SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Wednesday March 31 2010 THE SIXTH international Cities on Volcanoes conference will be held in Puerto de la Cruz this summer, it was announced on Wednesday. by JAMES TWEEDIE Tenerife's Cabildo government and the Institute of Technology and Renewable Energies (ITER) will host the meeting of the Cities and Volcanoes Commission (CaV) and the International Association of Volcanology (IAVCEI) in the north coast town from May 31 to June 4. The conference will discuss the implications and hazards of living on or near an active volcano, along with the potential to harness the natural resources that come with it. The seven Canary Islands are merely the tips of enormous submarine volcanoes. Tenerife's Mount Teide – which the indigenous Guanches believed to be the home of their devil Guayota – is dormant but not extinct. Its last eruption was from the El Chinyero vent on the mountain's flank in 1909. El Teide is one of the 16 'Decade Volcanoes' named a...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Wednesday March 31 2010 TENERIFE'S Cabildo government launched a campaign to encourage respect for planning laws on Wednesday. by JAMES TWEEDIE Cabildo planning minister María del Pino de León stressed that: "Good land management is the responsibility not only of public authorities but also of all citizens. “The land, especially on an island like ours is essential and limited, of great ecological, cultural and heritage value that we must know how to manage and care for.” The minister said that the first step would be to foster knowledge and interest of citizens in planning laws and how to navigate them. The regional Canarian government's education ministry will support the campaign with a territorial culture competition in schools, while the University of La Laguna will place more emphasis on planning laws in its architecture, geography and law classes. The Cabildo is helping to organise the Canaries Urban Planning Law Congress in May and the Latin ...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Monday March 29 2010 TENERIFE'S tourism chief predicted that Hollywood blockbuster  Clash of the Titans  would boost tourism in the island on Monday. by JAMES TWEEDIE Cabildo government tourism minister José Manuel Bermúdez said that the 3D epic, which was partly filmed in Tenerife's Mount Teide national park and at the Los Gigantes cliffs, would draw much-needed tourists to the recession-hit island. Speaking at a press conference at the Tenerife Arts Space (TEA) in the capital Santa Cruz, Mr Bermúdez said that the tourist board's public relations firm in London would make the most of the film's worldwide release next month to promote the island, pointing out that the  Harry Potter films had made London a more popular tourist destination. He insisted that the film's setting was not a matter of chance, but of hard work by his department which invited location manager Robin Higgs to the island to scout out the scenery. Mr Bermudez added that t...

50 Cent, Recinto Ferial, Santa Cruz, Saturday March 27 2010 THE LONG list of government and big business sponsors blazed across the giant projection screens on either side of the stage show how seriously this concert is being taken here. by JAMES TWEEDIE This is 50 Cent's only appearance in Spain on his Before I Self Destruct European tour, and it's been hailed for months as a major coup for this distant island colony. Airlines and hotels were offering deals for fans travelling to the show. A bunch of guys in T-shirts printed “Sevilla Fuckin City” (sic) prove that some have flown in from the mainland 700 miles away. But the ten thousand or so young fans here tonight don't care about that. They're only here to party with rapper-turned fashion czar-turned actor-turned director Curtis James Jackson III, AKA 50 Cent and his group G-Unit. Having starred in the semi-autobiographical Get Rich or Die Tryin' – named after his breakthrough album – 34 year-old Jackson has no...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Saturday March 27 2010 TENERIFE'S Rotary clubs held a charity concert for the earthquake-stricken people of Haiti at the capital's auditorium on Saturday. by JAMES TWEEDIE The island's six branches of the British Rotary club organised the concert by Canarian folklore group Los Sabandeños at the striking dockside Tenerife Auditorium, reminiscent of the Sydney Opera House. All proceeds from the €15 concert will go to the Rotary clubs Shelter Box non-government organisation, which delivers boxes of aid to the victims of natural disasters. More than 200,000 people perished when the magnitude seven quake hit the impoverished Caribbean nation on January 12. Shelter Box is also among the organisations aiding survivors of the February 27 Chilean earthquake.

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Saturday March 27 2010 TENERIFE'S capital Santa Cruz saw the third demonstration against public service cuts in one week on Saturday. by JAMES TWEEDIE The demonstration was in opposition Tenerife Cabildo government cuts in services for children and disabled people, including the closure of the Juvenile Reception Centre (CAME) in El Portezuelo near La Laguna. Hundreds of service users and members of the national Workers' Commissions (CCOO) and the regional Canarian Workers' Syndical Front (FSOC) and the Canarian Assembly of Workers (ATC) marched from the central Plaza Weyler to the Tenerife's Cabildo government building in the seafront Plaza España. Protesters waved placards of mock 'wanted' posters for Cabildo president Ricardo Melchior and carried a banner accusing the government of prioritising infrastructure projects over helping vulnerable members of society. The march followed similar demonstrations by the National Confederation of W...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Thursday March 25 2010 ONE THOUSAND regional trade unionists protested against government cuts and privatisation in Tenerife's capital on Thursday evening. by JAMES TWEEDIE The demonstration by the Intersindical Canaria (IC) union was in opposition to privatisation and cuts in public services by both the Socialist Party (PSOE) national government and the regional alliance of the Popular party (PP) and the Canarian Coalition (CC). Protesters gathered in Santa Cruz' Plaza Weyler and marched to a rally in the central Plaza Candelaria in a mass of white, blue and yellow Canarian flags while a speaker van blared out slogans and political songs. The procession was led by a mock priest and pallbearers carrying a black coffin to signify the funeral of public services, especially health. Unions have criticised the government for bailing out crisis-hit banks to the tune of €50 billion, while cutting public spending by the same amount and pushing ahead with privati...

