Going to court seen as way to improve image

THE Playa de Palma Hoteliers Association wants to act as the private prosecution in 19 cases of petty crime committed in the resort to try and curb the damage done to the Playa de Palma's image by so-called “low-level crime”. This active approach was confirmed yesterday by the Association's president, Jordi Cabrer, speaking on the occasion of the Association's first court appearance as an injured party following a mugging. Lawyer to the Association, Carolina Carrasco, said that the case is one of three in which the judges have accepted considering the Association as the injured party. The unprecedented aspect of yesterday's case however, was that the court hearing was made under the so-called “immediate justice” system. She added that in most of the 19 cases in which the Hoteliers' Association have wished to bring specific charges, the alleged criminals already possess full criminal records and that some of them have been detained on more than 30 previous occasions. Cabrer highlighted the importance of standing as the private prosecution in court in these cases, on one hand because the image of the area is damaged by petty crime since it can act as a deterrent to tourists, and on the other hand because it will be seen as a protective factor for clients of the hotels. In this regard, it acted as encouragement to other asociations, such as shopkeepers, to do the same. Likewise, he asked for greater policing measures for the area, above all undercover work.