A CAUTIONARY TALE
One Friday lunch time in April 2006 I left the Notary in Torrox Costa with a cheque for €18,000 after selling my flat. This was to be the deposit for my new permanent home in Spain.
I placed the cheque, which was made out in my name, into my handbag and left it there till the following Monday when I was to put it into my bank account.
On arriving at the bank I discovered I had lost the cheque. After a thorough search I phoned my solicitor who immediately contacted the bank to put a stop on it. I then went to the local police and filled in the appropriate form to record the loss.
I expected to pay a small fee to the issuing bank to write me out a new cheque.The bank confirmed that the money had not been drawn out of the bank and remained in their account.
It was at this stage that I learnt a very hard lesson in Spanish life.
The bank did not have to give me my money back and the only way I could attempt to get it back was to hire the services of a solicitor who would then have to take it to court and ask the court if I could have it my money back.
As I said at the beginning of this tale, all this happened 18 months ago. Since then I have tried every way possible to get my money back. I have contacted British MP's EMP's and 2 other solicitors. No one is interested in helping. The case as been to court twice with mounting costs to me and there is still no signs of my dwindling money.
No one can believe me when I tell them what is happening.
The money is mine, the cheque was made out to me, it has never been cashed, the bank are happy to confirm that MY money is still in their bank gathering interest which I am not entitled to, but I still can not have it.
Now in good old English law, and quite a few other countries, to permanently deprive someone of their property and assume ownership is THEFT.
We are supposed to be in Europe now and yet still we are coming up against really out dated laws that have no place in today's society.
€18,000 is a lot of money and I have suffered great hardship and more financial loss trying to get it back. I know it was a really stupid thing to loose it, and as someone who is usually very careful with money I really do not know how I lost it.
I don't know if I will ever get my money back, and if I do, how much I will actually get after everyone takes their cut. I just want to warn everyone out there that the loss of a cheque can be a very costly mistake
Name supplied but not to be published
“babyPHAT” HEADLINES HEMIHELP CHARITY CONCERT
Costa del Sol teenager raises awareness
A charity concert is to be held at The Moonlight Lounge in Benalmadena on Friday 16th November at 8pm to raise awareness and funds for children and young people with Hemiplegia.
Hemiplegia is a neurological condition that weakens one side of the body, and affects one child in a thousand. It is sometimes described as a form of cerebral palsy, and the effects are similar to those of a stroke. It is caused by damage to the brain, which may happen before, during or soon after birth.
Generally, injury to the left side of the brain will cause problems on the right side of the body and injury to the right side cause problems on the left. In one child this may be very obvious (he or she may have little use of one hand, may limp or have poor balance), in another child it will be so slight that it only shows when attempting specific physical activities. Over half of the children affected will have additional problems such as epilepsy, perceptual problems or behavioral/emotional difficulties
The headline act is the popular group 'babyPHAT' and includes Laura Krier, Lexy Badger-Ward and Jake Waby. Jake actually has hemiplegia and has received help from the Hemihelp organisation, to which all proceeds will be donated.
Hemihelp is a valuable resource for information and news on all the latest treatments, along with putting families in touch with one another. It helps children no matter which country they are living in. Jake and his family have received a lot of support from Hemihelp both when living in the UK and in the last 8 years here in Spain and now they want to give something back.
To especially mark the charity event, ‘babyPHAT’ will be releasing a special album on the night.
“The songs included on the album deal with many of the issues I’ve had to face because of having a disability. The message is that you can manage many of the effects of hemiplegia, but you have to work hard, be positive and have a good sense of humour about falling over a lot.” laughs Jake.
Jake has been a recording artist in development with Mere Music International since the age of 8 years old. He is 13 now and has worked hard to manage his disability to the extent that when performing, it is hardly noticeable. However, he feels very deeply about raising awareness of the condition in order to help the general public understand a little more about it’s effects.
Also performing on the night will be classic rock guitarist and singer Graham Keeling, as well as a hip-hop group led by Nicola Jones from ITS (The International Theatre School).
The Moonlight Lounge is part of the Sunset Beach complex and have kindly donated their venue for free.
Tickets are priced at €15 per adult, children (under 16) €10, family ticket 2 adults 2 children €40 and are available at the box office at Sunset Beach Hotel or by phoning Debbie Waby on 656861108.
For more information on any of the above then please visit www.jakewaby.com or
www.hemihelp.org.uk
SPAIN RELEASES SHOCKING ADVERTS TO STEM ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
The Spanish government started a $1.4m media campaign last week which involves airing emotional television adverts across West Africa as part of its attempts to combat illegal immigration. The campaign began in Senegal and will run for six weeks. The objective is to discourage potential migrants from attempting the dangerous 12-day voyage by boat to the Canary Islands. In one ad, a distraught woman says: "My son left and we haven't heard from him in eight months." It then cuts to a boy lying face down on the rocks, apparently drowned. Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour then says: "You already know how this story ends. Thousands of destroyed families. Don't risk your life for nothing. You are the future of Africa." In the past two years Spain has signed co-operation and repatriation agreements with Algeria, Morocco, Senegal, Mauritania, Gambia, Guinea, Mali and Ghana. Repatriation, together with tougher policing, including European naval patrols, have led to a sharp fall in arrivals in the Canary Islands this year. Between January and August 6,659 Africans landed in the Canaries, a 66% decrease from the same period last year. 2006 was the record year for the immigrant boats, fishing canoes known as cayucos. Officials list 31,678 people reaching the Canaries, against 4,767 in 2005. An estimated 6,000 died of drowning, thirst or starvation - although no-one has any idea of exactly how many because no tally is kept of the numbers who set out.
