left-wing as his Swedish inspiration and equally determined to wreak havoc
Sauntering through the tourist-thronged streets of Palma in his shorts this week, he looked like any other Majorcan teenager who had just finished his end of year exams and was looking forward to the summer break. Yet, as I discovered when we sat down for coffee, Jaume Pujol has more on his mind than beach barbecues and bathing in the Med with his classmates. At just 16, this callow but charismatic activist, who is inspired by climate change ingenue Greta Thunberg (describing her as his 'reference point') is among the prime instigators of the anti-tourism revolution sweeping through our favourite European holiday destinations. With his unvarnished sincerity, easy eloquence and Latino pop-star looks, he is fast becoming the nascent movement's poster-boy. Jaume's high-profile role became evident last Sunday, when 'de-touristification' demonstrations were staged in towns and cities stretching from the Balearic and Canary Islands to northern Spain, Portugal and Italy. They were co-ordinated and planned by an umbrella organisation called the Southern European Network Against Tourism, whose radical leader, Daniel Pardo, 49, is based in Barcelona, where the ugliest scenes erupted. Angry protesters there clashed with riot police protecting buildings from vandalism and alfresco restaurant diners from being squirted with giant water-pistols (their symbolic new weapon). Yesterday a new video emerged showing a Barcelona hotel worker, incensed by the disruption, bravely grabbing a pistol and firing back. Public outrage also reached boiling point in Palma, where Jaume, an organiser of the Majorcan group Menys Turisme, Mes Vida, was in the thick of things. Last Saturday, in a spectacular prequel to the rally, he provided a live YouTube commentary as comrades held up a sightseeing bus, plastered it with slogans and detonated yellow smoke-bombs beside it, terrifying the besieged passengers. Then on Sunday h,e took to the platform to read out the group's three-page 'manifesto', parts of which sounded more like a revolutionary Socialist charter than a blueprint for a gentler and less frenetic way of life. 'The tourism model, whether luxury or mass, chokes us year after year, grabs economic and residential resources, destroys the territory, exploits the working class, contributes to climate crisis, and shatters our communities,' declared Jaume, cheered by either 30,000 or 8,000 supporters, depending on whether his estimate, or that of the Majorcan authorities, is accurate. Spain's holiday industry was designed to make the controlling magnates richer and their workers poorer, he argued. It had reached the stage where young Majorcans could no longer afford to live on their own island because foreign buyers had sent property prices skyrocketing. Public services are overstretched, roads jammed, the Majorcan culture and language in danger of extinction. Emulating his Nordic mentor, 'The Boy Greta' also denounced 'Western and Zionist imperialism', and urged solidarity with Palestine. What that had to do with the evils of tourism is anyone's guess. When I asked Jaume how he would achieve his dream of diversifying Majorca's economy away from its reliance on tourism, he offered few plausible solutions. Though he wasn't so naive as to advocate the total eradication of a multi-billion industry that directly or indirectly provides a livelihood for 90 per cent of the island's one million residents, he seemed to envisage a return to the time Majorca was a sleepy, self-sufficient outcrop of farmers and leather makers. This is not to be too unkind. We were all young and idealistic once. Dramatic footage taken from outside a hotel shows an agitated worker as he confronted protesters who squirted him with water guns Jaume, who formed his strong social conscience when his trade unionist grandfather took him on marches, is in many ways an admirable champion of his cause, sincere in his desire to preserve his island's natural beauty, much of which remains intact, and improve the lives of its people. And he evidently possesses a matador's courage. Filing out of his high school in Palma, a few months ago, he was confronted by a chilling threat daubed in big red letters beside the entrance door. 'Te vamos a matar!' it read – Spanish for 'We are going to kill you!' Beside it, a sinister-looking peep-hole had been drawn, warning the intended victim that they were being watched. Having received similarly sobering messages via social media, Jaume knew it was aimed at him and now takes precautions when moving around, such as asking his parents (who live in a middle-class Palma neighbourhood) to meet him off the bus. He has informed the police, but doesn't wish to make a formal complaint because, he says, he distrusts 'institutions'. Many of Jaume's concerns are undeniably justified – to accept that, one only needed to see the scrum of tourists clamouring for entry into Palma's cathedral this week, and the day-long jams on its approach roads. Yet critics claim there is a disquieting political undercurrent to this volatile campaign. While the Southern European Network, the organisation behind the protests, denies any political leanings, its leader Daniel Pardo is staunchly Left-wing, as are many of the group's goals, and some believe the struggle