A brand new chapter within the warfare between the Torrevieja authorities and the ‘high manta’ unlawful avenue merchants was unveiled on Thursday, with the erection of avenue signage warning members of the general public that the acquisition of merchandise from such sellers is punishable by a superb of 200 euros.
The indicators have been put in alongside a lot of the seafront, up and down the Juan Aparicio promenade, though preliminary indications are that few persons are taking any actual discover.
The indicators are a brand new initiative that the Council has undertaken to attempt to sort out a phenomenon that has been resisting all different deterrents for a few years now, and that has merely ignored all different measures launched by the city corridor.
The poster says. “The acquisition or acquisition in public areas of meals, drinks and different merchandise from unauthorised avenue merchandising is prohibited.” An identical message has additionally been printed on the council’s social networks.
For the second solely a small handful of indicators are being displayed though the Council’s intention is to erect many extra in any respect factors alongside the promenade which are frequented by the ‘manteros’.
Lately the presence of such merchants, removed from diminishing, is rising. Primarily carried out by Senegalese immigrants, areas corresponding to these adjoining to the monument to the Man of the Sea are a steady sequence of white sheets unfold throughout the bottom and the ambiance more and more resembles that of a bazaar or a souk fairly than that of a leisure space.
Furthermore, any police presence, appears to have little impact on those that promote these counterfeit merchandise with officers observing from a distance as unlawful gross sales continues with out obstacle. Though sellers would normally decide up their belongings and conceal after they see the brokers strolling round, as soon as the uniformed officers withdraw the ‘manteros’ rapidly notify one another and return to their former pitches.
In the course of the first time period of the present mayor, Eduardo Dolón (2011-2015), an try was made to pursue these merchants in a extra forceful method however the intervention led to avenue fights between distributors and brokers in addition to protests by the Senegalese themselves in entrance of the courts. With the emphasis to not purchase such unlawful items now being positioned on the purchaser the council is clearly hoping that their actions will result in a lower within the presence of such avenue merchants.
