The Son Banya shanty town in Palma is due for total demolition. The process, however, is a long one, and so Son Banya continues to be one of the main centres for the sale of drugs.
The dealers in Son Banya have been diversifying. Viagra and Kamagra are for sale, as is pink cocaine, also known as tucibi. The police say that as far as the marketing of drugs is concerned, it is a "masterful move". Male users of drugs going out partying can obtain a "complete pack".
Sales activity is said to be back to what it was prior to the pandemic. At weekends, there are queues of cars entering the shanty town. The dealers are younger and have diversified. There is competition from other centres in the city, such as Corea and Son Gotleu.
Pink cocaine is not a new drug. It was first synthesised in 1974 and banned in the USA twenty years later. Other countries followed suit. More expensive than cocaine, it belongs to the amphetamine family. It causes an immense high but also hallucination and is said to have a terrible impact on mental health. Anxiety and heart attacks are not unknown.
The Viagra being sold on a massive scale in Son Banya is acquired on the internet, usually from eastern European countries. Each pill is sold for around three euros, much lower than it would cost at a pharmacy; Viagra is only available on prescription.