DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY DECEMBER 22, 2011

JÚZCAR STAYS BLUE AND HITS WORLD HEADLINES


By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Júzcar is a small municipality in the Serranía de Ronda. On Sunday its residents voted for it to stay blue. The news was flashed around the world and appeared on many TV news programmes as the village of the Smurfs lives on.

This remarkable story started earlier this year in June with the Sony film company. They wanted a village, somewhere in the world, to be painted blue and to be the home of the Smurfs for the promotion of the new movie – The Smurfs 3D. They decided on Júzcar, just one of the many famous white villages of Andalucía, and in so doing changed the life and wealth of the entire valley.

Júzcar and the other surrounding villages of the Genal Valley are not on the main road but off the beaten track. So the fact the mayor of Júzcar had to hire three additional local police officers to control the increase in traffic shows just what an impact the promotion of the movie had. People came to see the village with its nameplate ‘Primer Pueblo Pitufo’, eat in its bars and restaurants, stay in its hotels and guest houses, buy its local produce and take part in Smurf themed events.

The PSOE mayor, David Fernández, decreed that once the Spanish general election was out of the way villagers would vote on whether to stay blue or revert to white. Sony had made it clear it would pick up the 60,000 euros bill for the repaint. The debate was should Júzcar stay as the village of the Smurfs or revert back to being a sleepy backwater.

On Sunday 141 people voted to stay blue with just 33 saying they wanted to be white. Six people sent in blank votes. A total of 250 people were allowed to vote; those who are on the town hall census along with people who own businesses in the village. Voting was from 10.00 to 18.00 and 73.6 per cent of those eligible to vote turned out.

Speaking after the vote David Fernández pointed out that his village had been transformed into an example of sustainable tourism in the Ronda region. “We have been visited by around 80,000 people. We are in times of crisis and these initiatives are very necessary, the village can remain blue during this time.”

So if the children are bored over the holiday season or you just fancy a drive, why not head up to the village of Júzcar for a unique blue day out.

CHARITY SLASHED

The Catholic charity Cáritas which helps the homeless and those in need in the parishes throughout Spain has seen a dramatic collapse in its income in Ronda. Up to the end of November 48,600 euros had been received compared with 131,000 euros last year. Seventy per cent of the funds are used to purchase food stuffs and necessary household items for needy families.

JOBS STIMULUS

The regional government is investing seven million euros in developing projects to create employment in the Serranía de Ronda. This will see the formation of at least a dozen employment schools and workshops next year. Funding will go to the municipalities of the Genal – Guadiaro – Serranía consortium which excludes Ronda. It is hoped that over 220 unemployed people will benefit from the schemes.

PROVINCIAL CASH

Málaga province is handing over 510,000 euros to eight municipalities for projects that have up to now been put on hold. Those to receive the cash are Algatocín, Benarrabá, Gaucín, Jimera de Líbar, Jubrique, Montejaque, Parauta and Ronda. In Ronda funding will be made available to finish the roundabout and road resurfacing on the industrial estate. Elsewhere schools, tourism and infrastructure will benefit.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY APRIL 7, 2011

TWO RONDA YOUTHS KILLED IN GRAND PRIX ACCIDENT

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

The motorbike Grand Prix was held in Jerez last weekend and hundreds of thousands of people flocked to the event many by motorcycles. The traffic authorities and police mount a major security exercise to help prevent accidents but as this year people are still killed on the roads.

The worst of the weekend accidents was on Sunday at around 8.30 at Algodonales on the A-384 Ronda to Sevilla road. Two men aged 28 and 24 years old, both from Ronda, were killed in a multiple pile-up. Six other people suffered serious injuries.

One of the victims was a biker heading for the Jerez circuit when he crossed in to the lane for on-coming traffic and collided head on with a car travelling towards Algodonales. Both he and the young passenger in the car were killed.

Involved in the collision was another biker plus a car. The six injured aged between 24 and 39 years were taken to the hospital in Villamartín. Two have been kept in and whilst they were seriously injured they are not in a life threatening condition.

There were numerous other accidents in Cádiz province related to the Grand Prix. Apart from the two deaths in Algodonales 47 people were injured and first aid teams attended to 307 people at the Grand Prix circuit.

EROSKI DEVELOPMENT HITS ANOTHER SNAG

The major project to build Eroski’s largest commercial centre in Andalucía in Ronda has hit another snag. The property register has refused to issue a deed for the sale of the land to the company because of irregularities in the documentation.

One hitch is that the land was initially to be sold to the Grupo Ruiz Jurado but that was later changed to the Gestión de Proyectos Comerciales SL. The registry states the correct payments for this change have not been made.

The deeds cover the lands of the former football stadium and old fair ground that will be the site of the Eroski supermarket, numerous fashion shops, a cinema plus leisure complex along with a large car park. The town hall recently banked 3.5 million euros for the sale of the land.

The handling of the sale of the land has been highly criticised by opposition parties at the town hall – the Partido Popular and Izquierda Unida. In addition small and medium sized businesses have opposed the development as they fear it will kill the traditional shopping areas of Ronda.

For its part Ronda town hall says it is working to sort out these latest problems with the Eroski project. The last council meeting approved changes to the local development plan (PGOU) to allow the scheme to proceed.

FINISH IT

Ronda council at its last meeting till after the elections allocated 340,000 euros of tourism funding to complete the building meant to house Mueble Rondeño. Finished in 2006 with 1.2 million euros of regional government money it never did become a showcase for Ronda furniture. IU candidate for mayor, Rafael Ruíz, says nobody has any idea what the building will be used for.

GYPSY CELEBRATIONS

Gypsies head for Benarrabá on April 8 - 9 as it holds the first event dedicated to the Pueblo Gitano in the Serrania de Ronda. Benarrabá has one of the highest gypsy populations. There’ll be talks on gypsy history and their origin in Benarrabá, the gypsy flag will fly from the town hall plus there will be gypsy inspired food and entertainment.

DANGEROUS ROAD

There has been another accident on the A-397 Ronda to San Pedro road – the road in Málaga province with the second highest death toll. On this occasion a car collided with a van last Monday at 7.25 at km 18. The fire brigade and ambulance teams raced to the scene and an occupant of the car had to be cut from the wreckage.

RAJOY VISIT

It’s election time in Ronda. Partido Popular leader Mariano Rajoy spoke before 700 people to back Maripaz Fernandez as the party’s candidate for mayor. Meanwhile the Partido Andalucista’s Pilar González went to a notary to swear her party would not form a pact with PSOE as the socialists have absorbed the former PA mayor and councillors – all of whom were deemed political turncoats.

