MD Law Group has filed a criminal complaint against Arran Mallorca and the platform Menys Turisme, Més Vida for belonging to a criminal group, coercion and other crimes, following the dissemination of a manual that encourages direct actions against tourism businesses.
The international firm MD Law Group has stepped forward and reported Arran Mallorca and the platform Menys Turisme, Més Vida to the courts for the publication of a manual that, according to the firm, promotes coercive tactics against the tourism sector of the islands. The complaint, filed yesterday at the Palma court, accuses both entities of belonging to a criminal group, aggravated coercion, incitement to public disorder and inducement to damage.
The document, known as 'Manual of Action Against Touristic Development', was disseminated last Tuesday by Menys Turisme, Més Vida, the same organization that has called for a large anti-massification demonstration on July 26. Its pages detail non-violent direct actions against tourism businesses, such as sit-ins, blockades or discrediting campaigns, which the firm considers to be criminal acts.
Two-pronged approach: criminal and legislative
MD Law Group's strategy combines two fronts. On one hand, the criminal route: the complaint requests the immediate intervention of the Provincial Information Brigade of the National Police to investigate the counter-surveillance practices, use of disguises and face concealment that, according to the document, these platforms promote. The case has been assigned to the investigating court number 5 in Palma.
On the other hand, the firm has registered this Thursday before the Balearic Parliament a legislative proposal dubbed the 'Law for the Protection of the Image and Sustainability of Tourist Resources in the Balearic Islands'. The text proposes administrative fines ranging from 60,001 to 300,000 euros for those who finance or disseminate sabotage guides, and establishes joint liability for spokespersons who justify these acts.
Reactions and political context
From the management of MD Law Group, they have been emphatic: “The Balearic Islands is a democratically advanced, civic and plural society. The right to protest is guaranteed, but it is intolerable that coercive tactics typical of street violence are used to intimidate legitimate business owners and families.” They add: “Organized vandalism is not dialogue, it is a crime.”
The complaint comes amid growing tension in Mallorca over the debate on tourist massification. The Balearic Government has already described the manual as “unacceptable” and several entities associated with the July 26 demonstration have distanced themselves from the document. For the residents of Palma and the tourist municipalities, the news represents a new chapter in the struggle between the right to protest and the protection of the economic fabric.
A large human chain against massification is scheduled for July 26. Meanwhile, the courts will have to decide whether the actions outlined in the manual cross the line of legality. The firm hopes that the legislative route will serve to “financially suffocate” the promoters of tourism phobia.
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