The Junta de Andalucía, through the Regional Delegation for Culture, has begun the first steps to bring sanction proceedings against Manilva Town Hall for approving orders to carry out works in the area around the Castillo de la Duquesa archaeological site «without prior authorisation» and which are alleged to have affected archaeological remains in the area. The Delegation is also taking «legal measures» in response to the refusal of the owners of the plot affected by this situation to cooperate in the urgent protection work ordered by the Culture department.
This was reported on Tuesday by the Regional Minister for Culture and Sport, Patricia del Pozo, in reply to a question put in committee by the Vox member of parliament, Antonio Sevilla, who asked what measures will be taken to guarantee the effective protection of this site «against speculative interests».
In setting out his question, the Vox representative said: «The Provincial Public Prosecutor’s Office in Málaga has opened investigative proceedings into a possible offence against historical heritage following a complaint from an association, which warns of geotechnical surveys and earth movements on plot L1 of the El Hacho Partial Plan, where more than 140 luxury homes and a supposed museum are planned, with no complete excavation and no express cultural authorisation».
«What is serious, minister, is that those works were authorised by the Junta de Andalucía, which has led the Public Prosecutor’s Office to also investigate Manilva Town Hall and your own department for possible permissiveness towards acts that could breach the Andalusian Historical Heritage Act», Sevilla told Del Pozo.
For her part, the minister admitted that this is «a delicate situation that we have to face», and set out all the steps taken since 2 July, when her department’s Delegation received a letter from an archaeologist reporting earth movement on a plot close to the Roman Villa site at Castillo de la Duquesa.
«The letter warned that Roman structures at the site had been affected, causing damage to it and leaving archaeological material exposed», said Del Pozo, who pointed out that the plot lies within the BIC (Site of Cultural Interest) area of the archaeological zone.
Inspection and protection measures
The minister said that a technical inspection the following day, together with Seprona and the Town Hall, confirmed the complaint, so that on the 7th a report was issued proposing measures to protect the archaeological heritage. The Delegation also asked the Town Hall for a report, which was received on the 16th, and in which Manilva Town Hall acknowledged having issued two orders for clearing work and for creating a firebreak next to homes and roads.
«As a result of those Town Hall orders, works were carried out on the plot involving earth movements that have caused some damage to the archaeological site. And, because of all this, we have had to adopt urgent measures to protect the archaeological heritage given the danger of its loss or destruction», the Regional Minister for Culture concluded.
At this point, Patricia del Pozo also reported that her department has encouraged the University of Málaga (UMA) to carry out an archaeological investigation «that will allow us to study the remains and assess the extent of the possible damage».
«In addition, the Delegation is taking legal measures in response to the owners of the plot refusing to cooperate. And finally, on 15 September, our delegate agreed to open sanction proceedings against Manilva Town Hall for approving orders to carry out works without prior authorisation«, she explained.
«This is a regrettable case. These are the things that happen when authorisations are not requested. They don’t always happen, but they can. They could have been avoided if authorisation had been requested», the minister concluded.
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