CRIME WATCH

National Police and Guardia Civil have set up a joint watch in Puerto Saúco and Ronda la Vieja. On March 24 six farms were robbed, one had six young pigs killed and over 20,000 euros of machinery was stolen. There has been a wave of such robberies for over a year. Now police will patrol as well as stopping and search passing vehicles.

CABLES GOING

Ronda is removing all the unsightly cabling from its historic old town. The project will take three years to complete. Work has started in the plaza de Mondragón with the power and telephone cables being laid underground. The project is being carried out by municipal employees working with Endesa. They recently removed the cables in the Patio de Santa Ana in Padre Jesús.

WALL CONCERTS

The historic Murallas del Carmen in Ronda date from the 8 th century Muslim period. Now they are to have a specially created space for outdoor summer concerts. Around 120,000 euros of job creation funds will be used to build a stage, changing rooms, toilets and install a lighting system. The work will be finished before the summer for the festival Cante Grande.

UNICAJA GOING

Unicaja has announced it is closing its branches in Cartajima and Alpandeire in the Serrania de Ronda. Another three closures in the Serranía are being considered, all only open for limited hours. The mayors and residents of the zone are angry as this could leave them without banking services. Other banks are being approached to see if they will take over the premises.

BRONZE CHESTNUTS

Igualeja has inaugurated its new plaza de Andalucía with a fountain in which the centrepiece is a bronze statute of man and woman gathering chestnuts in a sack. The chestnut is a major source of income in Igualeja and the surrounding villages – all of whom sent their mayors for the celebrations. The 1.87m high statue is by the celebrated Granada sculptor Venancio Sánchez.

NO POISON

Ronda has signed an accord with the Fundación Gypaetus with the objective of working to eliminate the use of poison bait in the municipality. Many animals die each year from eating the bait laid in the rural areas largely dogs and birds. Ronda will now be linked to the network of town halls that are working to stamp out this illegal practice.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY DECEMBER 16, 2010

ECOLOGISTS OPPOSE LOCATION OF ACINIPO CENTRE


By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Ecologistas en Acción in the Serranía de Ronda have lodged a number of objections against the project to construct an interpretation centre at Acinipo – the ruins of the original Roman town of Ronda.

They have made it clear they are not against the historic site having such a centre but they believe it should be away from the impressive ruins. The ecologists argue that the proposed location would have a negative visual impact and it should be placed outside of the monument’s perimeter.

Ronda town hall and the regional government’s culture ministry signed a collaboration agreement in 2007 to carry out excavations at Acinipo amongst them the recovery of the Roman baths and theatre which date back to the third century AD. The heritage site is rated as one of the most important in Málaga province.

The ecologists consider the installation of the centre inside the ruins is not acceptable and are campaigning for it to be moved. The building, of which part would be below ground, has a budget of 900,000 euros and would cover 730 square metres. It would include a reception area, exhibition hall and visitors’ centre.

The construction of the complex is envisaged as the final part of the 2007 agreement. Over the last year security measures at the historic site have had to be improved with night patrols as there have been a number of robberies of artefacts.

Acinipo is thought to have been an important Roman town judging by the numerous historic references at the time and the inscriptions found to major Gods and personalities of the epoch.

UNION SAYS SERRANÍA RAIL SERVICE IS UNDER ATTACK

Just weeks ago the Partido Andalucista warned that villages in the Serranía de Ronda would be left without bus services once the regional government withdrew its subventions.

Now the SFF-CGT union says that the rail service in Málaga province is under attack from Renfe after it made changes to its timetable. This is because the regional train that leaves Málaga at 7.45 will no longer connect with the Granada to Algeciras train.

The loss of this connection will insists the union leave over 100,000 people in the municipalities of the Serranía and the Valle del Genal without this service and it could endanger the viability of many of the stations along the route.

Not only is Renfe in the firing line but also the ministry of public works which is also accused of attacking the rail connections between the Ronda region and the Campo de Gibraltar. This the union insists will have a negative impact on tourism as well as affecting the access of residents to places of work, medical centres and leisure facilities.

The SFF-CGT says the populations of Campillos, Almargen, Teba, Ronda, Benaoján, Jimera de Libar, Cortés de la Frontera, Gaucín, Jimena de la Frontera, San Roque and Algeciras will all feel the effects unless the decision is reversed.

QUICKER TRAINS

Renfe has carried out a series of improvements to the Algeciras - Ronda - Madrid track that will see trains cover the journey between Ronda and the capital in less than four hours. Trains will leave Algeciras at 8.45 (14.05) and 15.05 (20.25) and Madrid at 8.40 (13.46) and 15.05 (20.15). Trains between Ronda and Algeciras are quicker taking one hour 25 minutes.

RESERVE FUNDS

The new reserve of the biosphere in the Sierra de las Nieves is to receive 1.4 million euros for its conservation – part of the seven million euros allocation by the regional government’s environment ministry. A large part of the spend will go to municipalities that take in the reserves where the funds will be used to promote sustained development to protect the areas.

FOUND CAPTURED

Ronda’s delegate for security, Rafael Lara, has been giving information about the four people arrested on the street on December 6 who were seeking donations for an association with which they had no link. It has since emerged that one of those detained was subjected to two find and capture warrants issued by the courts. Lara warned residents to look out for scams.

GOOD GRIEF

A story from El Burgo which beggars belief. A 37-year-old man has been arrested by the Guardia Civil for stealing a chainsaw plus other items of agricultural equipment from a neighbour’s finca by forcing the property’s door. Officers received a tip off from locals and found the items in his possession. At the time of the robbery the deceased neighbour was being buried.

MORTUARY PROTEST

PSOE is leading the protests in Benaoján over the location of a new mortuary in the village. The site is adjacent to a school, a nursery, the football pitch and swimming pool. The socialists have collected a petition with 300 signatures and will raise the matter at the next council meeting. The works have already started with 165,000 euros of job creation funds.

TOXIC ADVICE

The Serranía de Ronda health authority has produced a leaflet advising people who collect the wild mushrooms from the mountains on which are safe to eat. At this time of year this activity is very popular yet many mushrooms are toxic whilst others are simply deadly with no known medical cure. Therefore knowing what mushrooms are edible is a life and death matter.