is being driven by Socialist ideologues. This week, when we contacted Pardo at the 'object borrowing library' (a community enterprise where people can borrow anything from tools to furniture to bicycles for a small fee) which he runs in Barcelona, he vehemently denied the protests were Left-wing, saying they were supported by people of all political stripes and from many walks of life. Whatever the truth, as the 'tourism de-growth' movement's appealing new face, Jaume, who has just finished sitting the Spanish equivalent of GCSEs, appears to be in dangerous waters, claiming that those threatening to murder him are far-Right fanatics. By way of proof, he shows me screen grabs from his stalkers' social media profiles: a Nazi salute and the eagle insignia from the flag of General Francisco Franco, the fascist dictator who ruled Spain from the late 1930s to his death in 1975. (It was Franco who sparked Spain's tourism boom in the 1950s, building dozens of new resorts along its virgin coastline and opening the country to foreign visitors, a policy that restored its international reputation and saved it from bankruptcy). Whoever is behind the threats to Jaume, the latest one was more veiled. Hours after he took centre stage last weekend, he received a message saying: 'You are everywhere, and we see you. We won't do anything. But be careful.' He admits to being ruffled, but says such tactics will never make him withdraw from the fight. In fact, his disturbing message to Britons bound for Majorca this summer is that he and his cohorts – who operate in small cells with different duties – are now plotting further 'actions'. He refuses to say what these might entail or where they plan to strike, but insists holidaymakers have nothing to fear because they will be directed towards the Balearic Islands' government, whom they accuse of failing to tackle the spiralling nightmare of excessive tourism. This may be true, but his revelation will inevitably make some consider cancelling their holidays and going elsewhere. For as we saw last weekend, when feelings are running this high, matters can quickly get out of hand. Nonetheless, one doesn't have to agree with the protesters' methods to empathise with them, and revisiting Majorca – a long-time holiday haunt for my family – after a gap of several years, I could well understand their sentiments. Ever the adventurer, my mother began taking me and my sister on Spanish holidays in the early 1960s, a decade before cheap package tours introduced millions of lower and middle-class Britons such as us to the Costas. Among the first places we stayed was Peguera, then a quaint little village in a cove framed by pine-clad mountains, a short drive along the coast from Palma. Our hotel, the Bella Colina, was the first to open there, in 1953. Majorca back then was considered rather exclusive and everything about the holiday was very formal. Our favourite waiter, Bartolome, wore a crisp white livery and addressed the six-year-old me as Senor David. Anyone found misbehaving, or even taking their shirt off, in the surrounding streets risked being arrested by Franco's green-uniformed Civil Guards. Returning this week, it was sweet to find the dear old Bella Colina – now marketed as a 'vintage hotel' and displaying original artefacts such as a black-and-white TV and clunky phone – still thriving. Yet the rest of Peguera was utterly unrecognisable. Colonised largely by Germans, with a few Brits, French and Scandinavians, it now has its own Oktoberfest, and the main strip is full of tourist tat shops, gaudy bars, kebab houses and a sunglasses store called Bling Bling. Sixty years ago, we watched fishermen mending nets on the shore and black-shawled women knitting on their doorsteps. Today every vestige of local tradition seems to have disappeared. In his office near the Bella Colina, property agent Alex Hervas explained what had happened to Peguera. It was a story that could have applied to almost every Majorcan coastal town or village. During the 1970s, the first foreign settlers had snapped up new flats and villas along the seafront, he said, and when there was no room left there, complexes began sprouting up in the foothills of the nearby mountain, Pico Na Bruta. The most recent development there, with 36 luxury flats in six blocks, went on sale recently, with prices starting in the high hundreds of thousands. Belatedly waking up to the need to protect the mountain scenery, planners blocked further expansion. With property in Peguera now at a premium, prices had gone 'crazy', Mr Hervas said. 'We have Germans who come in and say they don't care about the cost. One guy was recently willing to pay €700,000 for a tiny, 50 square metre apartment near the sea. 'So, where's the limit? The limit is only the amount people will offer, and it now comes down to first come, first served. 'But then, many of these properties remain empty for most of the year because the owners live mostly in Germany. I know of a development in (nearby) Cala Fornells where there are only about 10 people living year-round in 100 apartments.' Many flats and houses are let to holidaymakers – often illegally as unlicensed Airbnbs, he says, voicing one of the activists' main complaints. True locals haven't a hope of buying a home and find it equally hard to rent, because rates are exorbitant and landlords prefer foreign tenants to Majorcans, who have a reputation for squatting when they default on payments. For many young people, the only option is to move away to the mainland or emigrate, he says, adding 'we are among the few Peguera survivors.' Does he, then, support the protest movement? 