GRANADILLA DE ABONA, Tuesday March 16 2010 FROM recycling your rubbish to cycling to work, in recent years we have been urged to make myriad small changes to our lifestyles to save the world from the supposedly cataclysmic threat of climate change. by JAMES TWEEDIE But how much can we really contribute towards cutting global greenhouse gas emissions by using low-energy light bulbs and putting our potato peelings in a compost bin? Can we really have a carbon-neutral lifestyle? The Canary Islands have become something of a laboratory for renewable energy over the last two decades. Tenerife has three wind farms with three more in the pipeline, and a photo-electric solar panels are now assembled at a factory on the island, a welcome diversification from the crisis-hit tourism economy. Tenerife's Renewable Energy and Technological Institute (ITER) opened its new bioclimatic homes exhibit at its headquarters in the Granadilla industrial estate on March 19. The 14-year long project attrac...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Saturday March 20 2010 SPAIN'S two anarchist trade union federations held demonstrations in Tenerife's capital Santa Cruz on Saturday. by JAMES TWEEDIE The anarcho-syndicalist National Confederation of Labour (CNT) protested outside the regional headquarters of the Socialist Party of Spain (PSOE) – controls the national but not the Canarian regional government – against a variety of policies. They carried a banner reading “Defend your rights – not one step further” in reference to budget cuts and tax rises. CNT regional general secretary Alex Rodríguez said that the the protest was against the government's €50 billion bail-out of Spanish banks alongside the same amount in cuts to public spending. Mr Rodriguez said that the government had “money for the banks and businesses, but nothing for the workers.” The CNT, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, also opposes government plans to increase Value Added Tax (IVA) and to raise the retireme...

PROYECTO GRUTA, La Caverna, Alcampo La Laguna, Tenerife, Saturday March 13 2010 by JAMES TWEEDIE One of the most pleasant surprises on this island of 800,000 lost souls is the vibrant Heavy Metal scene, shooting up between the palm trees and cactus. This is the second Proyecto Gruta (Grotto Project) bill at the unusual La Caverna venue – with its ancient Central-American temple décor – in the basement of the monstrous Alcampo shopping centre in La Laguna. Tonight, three home-grown acts are given an hour each to show the kind of flair and enthusiasm that I've come to expect here. Kronika from La Orotava want to be Metallica so much it hurts. Vocalist Lucho imitates James Hetfield's voice to a tee on their carbon-copy cover of 'Fade to Black', and goes on to do Pantera's Phil Anselmo on 'Mouth for War' and Megadeth's Dave Mustaine on “Symphony of Destruction.” Why do so many bands miss the point of covers? If I wanted to hear the original version I'd...

SAN CRISTOBAL DE LA LAGUNA, Saturday March 13 2010 Cuban comedian Juanito Panchín on stage at the Fuerza Chile charity concert on Friday HUNDREDS of residents turned out for a concert in aid of Chilean earthquake victims in Tenerife's metropolis on Saturday. by JAMES TWEEDIE The Fuerza Chile charity concert was organised by the Friends of Chile Cultural Association, in conjunction with the Association of Chileans in the Canaries, La Laguna council and others, to raise money for those affected by the February 27 quake which killed almost 500 people. More than 20 Spanish and Latin American musical and folklore groups and comedians from performed at the outdoor festival at the Tranvia Centre in La Cuesta.