JOB TRAINING

The 20 municipalities of the Genal – Guardiaro – Serranía consortium of town halls which excludes Ronda have decided to create a new employment training workshop. Sixty people will benefit from the scheme that is being backed with 800,000 euros. Montecorto, Jimera de Líbar, Montejaque, Gaucín, Benarrabá and Atajate are amongst the villages being helped with schemes on renewable energy and national park vigilance.

SOCIAL WELFARE

The president of the Catholic Church aid agency Cáritas in Ronda and the Serranía, Enriqueta Carrillo, has reported on the organisation’s activity up to November. Over 131,000 euros has been given in aid, of which 52,000 euros went on food – a 20 per cent increase over last year. Another 25,000 euros went towards paying rents and deposits plus 4,700 on water and electricity.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY NOVEMBER 18, 2010

PSOE LEADERSHIP BACKS MARÍN FOR MAYOR

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

The secretary general of PSOE in Ronda, Francisco Cañestro has told a news conference that the directorate of the local party backs the current mayor, Antonio Marín, as its candidate for the post at next year’s municipal elections.

Marín was elected mayor for the Partido Andalucista at the last election but has caused controversy by abandoning the party with his fellow PA councillors and joining PSOE instead. This led to the Comisión de Expertos Independientes del Pacto Antitransfuguismo accusing all eight of being political turncoats in a ruling last December.

There is no doubt that the merger of Marín and his seven fellow former PA councillors has caused disquiet in the ranks of Ronda’s PSOE. The big test will come this Saturday when the 330 party members will vote to endorse or reject the directorate’s decision. Many socialists feel they have been pushed aside by the incomers.

Marín stated on Monday: “Now is the time for political stability in Ronda with an absolute PSOE majority. The town cannot make experiments, it would be catastrophic.

The Partido Andalucista had been in coalition with the Partido Popular after the last local elections. Then Marín surprised everybody by breaking the pact then forming a coalition with PSOE before he and his fellow PA councillors left the party, sit as unattached members of the council but they are all now PSOE members. This left the PA which had been the majority party with no representation at the town hall hence the condemnation of the political turncoat commission.

A few weeks ago an opinion poll showed PSOE destined to form the next administration in Ronda with mayor Antonio Marín the most popular politician. Now a rival poll says the Partido Popular will take eight seats with the Partido Andalucista on four with both forming a coalition. The most popular leader is the PP’s Maripaz Fernández and Antonio Marín trails fourth. If this poll holds true for the 2011 elections then the PA might yet exact political revenge on Marín and leave PSOE with a bloody nose.

DEATH CRASH
A lorry driver died on Monday morning after his vehicle was involved in a head on collision with another lorry on the A-367 as it passes through Cañete la Real. The tragedy happened at 7.25 at km 20 on the busy but narrow road that connects Ronda with Ardales. Traffic was diverted as the road had to be closed till the wreckage was removed.

IN OUT
Ronda has honoured Rafael Díaz with the title of honoured son. The Efe news agency photographer has recorded the town over many years and the images have been seen all over the world. In the same week the honoured son 81-year-old Francisco Garrido passed away. He had also been a journalist and had produced a series of histories of Ronda and the Serranía.

PLANNING EXPLAINED
The Diputación de Málaga is undertaking the drawing up of the new local development plans (PGOUs) for many of the smaller municipalities in the province. Recently the deputy for planning, Cristóbal Guerrero, visited Jubrique, Genalguacil, Algatocín and Júzcar to explain the plans for their municipalities. There will be 70 social housing units in Jubrique, 40 in Genalguacil and 18 in Algatocín and Júzcar.

BACK MOTORWAY
PSOE secretary general in Ronda, Francisco Cañestro, has called on all political parties in the town to back the toll motorway project with the coast. The PP had blasted the announcement as an election ploy but Cañestro insists it will happen, cut travel times from 50 to 22 minutes and create over 5,200 jobs. The 350 million euros project will be privately funded.

PLAIN CLOTHES
Local police in Ronda are to form a plain clothes unit. The six officers will patrol town centre streets with the main objectives being to catch pick pockets and bag snatchers as well as looking out for drugs traffickers. This follows on from the recent announcement of the forming of a dog unit and the town hall says others will also be formed.

TREE ZONE
An arboretum has been created in El Colmenar in Cortes de la Frontera. Almost 143,000 euros has been spent on the zone that will have recreational, educative and sporting uses. The parkland has 71 eucalyptus trees first planted in the middle of the last century with six walking routes. Visitors will be able to consult a series of informative posters on the species.

NATURE GUIDES
A new brochure on the flora and fauna of the Serranía de Ronda has been produced by the town hall showing the biodiversity of the area and including 24 photographs. Also the Andalucía ministry of the environment has produced a guide to the Sierra de Grazalema. This is the third guide in the series which includes Estrecho (Cádiz) and Cabo de Gata (Málaga).

AFRICAN VIEW
Benarrabá in the Serranía de Ronda now has a bird viewing station. It is so high that on a clear day visitors can see the coast of Africa and Gibraltar. Over 40,000 euros has been spent on the centre with view to developing tourism in the area. There are large charts to show visitors what birds can be seen and in what zones.

GOAT WOE
Protests by goat milk producers in Serranía de Ronda and Antequera were halted after talks with Forlactaria and García Baquero – the largest cheese producers were announced. However the angry producers say they’re restarting protests as no progress has been made. They say the cost of producing the milk has risen by 12 per cent whilst their income has dropped by 18 per cent.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY NOVEMBER 11, 2010

SIX DOWN

In October Ronda had a reduction in its jobless total of six. There are now 4,328 unemployed in the area, the majority of them women. In a recent opinion poll 53.2 per cent of the people questioned said the high dole level was their major concern. Worries over the general economy, drug abuse and the state of the roads were of secondary concern.

DRUGS SNIFFERS

Ronda’s councillor for security, Rafael Lara, announced the local police are to have a canine unit specifically to sniff out drugs. Last week a dog team from Estepona visited schools in Ronda and searched the areas around the buildings resulting in the discovery of heroin, cocaine and hashish. The town hall is setting aside 1,200 euros to acquiring and training its own dogs.

MUSHROOM TIME

This is the time of year when the rural municipalities with a tradition of gathering wild fungi hold special events to celebrate the edible mushrooms. Benarrabá will be holding its first over November 12 – 14 with visits to find the fungi, exhibitions, workshops and tastings. Cortes was the first to pioneer these events in the Guadiaro Valley and Júzcar in the Genal Valley.

