Fishermen feed the thousands for free

In the early hours of yesterday morning a small fleet of Palma fishing trawlers returned to port laden with fish, but far from signalling an end to their protest against the rising fuel prices, the angry fishermen were in fact stepping up their campaign. Yesterday morning the catch of 2'500 kilos of fresh fish was given away to members of the general public for free. The fishing fleet hopes that the “symbolic” gesture will secure further support from the general public in the war against central government and fuel prices. The great fish give-away was also a sign of gratitude for the general public's understanding during this week's demonstrations from all the Spanish fishing fleets based in the Mediterranean. Spokesperson for the Majorcan fleet, Vicente Garau, said yesterday that the operation had been a “great success.” At 9.30am from two refrigerated lorries fishermen threw open their containers and started handing out the thousands of kilos of free llampuga (Dolphin fish) and sardines. Garau said that by 11am, Palma residents had depleted the free fish stocks and there were still people queuing in the hope of another load arriving. While hundreds of people gathered for their free fish, one of the protesting fishermen addressed the crowd through a loud-hailer explaining why the protest is being carried out and how the general public can support the campaign for cheaper fuel.