Last Friday was the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia. To mark the occasion, the Albuhaira secondary school in Muro had hung out a rainbow flag. On the Thursday evening the flag was set on fire.
I do recognise arguments regarding trans issues and about the place that LGTBI+ has in school education, but I stand by the belief in majority opinion that will have been scandalised by this event (and which the town hall believed).
The first political party in Muro to voice its outrage was Més. Councillor Miquel Àngel Tortell wondered what was happening at the school. "We've had a wave of proto-fascists, a boycott of a play which dealt with victims of the Franco repression. And now the burning of the flag identifying the LGTBI community."
A Més councillor at the Council of Mallorca, Rosa Cursach, then echoed what was said locally by seeking to place some of the blame on the Partido Popular government and ruling administration at the Council. The PP have been wrong, Cursach implied, in having allowed their equality and diversity policies to have been influenced by Vox, thus "opening the way to a denialist message". "This is fuelling a false conflict which, in reality, does not represent Mallorcan society."
What about Muro society? The mayor, Miquel Porquer, is from El Pi, a party of the centre-right. He expressed his "disbelief" at the lack of tolerance that the incident had demonstrated. "We are a municipality with good coexistence. We have a commission for the prevention of violence that works very well. We cannot understand this attack."
If Més, rather unnecessarily to be honest, had sought to make political capital, the PP issued a condemnation. Marga Ballester, who is Muro's deputy mayor, said: "This regrettable event goes against the freedom of the people and dignity of the LGTBI community, which has the full support of the PP in Muro."
The school called on the people of Muro to hang out their own banners to show their support and the town hall called a rally to demonstrate a rejection of what had happened. The town hall was, therefore, firm in its view. But this brings me to a separate matter for which there is surely no doubting the existence of majority opinion - opposition to bullfighting.
The town hall has approved the specifications for the management of the municipal bullring - 'La Monumental' - which it acquired some years ago ahead of it declaring that Muro was a bullfighting municipality. These specifications include provision for at least one bullfight event per annum; it will have to be during the Sant Joan fiestas in June. The usual terms for this event would be to present the necessary documentation no later than May 15. Given that this clearly couldn't be complied with this year, there will be no need for advance public presentation and consultation, merely a deadline of June 15 for confirming the details of the event.
As I understand it, the period of public consultation is meant to be mandatory, but the town hall - in apparent haste to ensure a bullfight for the 2024 fiestas (there hasn't been any bullfight in Muro since 2017) - has bypassed this. Be this as it may, as more important is the fact that the town hall is so obsessed with having bullfights. It's clear what will happen. Come the day and there will be protests, putting additional burden on police and Guardia Civil. Particular demands are placed on both forces by the fiestas. Why add to these with something for which there is not a majority support?
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You ask; “why?” Andrew. But you already know the answer to this, as will everyone else. They are idiots. I think Spain should go the whole hog (so to speak) about Ancient Roman influenced gladiatorial entertainment and put some of these politicians in with some lions perhaps? You’d get plenty of paying punters for that, I’m sure. ;)
For me this is a barbaric act on a defenceless animal. Those that like this display , give me cause for concern. Build a huge entertainment venue for music, shows etc. On that site.