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Thousands of residents of the Spanish island of Mallorca took to the streets on Sunday to protest against mass tourism which has “decreased their quality of life”.
In Palma de Mallorca, the capital of the Mediterranean island, protesters gathered under the slogan “Let’s change direction and limit tourism.” They said tourists clog roads and beaches, make noise, harm the environment and that the large number of tourists makes renting apartments too expensive for locals.
The protest, organised by the “Less Tourism, More Life” movement, came as thousands of tourists were enjoying the sun and sea.
– Pera spokeswoman Joan Femeni told reporters that people can no longer live on their islands because housing has become too expensive.
Police reported that around 12,000 protesters gathered, while organizers said there were 50,000. This was the second large protest in the area after around 10,000 locals gathered in May.
Mallorca is one of the Balearic Islands, where tourism accounts for 45% of GDP, according to tourism organization Exceltur. From January to March, 16.1 million tourists visited Spain, up 18% from the same period last year. Similar protests have also been held recently in the Canary Islands, Malaga and Barcelona.
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