Thousands of people demonstrated this Sunday at Arenal de sa Ràpita forming a three-kilometre human chain under the slogan 'Neither before, nor now, nor ever, es Trenc is not to be touched'.
A tide of people has coloured the coast of sa Ràpita this Sunday. The environmental organisations GOB, Menys Turisme, Més Vida, and Terraferida have managed to gather 10,000 people in a three-kilometre human chain to protest against the deprotection of the natural park of es Trenc. The atmosphere was festive but with a clear message: the Mallorcan society is not willing to give up even a metre of its protected spaces.
A decree that bypasses the Parliament
The trigger for the protest is a decree from the Consell de Govern that, backed by the law for the acceleration of strategic projects, modifies the management of the natural park without going through the Parliament. The organising entities believe that this route represents a "step towards deprotection" of the natural space and sets a dangerous precedent for other protected sites on the island.
"The citizen response confirms to us that the defence of the territory is a concern shared by thousands of people," the organisers stated in a communiqué. "It sends a very clear message to the institutions: the Mallorcan society does not accept any regression in the protection of natural spaces".
Concrete measures against the destructive model
The writer Sebastià Alzamora was in charge of reading the manifesto, which includes very specific requests: repeal of the law for the acceleration of strategic projects, halt to the deregulating provisions of the agricultural law, total prohibition of rentals on rustic land, and abolition of the minimum 14,000 square metres rule from the Territorial Plan of Mallorca.
"We are not asking for utopias or strange things, but for concrete, realistic, and urgent measures for the common good. The model that the Govern wants to promote is a destructive model," Alzamora stated. The manifesto insists that the new legal framework is designed to facilitate new constructions, beach bars, parking lots, beach services, and tourist uses, warning that, over time, apartments, hotels, and new tourist offerings could arrive in the area.
Criticism of the law and territorial model
The criticism is not limited to es Trenc. The manifesto argues that the amendments to the omnibus law also affect other protected spaces such as Cabrera, sa Dragonera, and the Serra de Tramuntana, while the agricultural law would turn the foravila "into a plot for anyone to build wherever and however they want".
The entities denounce an "offensive" to fill the territory with cement, concrete, asphalt, and glass, warning that the ultimate goal is to weaken the Plans for the Management of Natural Resources (PORN), considered the main tool for protection against new urban, tourist, and economic pressures on protected natural spaces.
The President of the Govern, Marga Prohens, and the Minister of Agriculture, Joan Simonet, have denied that there is any deprotection of es Trenc, but the demonstrators do not believe them. The human chain has been the voice of a citizenry demanding that current protection be maintained and that the door to speculation not be opened.
For the people of Mallorca, this mobilization serves as a wake-up call: the future of spaces like es Trenc, Cabrera, or the Serra de Tramuntana is at stake. The entities have already announced that they will remain vigilant and do not rule out new actions if the Govern does not rectify. For now, the human chain has demonstrated that the defence of the territory unites thousands of people, and that the debate on the island's territorial model is more alive than ever.
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