'No, this is nobody's fault but our own: we've put a price on our island that only foreign buyers can afford', he says, implying Majorcans must bear the consequences uncomplainingly. For all the fury we saw in last Sunday's demo, most other people I spoke to – taxi drivers, shopkeepers, even restaurant and hotel staff who typically earn just €18,000 a year – agreed with him. Much as they struggle to pay their bills, much as they would love to empty the buses, roads and beaches, and much as they resent their Fat Cat bosses' exorbitant wealth, they weren't ready to bite the hand that feeds them. Like it or not, I was told, tourism is Majorca's lifeblood and, after the barren years of the Covid pandemic, islanders are alive to the disaster that would befall them should the revolutionaries drive holidaymakers away: into the welcoming resorts of North Africa or Turkey, perhaps. Eduardo Gamero, president of the Majorcan tourism board, is determined that won't happen. While he recognises that the protesters have justifiable grievances, and that tourism must have 'limits', he advocates more measured steps to control it, such as capping the number of tourism beds, and allowing only three cruise liners to dock in Palma each day (on Thursday, the harbour was cluttered with these floating cities). Each year, 2.3 million Britons descend on Majorca. Yet they would be wise to prepare for the uncomfortable surprises Jaume Pujol and his fellow holiday-poopers have in store for them as they bronze themselves.
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
My day with Spanish anti-tourist activists giving Britons a soaking
Not long after we set off from near Gaudí's house, we came across our first target: a Louis Vuitton store. After one activist climbed a ladder to deliver a political speech, protesters, including a child, began spraying the store front. One scribbled 'Free Palestine' on the wall before a red smoke bomb engulfed us all. This was supposed to be an anti-tourism protest in Barcelona, one of many co-ordinated across southern Europe on Sunday. I had joined for the day to witness what it was like to be on the other side and see the sweeping pushback against over-tourism through the lens of locals. After making a short political stand, the Assembly for Tourism Degrowth moved on, with the tourist magnet of the Sagrada Familia church in our sights. I was now armed with a water pistol I'd been given by a figurehead in the group, Daniel Pardo, who was leading us past the Generator Hostel. Two young women slapped 'Tourists Go Home' stickers on the windows. Mr Pardo, seeing a window of opportunity, ordered the demonstration to stop. Next thing I knew, water guns were trained on the hostel entrance. For the tourists inside, it was initially amusing. Then came the tape. Activists began crossing the front entrance repeatedly, symbolically 'barring' entry with red-and-white ribbon. It was too much for one hostel employee, who stormed out shouting in frustration. Protesters sprayed him with their water pistols as he tore through the tape, grabbed one of the guns, and returned fire. A brief scuffle broke out, with pushing and shoving, before he was eventually pulled back inside. Moments later, another activist emerged from the crowd and picked up where the soaking had left off. He kicked a smoke bomb into the hostel, where horrified tourists – including children – looked on. The group moved on again, this time towards their biggest prize: the Sagrada Familia, a symbolic target for the protesters given it is visited by five million tourists every year. Police blocked their path and even officers were caught by the odd squirt from water guns. After a 30-minute stand-off, the group was allowed to proceed to within sight, but not within reach, of the famous basilica. On the way, protesters targeted outdoor restaurant tables. Gabriel and Rachel, tourists from Los Angeles, were among those caught in the crossfire. While Gabriel sat over his soggy avocado lunch, he told me that it was annoying but insisted it wouldn't stop him returning to Barcelona. At this point, I should make it clear I did not fire my water gun. Many protesters insist their fight isn't with the tourists themselves, but with the political and economic model that they say allows mass tourism to overwhelm their city. Rents in Barcelona have soared and neighbourhoods once filled with families are now dominated by short-term lets, particularly Airbnbs. Not only this but many local shops have vanished, replaced by souvenir stalls and endless Turkish cafes, particularly around areas such as La Rambla and Poblenou. Residents say elderly neighbours are struggling to afford food and bills while landlords and corporations cash in. 