UNIQUE CEMETERY

The recent festival to honour the dead highlighted the cemetery in Benadalid which is one of the more oddly located in Spain. Its Roman castle was acquired by the town hall in 1821 and since then has been the final resting place of the residents. However every summer the castle comes alive when it is the venue for the Moors and Christians celebrations.

SERRANÍA WORKSHOP

The Poblado Nazari in Estación de Cortes de la Frontera is hosting an employment workshop to train 36 people between 16 and 25 years from nine municipalities in the area. The scheme will last for two years, will employ nine people in admin and teaching and is backed with over a million euros. Amongst skills taught are carpentry and installation of solar panels.

GOING NUTS

The Genal Valley has finished this year’s chestnut harvest. Over four million kilos of the fruit have been gathered and the quality is the best since 2007. One reason for this is the high rainfall last winter. The downside has been the low price paid, around a euro per kilo. The Serranía have been celebrating the harvest with the traditional ‘tostón’ chestnut roasting.

SOUR MILK

Around 200 goat farmers from the Ronda and Antequera area gathered outside the Arias cheese production plant on Ronda’s industrial estate last Thursday and poured churns of milk into the gutter. They were demanding a just price for their milk. The dispute may now be at an end after the two major users Forlactaria and García Vaquero agreed to negotiate with the producers.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY JUNE 10, 2010

OVERHEAD CABLES TO GO

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Ronda wants all the unsightly power cables removed from its streets. The new councillor for tourism, Francisco Cañestro, said the town hall would be working to have these power lines removed because they create a negative image for the tourists who visit the historic town.

To start the process the municipality intends to sign an agreement of collaboration with the electricity company Endesa. It is intended that the works department would co-operate with the power supplier.

Cañestro explained the work would be carried out “street by street”. He has set a deadline for all the cables to be removed over a two year period so that residents and visitors alike can enjoy the artistic and architectural heritage of Ronda. The cables used for street lighting would all be placed underground.

CHARITY CALL
Caritas, the Catholic charity, allocated 43 per cent of its budget in Ronda last year to helping those in need who had called on its assistance. Spokesperson Enriqueta Carrillo said its aid to the impoverished had increased by 13 per cent over the previous year. It helped 927 families with 4,818 different actions including food packages, paying rent, mortgages and settling bills.

PICK POCKETS
Ronda police have issued an alert after a wave of pick pocketing was reported at the market and in the town. Last month there were over 20 reported cases and six people were arrested. Fourteen officers in plainclothes and uniform are patrolling the most vulnerable areas of the town. As the amounts stolen are rarely over 400 euros it’s an offence not a crime.

MORE JOBLESS
After three months of decline in the jobless numbers May saw Ronda’s total rise again and there are now 4,159 on the dole. Women still dominate the total with 2,184 (five less) whilst the number of men has risen by 14 to1,975. The mayor stressed the town hall was starting its fifth jobless packed which would give short term work to 50 people.

CINE RONDA
Twenty-two students from18 countries will spend 14 weeks in Ronda this summer on a post-graduate course in film making. It is being sponsored by the Spanish ministry of culture and Unicaja bank. The Media Business School is organised the event in conjunction with the national institute of cinematography and the visual arts. The studies will concentrate on the production and distribution of films.

NO RESPECT
An official at Ronda’s court has reported to El Mundo newspaper that Guardia Civil, lawyers and those attending hearings do not respect the anti-smoking law and use cigarettes at their workplaces which is prohibited by this legislation. He has also reported their behaviour to the provincial authority and the Andalucía justice ministry. He complained of suffering headaches and asthma from the smoke.

SLEEP DRIVING
A Ronda police patrol found a car in the middle of the street in the early hours of the morning with the drive asleep at the wheel. The 59-year-old local man was given a breath test which was four times over the limit. He was arrested, the car immobilised and faces having six points on his licence and a fine of upto1,800 euros.

CABLE THIEVES
There has been a wave of robberies in Ronda of electricity cable. The thieves disguise themselves as employees of Sevillan-Endesa or the town hall and make off with the municipal power wiring from the street lighting sometimes causes blackouts. Police say the losses amount to thousands of euros and the culprits then sell the wire on the black market to the building trade.

HISTORIC PROBLEM
For years Benarrabá has had a problem – the pumping of water to dwellings and businesses. The cost of operating the pumps has left it with an 180,000 euros debt to the electricity company. To solve the problem it has been carrying out a search for water reserves in the hills above the village so that the decent will create its own pressure.

RONDA ANTEQUERA
There is a new bus service connecting Ronda with the AVE station at Santa Ana in Antequera that also serves Archidona, Teba and Campillos. It is run by the Casado company and there are five buses at day from Ronda’s terminus with a ticket costing 3.60 to Santa Ana and 4.50 to Antequera town. The service was officially launched last week in Ronda.

TWO PROCESSIONS
The town of Arriate is celebrating two Corpus Christi processions in June. The first was on June 6, the traditional day for these religious services in Spain. However by papal agreement many years ago the community was allowed to have its procession much later in the month so the men who went away to work in the fields could return after the harvest.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY JUNE 3, 2010

SIT IN AT ARRIATE TOWN HALL

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Arriate has always been known as a communist community and its town hall is firmly in the hands of the far-left Izquierda Unida. Last Thursday around 100 residents of the town locked themselves in to the town hall in a protest at the cuts announced by the socialist government in Madrid to cut the nation’s deficit.

It wasn’t just the residents but also the majority of the IU administration along with the mayor Bernardino Gaona. They voiced their anger at the decision to freeze the salaries of public employees as well as payments to pensioners amongst other measures.

The lock-in started at mid-day on Thursday and continued to 12.00 on Friday. Leaders of the IU, Communist Party and Young Communists were prominent and went inside the building with flasks of coffee and sandwiches.

The deputy mayor, Salvador Cabrera, said he valued the participation of the local people as it showed that all Arriate was behind the protests against the government’s actions. Due to the cuts in public funding the small community of Arriate stands to loose 525,000 euros in 2010.

RONDA TO HAVE TOURISM POLICE

Ronda’s new councillor for tourism, Francisco Cañestro, has stated that a unit dedicated to looking after tourists is to be created amongst officers of the local police.

Their task will be to ensure the thousands of visitors who flock to Ronda each day to visit the Puente Nuevo over the Tajo gorge, the bull ring and the various sites in the old town have officers on hand who can answer their queries and ensure their security.

