Worldwide Outrage After Attack on Tourists on Barcelona's Ramblas
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FREE COPY THE NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHERN SPAIN City fills with colour for its Official market leader Audited by PGD/OJD annual feria August 18th to 24th 2017 www.surinenglish.com The largest street party in southern Spain News 2 What To Do 34 continues in Malaga until Comment 22 My Home 45 Lifestyle 23 Sport 49 Saturday night 28&29 Food & Drink 44 Classified 54 in English Health & Beauty 39 Pastimes 62 Malaga taxi drivers call off strike after days of chaos Politicians have promised to step up controls over private hire firms P2&3 PP set to return to power in Marbella after San Pedro politicians say they will support no confidence vote in current coalition P10&11 Inland town Teba prepares to welcome Scottish visitors for its Ambulances at the scene of the attack in Barcelona. :: EFE annual Douglas celebrations next week P26&27 Malaga CF face first La Worldwide outrage after attack on Liga fixture on Monday after a poor preseason campaign with only one tourists on Barcelona’s Ramblas win in nine games P50&51 At least 13 people Crowds fled in panic after a man ple are believed dead and many driving a white van entered the top more injured. People in the area, believed dead after of Barcelona’s famous Las Ramblas mostly tourists, fled the scene or boulevard and drove along it, barricaded themselves in shops, white van mowed knocking down pedestrians for hotels and restaurants. Police closed about 600 metres yesterday eve- off much of the city centre in their down crowds ning (Thursday). At least 13 peo- search for the attackers. P20 22222222 August 18th to 24th 2017 NEWS SUR IN ENGLISH Malaga’s taxi strike ends for now after four days of surprise chaos Taxi drivers have ers staging an impromptu vote, claiming that Cabify was illegally given politicians until taking business from them and de- 15 September to manding a meeting with the city’s mayor, Francisco de la Torre. begin to address The taxi drivers had already been their grievances incensed by an email sent by Cabify to its independent private hire driv- over competition ers in Madrid urging some of them from Cabify to come to Malaga during the peak period of the fair to cope with de- :: SUR mand. Cabify says that 30 to 35 ex- MALAGA. The striking Malaga taxi tra cars took up the offer, doubling drivers went back to work on Thurs- the number it already had in the day morning, ending a four-day sur- city. prise protest that caused unexpected mayhem to thousands of people’s Expensive to buy a licence journeys at a peak time of year. Taxi drivers’ unions claimed that Following a meeting in Seville this was a provocation, saying that with the Junta de Andalucía, the while they are tightly regulated and On Monday afternoon striking taxi drivers converged on the city centre during the third day of the drivers voted in a secret ballot late often have to invest up to 200,000 on Wednesday night to end their euros when licences change hands strike. privately, drivers of private hire ions have condemned the violence. At the Junta meeting they were cars, which customers reserve Meeting with the taxi drivers given assurances that the regional through online applications, pay on Sunday, Malaga’s mayor said government would do more to regu- hardly anything for licences and are that he had managed to get Cabify late and control the private hire ac- less controlled. to withdraw half the outside cars tivities of companies like Cabify and They also allege that Cabify cars as goodwill, but drivers said this Uber, who use new technology to have been flouting the law and us- was not enough, wanting to see capture clients, and compete un- ing taxi ranks to pick up passengers all removed. fairly, according to the drivers. and also plying for business freely Meanwhile the strike spread to in the streets. other Costa towns, with some taxis Totally unexpected action Cabify representatives denied the stopping work or refusing to bring The stoppage by the over 1,300 taxis accusations and countered the taxi people into the airport or city. in Malaga city, who also serve the drivers’ arguments, saying that they A few drivers from other parts of region’s main airport and other key are totally legal, the number of their Spain also travelled to Malaga to transport hubs, began suddenly on vehicles is tiny and that, during “show solidarity” with the strikers. Saturday night when the drivers no- ‘feria’, there is more than enough After the meeting with the Junta, ticed private hire cars from Cabify demand for everyone. drivers have given politicians until