'We have a big problem with housing in Barcelona. Some people are lucky just to eat or turn on the lights,' said Francisca García, who joined the protest. For groups like hers, tourism is not just a nuisance but a form of 'economic colonisation,' where quality of life is sacrificed for the comfort of short-term visitors. Their goal, they insist, is not better tourism but less of it. That may be true for most activists but their actions sometimes blur the line. The most common chant that echoed throughout the day was: 'Tourists go home, refugees welcome.' Message may be getting through At one point, a protester shouted into a microphone that Gaudí built the Sagrada Familia for locals, not tourists who leave it looking like a 'shit-tip'. At the end of the protest, when the Assembly read out its manifesto, the language veered towards conspiracy, accusing authorities of 'brutal gentrification' and 'population replacement'. 'For more than two decades, we have seen a large part of the neighbourhood being evicted and practically its entire old town demolished, in a savage attempt to replace its population,' the manifesto reads. Their message, however messy, may be getting through. Barcelona's mayor has announced plans to ban all short-term tourist rentals by 2029. More than 10,000 flats are currently licensed for tourists, and the city hopes to return many of these to locals. 'We are confronting what we believe is Barcelona's largest problem,' said mayor Jaume Collboni. The movement is no longer a fringe concern, with protests also taking place across southern Europe on Sunday in Madrid, Palma, Venice and Lisbon. Tourists are undoubtedly starting to take notice – it's becoming harder to ignore. Even away from the protests, my hotel made a point of proudly advertising its commitment to 'sustainable tourism' in the room, as though it were a key part of its appeal. Sander and Luke Dingle, visiting from Florida, told me their hotel had posted warnings about the protest but they weren't deterred. 'We'll keep travelling around Spain, we're going to Madrid in a few days and we'll probably come back to Europe next year,' they said. Indeed, tourism in Barcelona is still booming. More than 11.7 million tourists visited the city in 2024, a 5 per cent increase on the previous year. The Spanish government in recent days has also approved a €3.2 billion expansion of the city's airport, indicating there will be no sign of the industry slowing down. It seems inevitable that tourism will continue to thrive in Barcelona but if today is anything to go by, the activists won't be letting up. Visitors might just have to pack an extra waterproof next to their factor 50.
Sky News
6 days ago
- Sky News
Anti-tourism protesters - some armed with water pistols - call for change in Spain, Italy and Portugal
Protesters in Spain, Italy and Portugal are calling for a curb on mass tourism - with Barcelona organisers telling demonstrators to bring water pistols to shoot at holidaymakers. Campaigners say excessive levels of tourism are forcing locals out of affordable housing, raising the cost of living and making the city centres unusable. The latest in a growing number of protests in recent years, anti-mass tourism demonstrations were planned in Barcelona as well as in seven other Spanish cities, including Granada, Palma and Ibiza. Protests were also seen in the Portuguese capital Lisbon, as well as in Italian hotspots Venice, Genova, Palermo, Milan and Naples, according to announcements issued by several of the organising groups. It comes after Sky News reported on makeshift camps on the island of Ibiza, where dozens live with no electricity, water or waste services. The Menys Turisme Mes Vida (Less Tourism More Life) campaign group had told us: "We say enough to the destruction of the territory, to the precariousness, to the housing crisis, to the loss of rights." 10:30 Daniel Pardo, one of the organisers of the Barcelona protest, told the Associated Press: "It is very likely the water pistols will be back. "In fact, we encourage people to bring their own." Txema Escorsa, who lives in a two-bedroom apartment in Barcelona's residential Gràcia neighbourhood, also told the news agency: "It is tough for me to imagine what to do next. "If I leave, will I be contributing to Barcelona losing its essence that comes from its locals? But there comes a time when I'm fed up." He added that he has stopped using Airbnb when travelling, saying that "in the end, you realise that this is taking away housing from people". Jaime Rodriguez de Santiago, Airbnb's general director for Spain and Portugal, said that "a lot of our politicians have found an easy scapegoat to blame for the inefficiencies of their policies in terms of housing and tourism over the last 10, 15, 20 years". "If you look at the over-tourism problem in Spain, it has been brewing for decades, and probably since the 60s," he added. Mr Rodríguez de Santiago noted that hotels are still the leading accommodation for tourists - with hotels in Barcelona accounting for 20 million tourists in 2024, compared with 12 million who used homes, according to local data. He also pointed out Barcelona's mayor Jaume Collboni backing the expansion of the city's international airport. International travel spending in Europe is expected to rise by 11% to £617bn this year, with Spain and France among the countries set to receive record numbers of tourists. Spain hosted a record 94 million international visitors in 2024, compared with 83 million in 2019. According to studies cited by its economy minister, the country could see as many as 100 million tourists this year.
