ISSUE NO. 1658
13 - 19 April 2017
A XARQUÍA - C OSTA T ROPICAL
YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION
Scrappy Easter Calls for rethink after false terror alarm By Jay Emeny and Matt Ford The Jesus Cautivo brotherhood have requested longmooted changes to the Semana Santa timetable after a mass stampede during their Malaga procession. A spokesman for the group said that it intends to demand an earlier start in 2018, an appeal first issued 13 years ago. The march descended into chaos in the early hours of Tuesday (April 11) after rumours of gunfire and explosions caused hundreds of panicked spectators to charge through the city streets. Police say that a fight towards the back of the procession was the initial cause of the confusion, after cheeky residents placed chairs in a prime spot on Calle Carretaria, a practice which is banned during Holy Week. When a passer-by complained to a seated woman, her husband jumped up and punched him in the nose. Witnesses looking on from nearby balconies described how panic quickly broke out, and that those responsible fled in the opposite direction after realising what they had started. Events took a further turn for the worst after whispers of shots being fired and even a runaway car spread throughout the city centre. Mobile phones littered the ground and children became separated from their parents in the ensuing bedlam, with the presence of a police helicopter above the celebrations unintentionally adding to the sense of fear. After 20 minutes all re-
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Mary, Mary AN operation against large-scale drug trafficking in Spain has resulted in the arrests of 39 people in Malaga, Sevilla, Granada and Cadiz. The group is accused of cultivating, processing and preparing marihuana for sale and consumption throughout Europe. See page 2
Top model FRIGILIANA is in the running to lend its name to a new Seat model, according to the company. The whitewashed mountain town, which joined a list of Spain’s
most beautiful villages in 2011, is one of several areas being considered for the new car, an SUV, which will launch in 2018. See page 5
Yabba dabba doo turned to normal as the band struck up once more to applause from the remaining spectators. A number of people were treated after fainting or suffering panic attacks during the chaos, while two were hospitalised with cuts and bruises. A video showing revellers sprinting across the Puente de la Aurora Bridge quickly went viral on social media and later appeared on several Spanish national news programmes. The Security councillor for Malaga, Mario Cortes, told news outlets that the crowd “gave in to hysteria due to the times we live in, but they were misled by unfortunate rumours.” The El Cautivo procession is one of the biggest events
ALCAUCIN is preparing to honour its ‘neanderthal man,’ who was unearthed in the Cave of Boquete de Zazarraya in 1983 and later transported to Madrid. The town is now creating an interactive learning centre to celebrate the man, who remained undiscovered for 34,000 years. See page 6
Curtain call during Holy Week in Malaga, where an effigy of Jesus is carried through the streets, followed by a statue of the Virgin Mary. Ignacio Castillo, head of the brotherhood, said in future “we either change the schedule for El Cautivo or simply disband the procession.”
MASS STAMPEDE: As spectators started to panic.
BUSINESSES and residents in Velez-Malaga have slammed the council’s decision not to include investment for refurbishment of the Lope de Vega theatre in their
2017 budget. The Neighbourhood Association of San Juan and San Francisco has criticised the decision. See page 11