A group of some thirty businesspeople from the bar/restaurant sector have filed a lawsuit with the Balearic High Court for losses caused by the closure of their establishments. They consider that the regional government's measure has been unjustified and disproportionate.
They are backed by the recently formed Arema association of restaurant proprietors and the Pimem restaurants association, whose president, Eugenia Cusí, says that the measures have caused "irreparable financial damage". The aim of the lawsuit, she adds, is to submit administrative decisions taken by the government to "judicial control". If they are proven to be unjustified, there will be grounds for demanding compensation.
Cusí adds that this compensation could then be claimed by other proprietors who have not put their names to the lawsuit as they lack the financial resources and also fear "reprisals". "We do not know the health criteria on which decisions are being made," she stresses. Figures from the national ministry of health indicate that coronavirus infections linked to hospitality are 1.9% and under one per cent in the Balearics.
The Pimem restaurants president is also critical of the government's lack of justification for measures decided by the so-called social dialogue table, of which Pimem is a part. "The current mechanisms of social dialogue are totally insufficient." Meetings are attended at which the government announces initiatives and "we are expected to blindly support measures that we do not fully understand." "There would be no businesspeople taking legal action if our political class were up to the task."
1 comment
To be able to write a comment, you have to be registered and logged in
Is it safe to come over? last time I was there they were marching down the street shouting tourists are terrorists. Not very nice when you are spending money with them. They also threw eggs at our bus. The local government seemed to agree with them. Let me know if we are welcome, or should we go elsewhere. Which is not a problem.