Names are funny things, Catholics commonly call their boys Jesus in Spain, and one of the commonest on the Costa was Jesus Gil ... a colourful character, now dead, an admirer of the also dead Francisco Franco, military usurper of the democratic government after the bloody Civil War of 1936-1939 and dictator of Spain until his death in 1975 ... more on him later maybe, though the memories are only now fading and maybe best set to rest ... although as a Brit perhaps helpful to admit the perfidious role of "our" government, fence sitting while British activists joined up with the elected government and the International Brigades ... a warm up for the slaughter of 1939-45 across the rest of Europe while Spain and Portugal licked their wounds and helped their fascist pals as much as they could as neutrals and Switzerland looked after the money ...
Back to Jesus, who turned out rather less peaceful and compassionate than his namesake ... and seeing the opportunity on the Costa del Sol ... already known for famous and notorious visitors, like Grace Kelly, Frank Sinatra, various fleeing Nazis, and due to strained relations with Blighty over Gibraltar a haven for retiring British gangsters ... shifted his gated community operations from its initial base in Segovia, in his homeland, to Marbella, after being pardoned by his pal Franco after 54 people were crushed to death in a development free of architects, planners, quantity surveyors and all those pesky regulations which hinder free enterprise.
The tranquil beauty that resulted along the Malaga coast lies in a parallel universe ... this was tasteless tat and only recently being brought to book ... as long as money was being made it survived, however dubiously ... now it is changing ... gradually ... the Costa del Soul has some way to go, but things can change quickly when the time is right ... Jesus Gil is long gone and remembered as a figure of fun, albeit sinister ... more Mussolini than Franco perhaps ... the British gangsters are seeking other bolt-holes ... the inflated property market is having a temporary boom, with Russian money of unknown provenance seeking a haven ...
And what of the future of gated communities? Are we to continue to separate - keep the others out? It is still an option in the old world ... perhaps the re-opening of public spaces will prevail ... better for all of us in the end ... shall we try it?
No comments:
Post a Comment