News
Salad renamed
An initiative which began in Zaragoza is reported to have spread throughout Spain . Many restaurants and bars have amended their menus by renaming “ ensaladilla rusa ” ( Russian salad ) as “ ensaladilla ucraniana ” or “ ensaladilla Kyiv .” A number of restaurateurs have even reported that Russian visitors have been amongst those suggesting that the name of the popular potato salad dish be changed .
Prices protests
Rallies in Spain ’ s major cities on March 19 were called by the far-right VOX party to protest over soaring rises in the prices of food , power and fuel . In Madrid , thousands gathered waving Spanish flags and calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez . The same day , the opposition Partido Popular demanded that the Government lower taxes immediately .
Energy cap
As Soltalk went to press , Spain was preparing a joint plan with Portugal to cap the wholesale price of power at € 180 per megawatt hour . Last month , a new record of € 545 / MWh was recorded . The proposal was expected to be put forward to other EU members in an effort to control continuing increases which have been aggravated in recent weeks by the Ukraine crisis .
Workplace deaths
A 42-year-old man died on March 17 after falling from the roof of a warehouse on the La Inmaculada industrial estate in Coín . The same afternoon , a 28-year-old died when a tractor fell down an embankment and overturned in Canillas de Aceituno . He and a 31-year-old man who was injured were trapped until the vehicle was lifted .
Local support for Ukraine
A coach charted by Nerja Town Hall with the help of the Nerja Business Association and local tour operator Viajes Turísticos ,, completed a round trip of 6,600 kilometres when it returned home from Poland on March 18 . On board , were several dozen women and children fleeing from Ukraine who were picked up at Krakow .
When they arrived in Nerja , the refugees were given a warm welcome and presented with a bag of personal hygiene products , as well as toys for the children . They were then transferred to an hotel in Alcaucín to be processed and to receive health care before being handed into the care of individual families who had offered accommodation .
On the outward journey to Poland , the bus was loaded with humanitarian aid and basic necessities donated by local people , groups and associations . These were then transferred to the interior of Ukraine to be distributed amongst the population .
Nerja Town Hall , meanwhile , has aligned itself with national institutions and the international community demanding “ the immediate cessation of aggression and the withdrawal of Russian military personnel deployed in Ukraine ” and has conveyed its “ solidarity and affection " for around 70 Ukrainian citizens resident in the municipality .
However , Nerja ’ s only councillor representing the right-wing VOX party last month voted against the move . Jeffrey Taylor told the press he was in favour of the manifesto ’ s content , but that it had been drawn up by the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces ( FEMP ) which he described as a “ shady ” organisation .
Local women honoured
Six women from the Axarquía were honoured at a ceremony in Nerja last month . They were recognised for promoting gender equality and their local contributions to the empowerment of women .
They included Blanca López , an athlete from Nerja ( pictured with Nerja Mayor José Alberto Armijo ), Elena López , a mechanic from Rincón de la Victoria , Pilar Delgado , a former town councillor in Rincón de la Victoria and president of the Rincón Contigo Association , María Belén Guerrero , a lorry driver from Sayalonga , and María José Navarta a local police officer from Algarrobo and a former football player and coach .
Pilar Serrán , former president of Esperanza , the Axarquía association of women with breast cancer , who died
last August was honoured posthumously .
The annual awards event , organised by Málaga ’ s provincial government since 2012 , recognises women who have contributed to gender equality in the province , especially in smaller municipalities . Similar events were held in Álora and Antequera later last month .
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