using a drop-off zone at Malaga’s They have also reported to police a follow-up meeting on 15 Septem- annual fair, which has been running alleged intimidation and damage to ber to take steps to increase the this week. The zone is reserved for cars during the strike and the assault monitoring of private hire cars be- licensed taxis and local buses. of a Cabify drivers’ representative fore deciding the next stage of their Anger quickly spread, with driv- at Malaga airport. Taxi drivers’ un- Taxi drivers surround a Cabify car in the city centre. :: ÑITO SALAS protest. August 18th to 24th 2017 3 SUR IN ENGLISH NEWS Tourist industry counts the cost of taxi stoppage and warns over future Hoteliers have labelled the strike as “totally out of proportion” after many visitors to the Costa del Sol were left stranded this week :: SUR MALAGA. The surprise industrial action by taxi drivers at the height of the summer season and the start of Malaga’s massive annual fair did not go down well with the Costa del Sol tourist industry, which is enjoying a record year. The head of the Costa hoteliers’ association, Luis Callejón Suñe, stated that the protest was “totally out of proportion” and “unjusti- fied”, adding that it had done nei- ther Malaga nor the taxi drivers any favours. He said: “It’s as if we [the ho- teliers] went on strike over the rise in illegal holiday apartments and told our guests we couldn’t take Queues for taxis at Malaga airport this week. :: Ñ. SALAS feria, aiming to block key avenues for a while. :: ÑITO SALAS care of them. We’ve got to adapt to the new reality and that’s what didn’t speak English. they’ve got to do.” Dozens of passengers pleaded New ways to book a Taxi drivers feel the added com- The Malaga business association “It’s as if we went on with the drivers to take them. ride: the challenge to petitive pressure from new start- (CEM) criticised the violence but strike... and told our “There are children here, please take up VTCs is unfair, while others ac- also urged the authorities to take guests we couldn’t take us to our hotel,” said one woman. the ‘monopoly’ of cuse the taxi drivers of trying to a long-term view. “We need rules A passenger from Manchester ex- preserve a virtual monopoly in to regulate [the private hire sec- care of them,” said plained how everyone was trying traditional taxis the face of changing consumer tor] nationally so there’s equal com- hoteliers’ spokesman to contact friends and family to come habits. petition,” a spokesperson said. and get them. “We’re defending our The taxi drivers’ strike this week VTC drivers in Spain, whether rights,” said one of the drivers. “And is the latest in a long line of pro- veteran or startup, can currently Passengers’ outrage where are mine?” replied one newly tests from the taxi industry only spend 20 per cent of their The industry’s fears over the effect “There are children arrived visitor. worldwide against young start-up time working outside of their on tourism was best exemplified here, please take By the next morning things were companies like Cabify (a Spanish home region and, in theory at by the reaction of passengers ar- us to our hotel,” said calmer with waits of around 30 min- brand) and Uber. Their private least, national law still says that riving at Malaga airport, the main utes for the 40 taxis on duty hire vehicles make use of down- there can only be one VTC for airport for southern Spain. Initially one passenger By now recent arrivals were mak- loadable apps so customers can re- every 30 taxis in an area. How- taxi drivers agreed to keep serving ing other arrangements, although serve trips, normally at cheaper ever on the Costa del Sol there is the terminal, but this policy was many were nervous about what rates than traditional taxis. How- already one for every 5.9 taxis. quickly dropped. On Sunday, the taxis which were maintaining agreed would happen at the end of their ever drivers in the long-estab- The national government says it first day without taxis waiting at minimum services, such as taking holiday. Upstairs there were long lished private hire sector (known can do nothing to stop this as the the terminal, travellers arriving off the elderly and babies and giving hold-ups in the drop-off zone for pri- as VTCs in Spain) cannot pick up Spanish courts keep finding in late-night flights, when public rides to hospitals. There was no writ- vate cars. “This is a disaster for tour- in the street nor use taxi ranks. the VTCs’ favour. transport had finished, were faced ten information and only one air- ism,” said Michael, a Briton about to with a taxi rank with just a few port staff member on duty, who catch his bus to Marbella.