In addition a “brigade of tourist works” is to be formed with two municipal workers. They will be permanently employed on ensuring that the public infrastructure in the old town is in a good state of repair “so the town always has a good image, there are no broken pavements or damaged signs.”

FIFTH CHOICE
Ronda has its fifth councillor for tourism in the current administration. The new holder of the post is deputy mayor Francisco Cañestro. His appointment was announced at a breakfast for the tourist trade at the Parador hotel. All the other incumbents have resigned for various reasons often because of rows with mayor Antonio Marín who said government’s cuts would not affect tourism projects.

JOB PLAN
Fifty unemployed workers will benefit from a 110,000 euros scheme by Ronda town hall to give them temporary work as part of its fifth employment plan. Those to benefit will be plumbers, bricklayers, painters and gardeners who will work from June 10 for a month on municipal projects. There are currently 4,150 jobless in the town of the Tajo, the majority are women.

ENGLISH COUNCILLOR
Ronda has its first English councillor. She is 36 – year - old Charlotte Wilmot who hails from Swindon. She joined the PSOE role of councillors after Maribel Morales left office. She has lived in Spain for eight years of which she has been a member of PSOE for four. Her profession is in human resources and she will work in the delegation for foreigners.

BLUFF CALLED
Recently the owner of the land on which Ronda is building its sports complex went to court to halt any further work. She claimed that the town hall had not paid her for the land in a deal that was agreed in 2002. An emergency meeting of the council was held last week to agree the 212,000 euros should be promptly handed over.

HAM CUTTERS
Ronda’s Feria Real de Mayo welcomed ten of the best jamón cutters in Spain to the 8 th national competition organised by the Casa de Jamón. They came from Valencia, Cáceres, Huelva, Sevilla, Madrid, Cádiz and Málaga. The winner was Pérez Hernández from Salamanca. Also present was Nico Jiménez who holds the world record for cutting the longest strip of ham – nearly 14 metres.
CORK CRISIS
The cork industry is in crisis and its committee recently held a meeting in Benarrabá. The Serranía de Ronda has lost 12 million euros in the past two years. They called on the regional government to seek solutions to the lack of demand for their product – especially as many wine bottlers are replacing cork with plastic. They also want an Andalucía strategic plan.

PUBLIC APOLOGY
Diego Gil, the socialist deputy mayor in Cuevas del Becerro, who called sex lines on his town hall phone and allowed the municipality to pay the bill has made a public apology. He has already paid back the money and addressed residents at a council meeting which was televised locally. The majority of those present applauded after he made his emotional statement.

DATELINE RONDA THURSDAY MAY 27, 2010

EROTIC PHONE CALLS CHARGED TO TOWN HALL

By David Eade – Costa del Sol News

Diego Gil, the socialist deputy mayor in Cuevas del Becerro, has a mobile phone which is charged to the town hall. Now it has emerged that over a three month period he made frequent calls to erotic telephone lines running up a bill of 240 euros.

His secret was made public by the Izquierda Unida opposition. Last Friday he attended a meeting with 100 local residents and apologised for his actions but insisted he would not resign.
He admitted that he had used the phone which had run up a large bill for the small municipality but argued he had committed no crime. Red faced he attacked his accusers saying they had said he had committed many outrages which simply wasn’t true.

Gil said he had informed the mayor, Joaquin Esquina, what he had done and he had paid in to the town hall the 240 euros to cover the calls. In fact he stated the calls cost no more than 100 euros but had made the additional payments anyway.

The councillor has put his future at the disposal of the local PSOE. However the socialist party has refused to accept his resignation saying he has admitted his mistake and pointing out the valuable work he had carried out over the past three years.

He also has the backing of his mayor who stated the offence was not so serious as to require his resignation. He also believed that the cost was no more than 37 euros – but as Gil hid the pages on which the private calls were listed, so causing the suspicions of the IU, the truth may not be made public.

The IU says it first opted not to publicise the matter because it did not want to cause embarrassment to the councillor’s family. However it decided to act as it said it could not take part in a cover up over the misuse of public funds.

This is the second scandal to hit Cuevas del Becerro town hall over the last 18 months. At the start of 2009 the mayor denounced the municipal accountant, Juan María González, who is accused of taking 360,000 euros of town hall funds. He currently awaits trial at Ronda court.

SAN PEDRO ROAD TO GO AHEAD – BUT NOT YET

The new Málaga delegate for public works and housing, Enrique Benítez, has stressed that the regional government still intends to connect Ronda with the Costa del Sol by a rapid road.

The project was announced in November 2007 ahead of the 2008 elections. At the time the Andalucía minister of public works, Concepción Gutiérrez, promised an investment of between 350 and 400 million euros would be allocated to the scheme which would be finished by 2012.

Well 2010 is nearing its halfway point and not a brick has been laid. Hence 2012 is no longer a reality and the recent debate has been on whether the road project would go ahead or be dropped. It should be a toll road which presents many environmental problems but would cut travel times from 50 to 20 minutes replacing a dangerous mountain road with 365 bends with a fast highway.

Needless to say the project has become a battleground between the political parties with the Partido Popular accusing PSOE of announcing it to buy votes in Ronda but never intending to proceed. The former provincial delegate for public works, Dolores Fernández, had insisted it would go ahead but given the high cost required a viability study.

Now Benítez has restated the regional government’s promise to build the road – but not yet. Whether that is an empty political pledge remains to be seen but many are backing plans to improve the current road by removing many of the bends and adding lanes rather than embarking on the new motorway through environmentally sensitive land.

FAIR SUCCESS
Ronda’s Real Feria de Mayo – the oldest in Andalucía dating back to the Reyes Católicas – returned last weekend after being postponed in 2009 due to the economic crisis. Although it received less funding from the town hall it proved to be a great success attracting over 25,000 visitors. The event is of major importance to the farming sector including livestock sales and displays.

ENGLISH UPGRADE
The famous Paseo de los Ingleses in Ronda that has sadly become in recent years very dilapidated and abandoned is now to receive a major facelift. The works on the walkway behind the Reina Victoria Hotel along the scenic Tajo will cost 273,000 euros from a loan taken out by the town hall with the Instituto de Crédito Oficial to improve tourism facilities.

HEALTH CENTRE
The Serranía de Ronda village of Alpandeire is to have a new health centre thanks to an agreement with the Málaga health delegation. The building will cover 159 square metres, have two consulting rooms plus waiting areas for the 278 residents. A doctor and nurse will be allocated to the centre offering the basic vaccination, blood pressure, diabetics and old people care.

