The Romeria del Sur has been held in Salobreña for the last 50 years and each year the town is full of colourful horse carriages and proudly liveried horses – just as a romeria should be… but not this year.
The romeria starts from the town-hall square and ends up on the beach where festivities take place most of the day, involving the promenading of decked out horse carriage and couples on horseback.
The trouble is, like many traditional fiestas, things have degenerated into a macro-botellon (multitudinous, outdoor, alcoholic binge), which is certainly the case in the Virgen del Rosario in Salobreña for the last handful of years.
With around 5,000 people milling around and tents going up on the beach, like the San Juan festivals in Almuñécar, things just get distorted and out of hand until the municipal authorities try to crack down and get things back under control and into proportion again.
The Town Hall is understandably worried that a mixture of congested beaches, mixed with horses and plenty of alcohol, it won’t be long before there is an accident. On previous occasions, drunken riders have fallen off and one little girl was hit a glancing blow from a hoof.
So, with the collaboration of the Guardia Civil and even Seprona, measures will be taken this Sunday to keep horses off the beach, with heavy fining if necessary. Accordingly, riders can accompany the Virgen until it reaches the beach, but after that they will have to ‘park’ their mounts in a specially provided area, and continue on foot.
The horse community is not chuffed and has even threatened not to participate in the event, arguing that horses are an integral part of any romeria. They also complain that the ‘horse-parking’ area is not safe and expressed that they feel ‘persecuted.’
Editorial Analysis: dangerous and irresponsible behaviour by horse riders has brought this restriction upon themselves. Nobody has anything against horses, if responsibly handled, which means you don’t get pissed if you are in charge of one.
If their mounts were vintage cars, instead, taking part in a procession, nobody in their right mind would consider it culturally restrictive to expect drivers not to drink.