Comment

In a demonstration of everything which journalism should not be, the sensationalist German daily Bild has started a campaign against the tourist tax with the intention of involving the Spanish monarchy in the dispute. The statements of the secretary general of the German right reproduced in the tabloid could not be more unfortunate and recall those which a few years ago tried to convert Majorca into a German “land.” The citizens of the German Federal Republic are quite free to choose the place where they spend their holidays without the need for anyone to indicate criteria for selection. They have generally been welcomed in Majorca, even though, as is logical, nobody has silenced the problems which some of them cause or the challenges which derive from real estate investment. The attempts of Bild and the German Christian Democrats to try to influence in an internal matter of the Balearics, approved by an absolute majority in Parliament, are unjust and nonsense. What's more, they could have an effect on some groups of Majorcans which is neither desired nor desirable: the appearance of elements who may promote aversion towards German visitors. At the same time, from a strategic point of view, it is the worst that could have happened to opponents of the tourist tax. The louder the cries of Bild, the more supporters the tourist tax will gain. Here, and Bild and the CDU should bear this in mind, the immense majority of the population support the tourist tax because it represents an instrument fundamental for the preservation of the island, an interest which we suppose that Bild must share with its readers and the CDU with its voters who also come here every year. The words of the president of the Majorcan Tourism Board, so radically opposed to the tourist tax, clearly show that the German paper has made a mistake. Regarding the secretary general of the German right, it would be well for the Spanish Foreign Secretary to remind him of some principles of neighbourliness between states which are partners in the construction of Europe.