LESS DEMAND
During the height of the economic crisis in 2009 some 340 families depended on the assistance of Ronda town hall for basic food stuffs and household needs. So far this year the demand seems to be lessening with the social welfare department reporting 17 families no longer needed help. La Dehesa, Padre Jésus and Casas de Hierro are the worst affected areas.

FOUNTAIN SAVED
The fountain in the plaza de la Vera Cruz has been at the centre of Benarrabá life for 25 years. Recently it formed the basis of a local battle between the town hall that wanted a smaller fountain because it interfered with stands for the feria and the residents who insisted it should stay. In a referendum residents voted to save their fountain.

ROAD FIRE
The winding mountain road between San Pedro de Alcántara and Ronda was blocked last week after a lorry fire. The vehicle was towing a fair attraction to Ronda when the petrol tank caught fire. The driver was unable to separate cab from the trailer which was soon engulfed in flames closing the road to traffic for 90 minutes whilst fire teams tackled the inferno.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY MARCH 23, 2010

FOUR AFFECTED BY SMOKE INHILATION

The Ronda fire brigade raced to a house in Montejaque last Wednesday after a blaze was reported at 9.45. The bedroom on the first floor of the property on the avenida de Europa was alight and four people suffering from the effects of smoke inhalation were rescued then taken to Ronda hospital for treatment.

Fire fighters brought the blaze under control and then aired the property. However whilst the bedroom area is a mess the dwelling did not suffer any structural damage and the family will be able to shortly return.

ODD CHOICE
Ronda has announced Begoña Chacón is to deliver the “pregon” speech to open this year’s Pedro Romero feria. The choice has caused surprise as she’s the Partido Popular MP for Málaga, was mayor of Benalauría, an Andalucía MP and then deputy mayor of Ronda when the PP was in coalition with then PA now socialist mayor Antonio Marín - her bitter political enemy.

THIEVES ARRESTED
The Guardia Civil in Ronda have arrested two local residents for allegedly stealing construction materials from the Puerta de Ronda housing development in Arriate. On the same night, close by, officers also detained three Rumanians who broke in to El Pino car scrap yard were they took vehicle parts including lights and radiators. The Guardia Civil do not believe the gangs are linked.

LOCAL DEBT
The Partido Popular in Ronda has been doing its sums and said the town hall currently owes six million euros to small and medium sized local businesses. The figures were released by the party’s candidate for mayor, María Paz Fernández at a press conference. She said currently February 2009 invoices were being paid leaving suppliers in extreme difficulty especially during the economic crisis.

EROSKI MOVE
The PGOU in Ronda has been amended to allow the former sports complex that is zoned for recreational use to now be allocated for commercial development. This step has been taken to allow the Eroski shopping centre to be built on the land. The change is open for public comment and if there are no hold ups the construction licence will be issued.

KEY HOLDERS
The local police in Ronda are now to be given the house keys of those old or infirm people living alone who in an emergency have nobody to come to their aid. This is an extension of the Sergesa Televida service that offers a tele assistance service to 296 people and it is expected that 60 of them will benefit from police support.

MAY’S FAIR
The Real Feria de Mayo in Ronda is the oldest in Andalucía but was cancelled last year after the town hall used its 300,000 euros backing to invest in job creation projects. The event is back on this year but the municipality has reduced its funding by 50 per cent. The fair is largely an agricultural celebration including livestock and exhibitions of machinery.

SERRANIA INVESTMENT
The delegate of local development and the road network in Málaga province, Cristóbal Guerrero, has visited various municipalities in the Serranía de Ronda where nearly 630,000 euros is being invested. The funding will be divided between Jubrique, Genalguacil, Algatocín and Benarrabá. Much of the sum will be allocated to infrastructure projects including road works plus new water, drainage, street lighting and telephone installations.

DIGITAL AID
Málaga’s delegate for innovation, science and business, Pilar Serrano, recently visited the village of Serrato to hand out TDT digital television receivers to elderly residents. The digital transmissions are now replacing the former terrestrial service and those aged 65 or over on low incomes, those aged 80 living alone or with another 80 plus person or those with audio visual impairments can benefit.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY MARCH 2, 2010

EROSKI INVESTS 120 MILLION EUROS

Eroski is to invest 120 million euros in creating its new commercial centre in Ronda. This is 18 million euros more that was at first anticipated. The plans for the massive complex were unveiled last week at a meeting at the town hall between Ronda’s mayor Antonio Marín and officials from Eroski led by its director general of expansion, Alfonso Fernández.

The Ronda development will be almost 50 per cent larger than its existing one in Antequera. It will create 1,000 direct jobs plus 300 people will be employed during the construction phase. The construction timetable was estimated at between 18 and 24 months but Eroski is confident it can reduce that to 14 to 18 months.

The mayor of Ronda said he believed the construction would start before the summer once the licences had been issued and the new local development plan (PGOU) has been passed. A special meeting of Ronda council last Friday approved the use of the former sports complex on which the centre will stand to be used for commercial purposes.

The shopping centre will cover 73,100 square metres an increase on the 65,000 square metres initially announced. Some 32,000 square metres will be allocated to parking with 1,724 spaces. The hypermarket will occupy 8,000 square metres, 15,000 square metres will be given over to a shopping mall with fashion outlets, 6,000 square metres for a cinema complex plus leisure and catering zones with the remainder being assigned to various services.

The Eroski supermarket will occupy the land of the former fair ground whilst the other elements will be located on the football stadium with an underground walkway connecting the two centres.

BENARRABÁ AND CORTES FOR THE BIRDS

From April the Serranía de Ronda village of Benarrabá will be part of a bird zone described as one of the best in Andalucía as it is on the migration route to the north.

The initiative was announced by the deputy for development and promotion, Jesús Mora, who visited the area with the deputy for inter-municipality services, Francisco Márques. The project is a route of two hours known as the Concoste – La Portá that will be able to be taken from Benarrabá.

Funding comes from the Spanish and Andalucía governments as well as Málaga province to the tune of 4.5 million euros which is to boost tourism in all 22 municipalities in the Serranía. The deputies also visited part of Los Alcornocales national park in Cortes de la Frontera where a recreational zone has been created and visitors centre. Cortes is on the ornithology route and has zones for the feeding of carrion birds.

Cortes will also have a cork museum under this investment scheme which will see money being spent on creating a museum in Gaucín castle dedicated to the War of Independence.