HIGH COURT RELEASES UNREPENTANT RAPIST
The Catalan High Court insisted last week on going ahead with its decision to release the so-called rapist of the Vall de Hebrón", a suburb of Barcelona, despite protests from several of his victims. José Rodriguez Salvador got out of jail last Saturday after serving 16 of a 20-year sentence for raping 16 women in 1990 and 1991. Prison officials admitted that he had not been successfully rehabilitated and the rapist himself said he would not seek treatment once he was outside. The authorities have said police will keep a close watch on him wherever he chooses to live. His family do not want to have anything to do with him and his current whereabouts are unknown. The authorities believe he could be in Granada, where ha has relatives. The Justice Ministry has already offered to send him to a religious order in the Dominican Republic which looks after men who have served time for sexual crimes.
CHAOS AS BAD WEATHER HITS SPAIN
Last Friday's heavy rainfall caused chaos throughout Andalucia, blocking roads and rain lines and causing flash floods in many areas. Hailstones the size of golf balls damaged cars and roofs in Marbella and inland towns like Coín. An estimated 1,500 vehicles were damaged and some 30 people were wounded. On Saturday repair shops in the area could not cope with the number of cars turning up with smashed windscreens and dents all over the bodywork. New cars were particularly hard hit. Many home owners stood by appalled as the giant hailstones tore through roofs. Pedestrians were stranded for at least half an hour in Coín where the streets looked more like rivers. The bravest ended up in water half way up their calves as they crossed the streets. The town's health centre closed down temporarily because the streets around the hill it stands on were flooded and impassable. More than 200 litres per square meter fell in an hour on Nerja and 113 on Torrox. In Nerja and nearby villages, some 40,000 people were without power for some seven hours during the afternoon. The good news is that the Guadalteba and Conde del Guadalhorce reservoirs benefitted from the rain, easing the pressure on local farmers who have had to stand by and watch their fruit trees slowly die from lack of water. Meanwhile Granada experienced its worst flooding for years and RENFE had to use coaches to take passengers between Sevilla, Granada, Málaga and Almería as train lines were closed by flooding. At the time of going to press only one death had been reported - that of a 44 year old German in Almuñecar. Witnesses said he had driven his car out of the garage, but went back inside to get his moped which was underwater inside. A nearby retaining wall next to a river gave way, and a wave of water stuck the garage. In Almería the city's football stadium looked like a swimming pool with water reported to be knee-deep over the pitch. And in the Jerez de la Frontera region, the rain is reported to have ruined 15% of the grape harvest.
THE PIED PIPERS CAME TO PLAGUED VILLAGE
The small town of Villotilla in Palencia province came up with a very novel way of getting rid the plague of voles that have been destroying crops in central and northern Spain. It all started out as a joke, when someone said "Pity we don't have a pied piper to get rid of those pesky voles." But the idea caught on and the town's 50 or so inhabitants were amazed when more than 100 people from the surrounding area joined in the I Competition of Hamelin Pipers last week. The town's narrow streets were take over by dozens of people of both sexes and all ages, piping their hearts out. The lucky winner won a trip to Valladolid, all expenses paid, and a good time was had by all. Unfortunately they didn't get rid of the voles.
RYANAIR AD UPSETS SPANISH GOVERNMENT
Ryanair incurred the government's disapproval last week with its ad featuring Prime Minister José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero thinking to himself that the airline's offer of two million free tickets was much better than his so-called "baby cheque" of 2,500 euros for every baby born after July 3rd this year. A government spokesman said the ad was not offensive but the PM's photo should not have been used without permission. Ryanair withdrew the ad, but not before it had been shown in every newspaper in Spain - which amounted to quite a bit of free publicity. Not bad for an ad which was produced in-house without the expensive help of an advertising agency.
FOUR CHARGED WITH KIDNAP OF TEEN GIRLS
Police in Madrid detained four Romanians last week and charged them with kidnapping two Romanian sisters in Manchester. One of the girls, aged 14, was released in Manchester before any ransom was paid, but the other girl, aged 17, was being held in a Madrid suburb. Two of the men were arrested at the Méndez Alvaro bus station where they had arranged for the girl's father to hand over the ransom money. Their capture led to the arrest of the other two men and the liberation of the girl, who said she had been sexually molested by one of the men during the journey by car from Manchester to Madrid.
NO MORE BODIES FOUND
The Maritime Rescue Service said last Friday that there are no more bodies on the fishing boat which sank off Barbate in Cadiz Province on September 5th. Eight of the 16-man crew survived and three bodies were recovered from the sea the same day. A rescue robot detected a body in the ship's bathroom but divers were unable to get into the ship until it was dragged closer to shore. It finally came to rest in water 30-metres deep. After the divers went in last Wednesday, they found another body in the kitchen area. There was no sign of the remaining three missing men and the search has been redirected towards the area where the boat originally foundered. However, the rescue services have little hope of finding the bodies.
PROMISES ARE RED HERRING SAY RAJOY
Opposition leader Mariano Rajoy was in Granada last Saturday for the official presentation of Javier Arenas as the Partido Popular's candidate for the presidency of the Junta de Andalucia in an election which will probably take place the same day as the next general election in March 2008. Referring to that election, Sr Rajoy said Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero's recent promises to help people to pay their rent were red herrings to detract attention from people's real problems. He said more people were having trouble paying their mortgage and few families could make the monthly income last from one pay cheque to the next. Sr Rajoy said: "At this rate, Zapatero will soon be offering us free houses in the Caribbean."