17/10/2013 00:00
TW
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STAFF REPORTER

PALMA
ON the occasion of Hispanic Day yesterday, marking the anniversary of when Christopher Columbus first set foot in the Americas in 1492, Central Government Delegate in the Balearics, Ramon Socias, congratulated members of the Guardia Civil for their success in bringing down the regional crime rate for the seventh year running.

At a red carpet event held at Palma's airport celebrating what is also the annual festival of Virgen del Pilar who is the patron saint of the Guardia Civil, Socias thanked the security forces on behalf of the residents of the Balearics, saying that the the officers' commitment to their work and the safety of the community had given the population the freedom to live in peace.

The occasion was attended by the President of the Balearic Islands, Francesc Antich, the President of the Balearic Parliament Aina Rado, the Mayor of Palma, Aina Calvo and other key regional dignitaries.

Socias began his speech with a tribute to the two young Guardia Civil members, Diego Salva and Carlos Saenz de Tejada who were murdered in Palmanova by the Basque terrorist group ETA in July 2008, and to the officer who was killed during the course of duty in a traffic accident on the island earlier this year. “We will never give in,” said Socias. “Every blow that we strike against terrorism is one step closer to bringing these criminals to justice.” The Delegate also spoke of other major strides taken by the Guardia Civil over the past year in terms of dismantling drug trafficking gangs and fighting domestic violence.

Although he formally recognised the fact that there have been national budget cuts as a result of the economic crisis, Socias pointed to the fact that Guardia Civil staffing levels have actually increased in the Balearics, more has been done to train officers and ensure their security, and new quarters have been built in Felantix, Calvia, Sa Pobla and Formentera.

Socias said that he didn't want to finish his address without giving a special “thank you” to the families of the officers who had turned up en masse at the airport ceremony. He applauded what he described as “their understanding, generosity and the sacrifice” made by husbands, wives and children so that officers could carry out their duties. Meanwhile, the Colonel in Chief of the Guardia Civil in the Balearics, Basilio Sanchez Rulfo spoke of the dedication of the security forces to Spanish society, and that it was a mark of the professionalism of his officers that they maintained the same high standards despite the strain of cuts in financial support.

It is the task of crime prevention, said Sanchez Rulfo that is the driving force of the Guardia Civil. He furthered that the falling crime statistics are indeed in themselves a testimony to the success of his officers in upholding the law. At the end of the ceremony, medals were awarded to members of the Guardia Civil who had proved outstanding in their duties.