[Gocamino] Noticias desde Santiago

Tue Dec 28 14:52:46 PST 2010

Hi guys,

I'll try to explain what is happening.

Since the Camino de Santiago was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site,
protected by Spanish law, it is not easy to achieve such protection. The
mayors do not prioritize their conservation. Development ministry neither.

At that point, the Galician Association (AGACS) has invited the press to
give them a dossier explaining all that is happening, with all kinds of
information. And to ask UNESCO to include the Camino de Santiago in the List
of World Heritage in Danger.

The authorities are alarmed, of course. The AGACS is important in Spain.
More than 80 associations have supported the measure Jacobean.

Over time, things will continue happening. We hope to see them.

For now, you can all help. If you want to join us in this initiative, you
can send a message to info at amigosdelcamino.com. In
www.amigosdelcamino.comis a list of associations that have joined this
initiative. And also you can
find on that site all the information.

One of the points where danger is Yesa. There is a swamp along the Camino de
Santiago. The Aragon Government wishes to make it bigger, flooding several
miles of road. The neighbors are against it.

Another point is the Zafra's refinery. Personally, I think it's great to
create jobs in a depressed region. But "it has to be" just a plot through
which the Camino de la Plata, because it belongs to "someone" and is
therefore not possible to create 5 km. west of that point.

And do not forget O Pino. Mayor of the town expropriated land at 6 €/m2.
When AGACS prevented the construction of industrial park (it was not
possible to prevent razing the whole field) the new owner company wanted to
sell the land ... at 96 €/m2! Economic interests are always above the road
and no one tries to stop him. It's a shame.

And, it is hapenning almost every day. There are countless examples. How
many do you want? In what ways? I can bore you with examples. Again, it's a
shame.

Buen Camino,

Javier Martin
Madrid, Spain.

On Tue, Dec 28, 2010 at 11:08 PM, Rebekah Scott <rebrites at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Dear Bob, those real estate developments were not EU-funded. They were part
> of the big real-estate boom that went bust in Spain in 2007, that led to the
> current economic crisis. Lots of EU money flooded into Spain and built much
> of the highway and rail infrastructure you see now, and it gave a foundation
> to the big "pigs running to the trough" private real estate/"cheap money"
>  craziness that now has Spain´s young unemployed living at home with mom and
> dad, while thousands of brand-new (and still over-priced) houses stand empty
> out on the city limits of hundreds of towns.
> IMHO It´s not the EU so much as just plain old Capitalist greed what
> dunnit.
>
> Rebekah Scott
> www.moratinoslife.blogspot.com
>
> "In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an
> invincible summer." -- Albert Camus
>
> --- On Tue, 12/28/10, Robert Spenger <rspenger at earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>
> From: Robert Spenger <rspenger at earthlink.net>
> Subject: Re: [Gocamino] Noticias desde Santiago
> To: "Glenn Jilek" <guha2005 at hotmail.com>
> Cc: gocamino at oakapple.net
> Date: Tuesday, December 28, 2010, 10:14 PM
>
>
> Re Yesa: That was an issue as far back as my first trip in 2000, when I did
> the Arles route. I was very confused when I read "Yesa No." It sounded like
> a bad pun in English, but I soon learned about the  farms and villages that
> had to be abandoned, including one that was noted for its refugio.
>
> In regard to development, in 2000 I saw signs announcing the development of
> a new, modern, residential  community. I believe that it was somewhere a
> little to the west of Santo Domingo de Calzada. When I went through there a
> couple of years later, construction had begun and the route had to be
> detoured around it. On the next trip through that region, in 2008, it was
> all complete, but with no signs of life. There was no one on the brand new
> golf course and most of the housing units (condos?) had for sale signs on
> them. There was no sign of any retail stores. I assume that, if there were
> any residents, they would have to go into Santo Domingo de Calzada to do
> their shopping. There as an old village a short way past the development and
> I stopped there for a snack in a small bar. That was the only place where I
> saw any activity. The village itself was quite small and did not appear to
> have any facilities other than the bar.
>
> My impression is that such developments were financed by funds from the EU
> and that there was a lot of resentment in rest of the EU over such projects.
> There ;seems to be a strong feeling that it is just money going to waste,
> and it appears to me that this view is correct. Even the improvements in the
> infrastructure of the camino itself seem to have been more for the benefit
> of the contractors rather than the community. Some of the work was poorly
> done and the maintenance is often inadequate.
>
> Bob S.
>
>
> On Dec 28, 2010, at 10:28 AM, Glenn Jilek wrote:
>
> The Economic Development thing is a different issue.
>
>     The graffiti that I saw on the Camino Aragon was spray painted on the
> walls by and for the local consumption, not the pilgrims.  I or other
> pilgrims did not know what it meant when we saw "NO YESA" scribbled and
> splashed about.  I only found out a week or two later when I saw the
> petition that was for the pilgrims to sign.
>
>
>     I worked for many years as a transportation planner and economic
> development is used as a prime reason for construction of infrastructure,
> but does not always lead to long term employment gains.  There is a real
> boost during actual construction sure, but then, many times the unemployment
> problem just shifts from one area to another.  There are a lot of "It
> depends" factors, and it is (at least here in the USA) far from being a sure
> fire solution to prosperity... although a very few people will get very
> wealthy from these types of projects.
>
> Glenn
>
>
> > Date: Mon, 27 Dec 2010 11:13:04 -0800
> > From: ayoung2001 at yahoo.com
> > To: gocamino at oakapple.net
> > Subject: Re: [Gocamino] Noticias desde Santiago
> >
> > Indeed it is sad news, but (yes, there is a "but"), I'm afraid that
> according to every expert opinion, the particular economic news we hear now
> is not going to be quite as short-term as previous ones. I will miss the
> unsurpassed beauty of everything I saw as well as anyone, but the concerns
> of millions -- and eventually billions -- of unemployed and desperate people
> will surpass those of pilgrims -- now the privileged among us.
> >
> > Bless all this special season.
> >
> > Ana
> >
> > --- On Sun, 12/26/10, Glenn Jilek <guha2005 at hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> From: Glenn Jilek <guha2005 at hotmail.com>
> >> Subject: Re: [Gocamino] Noticias desde Santiago
> >> To: "GASpangler at hotmail.com" <gaspangler at hotmail.com>, "
> saintjames at yahoogroups.com" <saintjames at yahoogroups.com>,
> gocamino at oakapple.net
> >> Date: Sunday, December 26, 2010, 8:15 AM
> >>
> >> While walking the Camino Aragone in 2009 I saw a lot of
> >> graffiti condemning the expansion of the Yesa Reservoir, and
> >> later signed a petition about it that was circulating
> >> through some refugios.  Wasn't the construction of that
> >> industrial park around O Pino halted a couple of years ago
> >> because of the uproar of Pro Camino people?
> >>
> >> With the bad economic times facing Spain, it will be a
> >> battle of money and employment vs historical
> >> treasures.  I hope and pray that this organization of
> >> Camino advocates can succeed because the short term concerns
> >> about the economy usually wins those battles.
> >>
> >> I will be on the Camino again for almost 7 weeks starting
> >> in late April, and I will appreciate every step through this
> >> beautiful land more than ever now that I know how threatened
> >> it is.
> >>
> >> Glenn
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
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> >
> >
> >
> >
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