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Saturday March 13 2010 WESTERN Saharan prisoner of conscience Ali Salem Tamek has won a new human rights award, local campaigners announced on Saturday. by JAMES TWEEDIE The Assembly for Tenerife (AXT), a coalition of residents', environmental and left-wing groups, said that its inaugural José Manuel Méndez memorial prize for the defence of life, human rights and social justice would go to the imprisoned activist. AXT spokesman Ramón Afonso (pictured, centre) said that Mr Tamek was the only person nominated for the prize. The award is in honour of veteran local campaigner, communist and trade unionist José Manuel Méndez, who died in December 2006. Mr Afonso quoted Mr Méndez' favourite saying: “The defeated are invincible,” by which he meant that though one may not achieve one's goals, they have no choice but to continue the struggle against oppression and exploitation. Mr Méndez was a member of the Communist Youth Union and the CCOO trade union feder...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Tuesday March 9 2010 A PAINTING by Catalan surrealist Salvador Dalí went on display at the Tenerife Arts Space on Tuesday. by JAMES TWEEDIE El rec de la Jorneta (The ravine of the Jorneta) is on loan to the TEA from its owners, a Canarian family, for five years. Javier González de Durana, artistic director of the gallery on the south bank of Santa Cruz' Barranco de Santos, and Tenerife Cabildo government general coordinator of cultural and historic heritage Cristóbal de la Rosa unveiled the painting to the press on Tuesday morning. Dalí painted  El rec de la Jorneta  in 1923 at the age of just 19 while living at the  Residencia de Estudiantes in Madrid and studying at the  Academia de San Fernando,  during a trip to his family home in Figueres, Catalunya, now home to a museum of his work. It depicts an Arcadian scene very similar to parts of Tenerife, with women bathing naked on the terraced flank of the valley. The painting fo...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Monday March 8 2010 THE SOCIALIST Party charged the regional government with interfering in parliament and undermining the constitution on Monday. by JAMES TWEEDIE Socialist Party (PSOE) regional MP and spokesman Santiago Pérez (pictured) accused the governing Canarian Coalition (CC) – Popular Party (PP) alliance of excluding members of his party from meetings of Parliamentary commissions. Speaking at his regular Monday morning press conference, he alleged that PP health minister Mercedes Roldós had influenced Parliamentary Health Commission chairwoman Rosa Rodríguez – a fellow PP member – to refuse to reschedule a meeting which two PSOE members could not attend. The PSOE pointed out that flexibility it was considered good parliamentary practice Socialist MP Domingo Fuentes Curbelo had postponed last Friday's meeting of the Environment Commission which he chairs at the request of environment minister Domingo Berriel. Mr Pérez said that he had sent a letter...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Saturday March 6 2010 HUNDREDS protested against proposed reductions to the Canaries' endangered species list in the capital Santa Cruz on Saturday. by JAMES TWEEDIE The demonstration organised by environmental campaigners Ben Magec – Ecologists in Action took the form of a murga – the satirical pantomime-opera popular in the Canaries since the time of fascist dictator Francisco Franco. The festivities were led by one member of the group (pictured) wearing a giant caricature mask of Canarian minister for the environment Domingo Berriel. It was purposely held in the city's Plaza Militar, opposite the offices of the Canarian Coalition (CC) political party – one half of the regional governing alliance with the conservative Popular Party and which proposed reducing by roughly half the archipelago's Catalogue of Endangered Species. Ben Magec Tenerife spokesman Fran Castro accused the Canarian government of deleting endangered flora and fauna from the lis...

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Saturday March 6 2010 AN OUTDOOR exhibition of seven steel sculptures opened in Tenerife's capital Santa Cruz on Thursday March 4. Story and pictures by JAMES TWEEDIE The seven works on display in the central Plaza del Príncipe were made by sculptor Julio Nieto over each of the past seven years. They include Marea (Tide, pictured right), a figure of a fisher-woman formed of fish. Enamorado de Acero  (In Love With Steel) and  ¿Por Que Me Echaron Del Cielo?  (Why Have They Thrown Me From Heaven?) combine perishable roses and apples with their enduring iron structures. The metal statues will be on display until Friday March 19. Click on the images to view them at full size. La Llamada (The Call) Viajero (Voyager) Enamorado de Acero  (In Love With Steel) ¿Por Que Me Echaron Del Cielo? (Why Have They Thrown Me From Heaven?) ¿Y Alicia...? (And Alice...?) Icaro Salvado (Icarus Saved)

GÜÍMAR, TENERIFE, Friday March 5 2010 SCHOOLCHILDREN watched as a rescued Loggerhead Turtle was released into the wild at El Puertito beach in Güímar on Friday. by JAMES TWEEDIE The marine reptile - whose Spanish name means 'silly turtle' - waddled and swam to freedom in front of 120 year one infants from Luther King North School, environmental volunteers and other members of the public. Most rescued turtles rescued have been hit by boats, suffered amputations, oil poisoning or have swallowed fishing hooks.  Once rescued they are taken to the the Tahonilla Wildlife Recovery Centre in La Esperanza for first aid an then to the Neotropics Foundation, which is responsible for their recovery and eventual release. The Foundation invites schools, neighbourhood associations and other groups to take part in releasing sea turtles as a form of environmental education.

GÜÍMAR, TENERIFE, Friday March 5 2010 The human rights seminar was announced at a press conference in  Güímar on Friday GÜÍMAR council will host a three-day conference on human rights in the Moroccan-occupied nation Western Sahara next week. by JAMES TWEEDIE The seminar will run from 5 pm to 9.30 pm every evening Wednesday March 10 to Friday March 12 at the  Casa de la Cultura  in the town on Tenerife's east coast. Güímar council organised the event in conjunction with the University of La Laguna, the Pedro García Cabrera foundation, the Institute of Canarian Studies and the Spanish- Sahrawi  Cultural Association. Confirmed speakers include the writer and journalist Alberto Vázquez Figueroa, who will talk on 'The violation of human rights in the occupied territories of Western Sahara'. He will be joined by Sahrawi Association of Victims of Rights Violations vice-president  Galia Djimi and the UN representative of  Sahrawi  national liberati...