“Binge drinking” triumph

PALMA'S City Hall said yesterday that it did everything in its power to make sure that the mass “binge drinking” session which took place over last Saturday night and Sunday morning along the Paseo Marítimo, didn't become “a battle field.” Transport and Citizen Safety councillor, Alvaro Gijon, praised the work of the security forces, including the local police, civil defence groups, the Ports Authority, emergency service volunteers and the Red Cross. He added that out of the 7'500 youngsters that attended the botellón, there were only three arrests for vandalism and two for violence. Behaviour on the whole, however, was exemplary. If there was a complaint to make, it was about people's respect for keeping the area litter-free. In spite of extra bins placed along the Paseo Marítimo, “there appeared to be more rubbish scattered outside the containers than within them.” The councillor said he thought that the next similar occasion which is planned for this coming Saturday is not going to be as well attended as it falls over the Easter holiday and pointed out that ”policing” such events costs the taxpayer a great deal of money. The numbers of young people attending the street party last weekend exceeded even the wildest expectations. At 1am in the early hours of Sunday, civil defence volunteers who had taken on the responsibility of establishing a headcount were talking about figures in excess of 4'000 people. But only one hour later, a surge of revellers swelled these numbers to a throng of 7'000 which partied the night away without serious incident. Witnesses stated that from Saturday 11pm onwards, young people carrying drink in plastic bags were starting to congregate on Palma's seafront. With the event having been advertised some weeks in advance, there were plenty of people determined to join in “the fun”. The behaviour of the young people of Palma (and those who had joined them from outlying areas) was evidence that generally speaking, they can be trusted to act as responsible adults. The boundaries of where they could congregate and party were respected. Of course, there were the occasional “extremists” who were sick and dirtied the walkways and the sea, or who climbed trees and sat on cars in the parking lots. Some were chanting “bottelón(!)” so loudly that it resembled a protest march in Iraq. The Night Bus was working flat out along the Paseo throughout the event carrying revellers backwards and forwards, and the Red Cross handed out leaflets on the dangers of drinking along with free condoms.