INFANTE CLASSES
Ronda council approved unopposed a proposal that it is one of the town’s in which celebrations will be held to commemorate the 125 th anniversary of the birth of Blas Infante – the father of the modern Andalucía. Infante has close links with Ronda so it has also asked that the Andalucía education ministry ensures that the history of Infante is studied in schools.

TUMOURS FOUND
The Serranía health authority has uncovered 60 breast cancer tumours over the last 10 years. In that period it has tested 5,979 women aged between 50 and 60 years under its Precoz detection programme. The consultancies take place at the Ronda Sur health centre whilst the mammograms are carried out at the local hospital. Women in outlying villages receive appointments by hand.

ANTEQUERA LINK
The president of the Partido Popular in Andalucía, Javier Arenas, speaking in Ronda promoted the idea of a motorway between the town and Antequera. He stated that such a high speed road was necessary for the economic development of the town of the Tajo. He also took the opportunity to take a swipe at the Spanish premier saying for him Andalucía didn’t exist.

ENDANGERED WALLS
Last October the alert was issued about the poor state of Ronda’s ancient walls. Now the tourism department has estimated the cost of putting the walls in good order at one million euros. This amount is beyond the scope of Ronda’s battered coffers so it is seeking the help of the regional government in preserving one of the most historic sites in Andalucía.

NO MONEY
Gaucín cannot pay its municipal workers for the month of February. The monthly wage bill is over 100,000 euros and the town hall says it simply does not have the money. This is the second time the workforce has gone unpaid in the past six months. Needless to say the PSOE opposition has criticised the management of the municipality by the PP – PA coalition.

HOLY LIGHTS
The foundation of the Sevillana Endesa electricity company has signed an agreement with Ronda town hall that will see it taking over the responsibility for the artistic interior lighting of the chapel at the Convento de Santo Domingo. The convent by the Tajo bridge is an exhibition and conference centre and 64 lights will be installed in the chapel at ten different points.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY DECEMBER 15, 2009

SWITCH OFF OF ANALOGUE TV HAS STARTED


Since today (Tuesday) the process of turning off the analogue TV transmissions has started. The switch to digital is now underway and 20 municipalities in Málaga province are abandoning the traditional form of receiving their television programmes for the new TDT service.


The process has started in the Serranía de Ronda and the western Costa del Sol with Algotocín, Atajate. Benadalid, Benahavís, Benalauría, Casares, Cortes de la Frontera, Estepona, Faraján, Gaucín, Genalgaucil, Igualeja, Jimera de Libar, Jubrique, Júzcar, Montejaque and Parauta leading the way.


According to information issued by the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Commerce around 80,000 people will be affected by the switch. As the transmission and relay stations carrying the old signal are switched off the TV screens in those homes will go blank and owners will have to purchase new sets or the adapters required by the digital system.


However it would appear that some residents of these zones will be without TV whilst the engineers catch up on the installation programme. A number of people in the Serranía villages are complaining that whilst they have acquired the digital decoders nobody has yet turned up to install them.


RONDA’S PA MAYOR AND COUNCILLORS DECLARED TURNCOATS


The mayor of Ronda, Antonio Marín, and his eight fellow Partido Andalucista councillors have been declared political turncoats by the Comisión de Expertos Independientes del Pacto Antitransfuguismo.


In June they abandoned the party and joined PSOE although they now sit as non-aligned councillors. Previously Marín had entered in to a coalition with PSOE so that party now rules the town.


After studying the situation in detail the commission was unanimous in its verdict that PSOE had won control of the town hall without the councillors resigning and seeking re-election. Indeed although many people voted for Partido Andalucista councillors at the last election their voices and views are now totally unrepresented at the town hall.


On December 17 the Mesa Antitransfuguismo will decide whether to ratify the commission’s decision or to reject it. Mayor Marín says he is not over worried by the decision as it has to be ratified and declared that anyway he had Ronda’s interests at heart.


Such sentiments cut little ice with the opposition groups. The secretary general of the Partido Andalucista, Pilar González, called for the resignation of Marín and his fellow former PA councillors adding that Ronda should not have a mayor who is a turncoat.


The two opposition parties on the council, the Partido Popular and Izquierda Unida, claimed that the mayor and his councillors had cheated the people of the town and had assaulted democracy.

The local secretary of PSOE, Francisco Cañestro, remained silent on the commission’s findings and its verdict that its party had benefitted by the actions of the mayor and his PA team. Depending how the Mesa rules it could have a significant effect on the future of government in the town of the Tajo.

PEACE KEEPERS
The Tercio Alejandro Farnesio 4 of the Spanish Legion based in Ronda are preparing to go to Afghanistan in March. The force will consist of 600 Legionnaires backed by armoured units. It is not the first time that these crack troops have been to Afghanistan and they have also been sent to the Lebanon, Kosovo and Bosnia under the banner of the UN.

SERRANÍA BOOST
The Director General of rural development, a department of the Andalucía ministry of agriculture, visited Ronda to announce that 47 million euros will be assigned between now and 2014 for projects in the Serranía. This amount marks a seven fold increase over the previous budget. Some 192 projects will benefit creating 290 jobs, 88 will be for women and 40 for young people.

PUBLIC PARKING
The former military installations by Ronda’s sports complex close to the Renfe station will be demolished and resurfaced. The land covers some14,000 square metres and has been used for the parking of lorries. Now it will be converted into a parking area for cars with 60 spaces. The funding for the project will come from the Plan Zapatero and cost four million euros.

FULL HOUSE
The effects of the economic crisis seem to have passed Ronda by during the recent long holiday weekend. The tourist office reports that hotels were 90 per cent full and that 43.6 per cent of the visitors stayed two nights in the town. The tourist office received 2,410 enquiries, 2.5 per cent more than last year, 78.4 per cent of visitors being Spanish.

WOMEN SUFFER
Jobless figures for Ronda showed a 20 person increase in November over October but it is women who are the worst hit in the town of the Tajo. Not only were 18 of that increase female but of the 4,101 rondeños out of work 2,158 are women. The town hall is enacting various short-term work creation programmes but they only offer 166 jobs.

DATELINE RONDA TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 22, 2009

MAYOR KNEW ABOUT ILLEGAL TAJO CONSTRUCTIONS
By David Eade

The Partido Popular councillor and former delegate for public works, José Herrera, has broken his silence over the illegal constructions in the protected Hoya del Tajo in Ronda which is being investigated by the courts. Herrera denies he gave permission for the construction of stables and agricultural units rather he says he issued legal proceedings against them.