New York Times
12-06-2025
- New York Times
Traveling to Europe? Here's What to Expect From Tourism Protests on June 15.
Protests against overtourism have become a reliable sign of summer's arrival in southern Europe. Already this year, major demonstrations have taken place in the Canary Islands and on Majorca, in Spain. But on Sunday, the protests appear to be entering a new phase, when coordinated demonstrations will take place in tourist hot spots in Spain, Portugal, Italy and, possibly, France. Last year, protesters at a July 6 march in Barcelona squirted tourists with water pistols, making international headlines. Building on that momentum, the upcoming demonstrations are intended to draw attention to the negative impact of what organizers call the touristification (the emphasis on tourism instead of local quality of life) of European cities. The protests aim to keep pressure on governments to address the problems generated by tourism, including rising rents and housing shortages, environmental damage and neighborhoods stripped of essential services for residents. Planning for the coordinated protests began in earnest in April, during a weekend-long Barcelona workshop for activists that drew representatives from across Spain, as well as from France, Portugal and Italy, to strategize about how best to achieve their shared goal. 'What we are calling for,' said Daniel Pardo, the spokesman for the Southern European Network Against Touristification, which organized the workshop, 'is tourism degrowth.' What places are involved? In Spain, marches are planned in Barcelona, San Sebastían, Granada, Majorca, Minorca and Ibiza. There are also protests scheduled in Lisbon and Genoa, Italy. Activists in other destinations, including Marseille, may also hold demonstrations. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Daily Mirror
28-04-2025
- Daily Mirror
Police intervene as protesters target tourists with new tactic in Spanish hotspot
Tourist aboard a sight-seeing bus in Barcelona were blocked and squirted with water by protesters. The organizers of many of the anti-tourism protests held in 2024 in Mallorca launched a protest in the Northern Spanish city on Sunday. The Catalan Police were called when the campaigners blocked a bus packed with tourists close to the famous Sagrada Familia. Members of Més turisme, Menys vida (More Tourism, Less Life) launched the action after holding an international press conference. After stopping the bus in its tracks for several minutes, the protesters doused it with water pistols. According to OK Diario, police dispersed some of the activists and detained others. This tourism-phobic group from Mallorca carried out several pressure actions against tourists last year, both in Palma and on iconic beaches like Caló des Moro, as well as two demonstrations with thousands of people protesting against tourism in the streets of the Balearic capital. Fed up locals in holiday hotspots across Spain, Italy, France and Portugal have refused to rule out targeting terminal buildings to deter holidaymakers this summer. They say mass tourism has fuelled soaring rents and a lack of affordable homes - as accommodation is snapped up for tourist lets and land bought for building resorts. The alert comes as millions of us are planning sunshine getaways. At the Més turisme, Menys vida summit, protestor Elena Boschi yesterday told the Mirror: 'We want tourists to have some level of fear about the situation – without fear there is no change.' The English language teacher, 46, a campaigner from Genoa, on the Italian riviera, continued: 'Our cities and regions are not for sale and there is an urgent need to limit the growth of tourism, demand a change of course and decide on a path to tourism de-growth as a way out.' When questioned by our reporter about demonstrations at airports, which have been mooted by activists, leader Daniel Pardo added: 'It is a possibility – but, it is difficult to say because each territory will decide how they want to take action, there is no one set strategy.' Issues relating to tourism have been felt particularly keenly by those living on the Canary Islands. In 2024, the Canary Islands saw a record 17.9 million visitors, a combination of international and domestic tourists. This included 15.5 million international tourists, a 10% increase from the previous year, and around 1.8 million domestic tourists from mainland Spain. This year activists - who argue that house prices are too high, roads too busy and the way of life being eroded by mass-tourism - have pledged to target popular tourist hotspots, disrupt public events and "confront political leaders". A fresh campaign is set to commence from May 18. "From now on, we will take our fight to the very spaces where their predatory model is perpetuated," declared activist group Canarias tiene un límite (The Canaries Have a Limit)."
