‘This is only beginning' – Lanzarote locals fight back after Irish ‘cancel trip' alert & thousands hit latest protest
A GROUP of Lanzarote locals have organised a fight-back against anti mass tourism campaigners who daubed the holiday isle with graffiti during yesterday's Canary Islands protests.
According to regional government officials
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Thousands marched in protests calling for a freeze on tourist numbers across the Canary Islands yesterday
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Lanzarote Loves Tourism activists have begun a clean-up of the mess the protestors left yesterday
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In Tenerife around 15,000 people joined the march in the island capital Santa Cruz
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They also pledged to continue defending the popular British and Irish holiday destination as they painted over offensive messages directed at visitors and criticised those responsible for the graffiti.
The clean-up involved men, women and children wearing Lanzarote Loves Tourism T-shirts.
A spokesman for the group said overnight: 'Today we have taken another step towards respecting our island.
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'Lanzarote Loves Tourism has gone out to cover the graffiti in public spaces with the message that they do not represent those who love our land and that they are not an example in the way they convey their demands.
'We love Lanzarote, and we believe that to defend it is to act but always with a positive message and without destroying what has cost people here so much effort.
"It is not just a matter of saying it, but of demonstrating it with deeds. Our landscape, our identity and our culture, our monuments deserve respect.
"Thanks to all the people who have joined in. This is only the beginning.'
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'Yes, Lanzarote has a limit, and also a responsibility. And we will protect it.'
Inside Tenerife's ongoing war between tourists and locals
Protestors
They also called on the government to
Steve Heapy, chief at Jet2, warned holidaymakers are considering cancelling their trips as protests about overtourism become "increasingly vocal".
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The airline boss added: "Protesters are becoming increasingly vocal, and that's making some people question whether now is the right time to go."
Tourists have taken to social media to weight in on the protests, with some claiming they "won't go where we're not wanted".
One person said: "If it were me, I'd see if I could go somewhere else.
"A holiday is a time of relaxation, time with the family, having to worry about the locals reaction and protest would spoil your enjoyment."
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Another added: "We had a holiday booked to Ibiza but changed it to Greece. The people in Greece are so welcoming.
"We used to enjoy Spain but won't go where we're not wanted."
'FLAT & DEFLATED'
In
Officials said just over 2,000 people took part in Lanzarote, holding up banners with messages including: "Tourist, enjoy, because I can't live here anymore."
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The 23,000 locals officials said supported the protests across the archipelago were way down on the 57,000 people said to have taken part in
It is estimated another 3,000 people in
Brian Harrison, a Tenerife-based British expat who took part in yesterday's march on the island, accused authorities of lying about the number of people who had participated.
He said: "Obviously they are embarrassed and concerned that approximately 100,000 protesters marched, despite the fact that public transport was suspended in many parts of the capital yesterday morning.
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"Over ten per cent of the population of Tenerife took to the streets to protest, and there was not one single violent incident.'
WHAT IS OVERTOURISM?
OVERTOURISM refers to the phenomenon where a destination experiences a volume of tourists that exceeds its manageable capacity
The term is often used to describe the negative consequences of mass tourism, which includes overcrowding and environmental issues
As a result, popular destinations have become less enjoyable for both visitors and locals
Local communities, in particular, bear the brunt, facing rising costs and a depletion of resources
In response, national and local governments have started to implement measures to reduce overtourism
Some solutions include:
Safeguarding historical and heritage sites
Promoting off-peak travel
Tourism caps and regulations
Promoting lesser-known destinations
One of the banners held up in the Tenerife event said in English: 'Tourists swim in s***.'
A protestor speaking at a rally staged during the protest claimed: 'Swimming or practising water sports in certain areas of the island has become an act of Russian roulette.
'You can see and smell when the water is contaminated but the beaches are almost never closed, because it's more important to maintain an image for the tourist than look after the health of islanders.'
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The graffiti Lanzarote Loves Tourism cleaned up included a message painted in black capital letters on a white wall saying: '18M Stop Turismo Masivo' which translates as 'Stop Mass Tourism' with a reference to the date of yesterday's marches.
One supporter responded by saying on social media: 'Yes, that is defending Lanzarote.'
Another added: 'Bravo' with applause emoticons.
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The demonstrations aim to denounce the current tourism model
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The protests were the third of their kind in the Canaries just over a year
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Activists poured waste and sewage water on pictures of Canary Islands politicans at the protest yesterday
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