Herrera was responding to the court testimony of Mayor Antonio Marín who appeared before the judge on August 20. Marín told the court he had no responsibility in the matter and had not been involved in any discussions that could have led to offences under the town planning law. Furthermore the mayor suggested that it was Herrera who was responsible for the offences and he had not briefed him on what was happening.

Not so says Herrera. He insists that he has committed no legal offence over the construction of the buildings and stables because he never approved them and issued sanctions against the development. Furthermore the mayor and members of his then Partido Andalucista contingent were fully briefed at the meetings of the information commission and the proceedings were reported to Marín. He viewed it as disgraceful that the mayor was trying to evade responsibility by blaming his then colleagues and town hall officials.

There is a political angle to this in that at the time of the alleged offences Marín’s Partido Andalucista was in coalition with the Partido Popular. Indeed it was rumoured that the PP ruled the roost and Marín was just a figure head, which might give rise to the mayor’s testimony. Since then the mayor has broken the pact with the PP, entered a coalition with PSOE and he and his PA councillors have left that party, sit as non aligned but are members of PSOE.

TWENTY-EIGHT ARRESTED FOR COCAINE TRAFFICKING

A year-long investigation by the Judicial Group of the National Police in Ronda has led to the arrest of 28 people in the town on drugs trafficking charges. All are aged between 21 and 40 years with six being held in prison and the rest being released on bail.

The ring leaders are between 21 and 30 years and they hired other young people with “difficult situations” who were offered a week’s holiday plus a payment of between 1,000 and 1,200 euros.

Ronda’s police chief, Salvador García, said that those hired were used as drugs couriers. They went to Santo Domingo in the Caribbean where they holidayed for a week. Once they had finished their holiday they were given doses of cocaine that they hid inside their body. They then returned to Madrid’s Barajas airport acting as tourists. They travelled in pairs with 40 per cent of the couriers or mules being women.

They then were picked up at the airport and brought to Ronda by car. Once the cocaine was recovered it was prepared for sale in Madrid, Sevilla, Marbella as well as Ronda and the surrounding Serranía.

The police operation, code named Mojito, resulted in the seizure of three kilos of cocaine of very high purity worth 540,000 euros. Also now in the court’s hand is the documentation that supported the courier operation that is said to date back over five years. Officers have also found 12,000 euros in cash and jewellery.

The investigation was so large that virtually all the National Police officers based in Ronda were involved. Also taking part were police in the towns and cities where the drugs were distributed and at Barajas airport.

This is not the first time that Ronda or the wider Serranía has been involved in similar investigations or arrests. In the past year alone six people in the area have been arrested for carrying out similar trips to the Dominican Republic and the police there have made arrests at a hotel. Currently Mojito remains open and further arrests have not been ruled out.

GAUCÍN RESIDENTS TO APPEAL AGAINST POWER LINE

The fight by residents, ecologists and Gaucín town hall to halt the proposed Endesa power line that will cut across environmentally protected areas goes on.

It was back in December 2007 that we first highlighted here the campaign to halt the pylons and power lines that Endesa said were needed to meet the increasing needs for power in the Gaucín to Jimena area.

There were suspicions that as the line would terminate at El Corchado in San Pablo de Buceite the main beneficiary of this rape of the countryside would be the proposed golf course and urban development. However as both have long since collapsed there is no obvious “increased need” on a large scale in the area.

Endesa has always hid behind the fact that the regional government’s ministry of innovation, science and business backed the scheme. Indeed it gave the project “exceptional interest” status, which in effect swept away all rights of appeal or common sense deeming the power line was a necessity for the local communities and businesses.

The action group fighting the scheme are now taking their fight directly to the ministry. They will argue that the power lines are not needed; they will destroy areas of natural beauty between Casares, Gaucín and San Pablo and will also put at risk birds and wild life in areas that have been given environmental and national monument protection.

However it would be wrong to dismiss this as a “not in my backyard protest”. The residents have accepted that Endesa may need to boost its electricity supplies. Jamie Orr-Ewing, a foreign resident of Gaucín who is the spokesperson for the action group said of the project: “It will be another set of high tension lines with three cables running in parallel to the existing lines. We have already demonstrated the route of the existing lines can be utilised, meaning the new lines are not necessary. This opinion is supported in writing by an ‘Ingeniero Técnico Industrial’.”

For the people of Gaucín their battle is not at the end of the line.

ANGRY PARENTS
The parents of 150 pupils attending the Miguel de Cervantes School in Ronda are protesting as the dining room has had to be closed because of the lack of space - this has apparently been a problem for a number of years. There have also been protests at the school for Benarrabá and Algatocín were parents are angry over the lack of teachers.

PAY ROW
Following the announcement by the PP mayor of Gaucín, Francisco Ruíz, that the municipality was bankrupt and that he’d have to close the town hall unless he received financial aid, a row has broken out over his salary. PSOE says his socialist predecessor de Molina received 17,692 euros over 14 months against Ruíz’s 64,719 euros a year. The PP has angrily rejected the figures.

CATTLE FAIR
Ronda is famous for its livestock fairs and although the famous royal May fair – the oldest in Andalucía – was cancelled due to the financial crisis the September fair went ahead. The PP is demanding the creation of an area specifically for the cattle and equine markets as they say there was inadequate provision for water, feeding or shelter at the improvised fair site.

HOME GROWN
The Guardia Civil and local police in Arriate raided two homes in the town and arrested three people accused of growing and trafficking marijuana. One house had a greenhouse in the patio with eight plants three metres high and the second dwelling had the same number of plants with an intensive growing system. Also seized was equipment for preparing the drugs for sale.

CONFRATERNITY MUSEUM
The various confraternities in Ronda that hold the celebrated processions during Semana Santa will shortly have their own museum located in the former court house in the historic town on the calle Armiñán. Recently the delegate for citizen participation, Francisco Cañestro, met with the confraternities to show them the 350 square metre space and to give them details of the future museum.

FALLING NUTS
The chestnut harvest is underway and it is predicted that it will be 50 per cent down on previous years. Rafael Cordero of the Asociación Agraria de Jóvenes Agricultores in Ronda says they expect to collect two million kilos of the nuts from 4,300 hectares in the Serranía de Ronda and Valle del Genal. That is considered to be a bad harvest due to the rains in late August. In good years the figure is around five million kilos.