"Enough is enough" Thousands demonstrate on the Canary Islands - tourists encircled

Thousands of people demonstrate against tourism on the Canary Islands at the weekend. The demonstrators gather on the beach - directly in front of tourists.

Thousands of people demonstrated against mass tourism on the Canary Islands, which belong to Spain, on Sunday. Under the slogan "The Canary Islands have a limit", they took to the streets at midday in areas popular with tourists. Demonstrators gathered in front of a convention center in Maspalomas on Gran Canaria, the only water park on Fuerteventura and the Playa de las Américas entertainment district on Tenerife.

The protesters waved Canary Island flags, chanted and whistled as they slowly walked past tourists in Playa de las Américas before gathering on the beach. "This beach is ours", they shouted, while tourists on sun loungers under parasols looked on. There were no injuries, but according to reports, tourists were surrounded. According to local authorities, around 6500 people took part in the protest on Tenerife, 5000 on Gran Canaria and more than 1500 people on Lanzarote.

"The tourism sector brings poverty, unemployment and misery to the Canary Islands," said Eugenio Reyes Naranjo, spokesman for the environmental group Ben Magec - Ecologists in Action. The group played a leading role in the protests.

Millions of tourists every year

With placards reading "The Canary Islands are not for sale" and "Enough is enough", the demonstrators demanded, among other things, a limit on the number of tourists and a crackdown on vacation homes.

Around 2.2 million people live on the islands off the coast of North Africa with their sunny beaches and volcanic landscapes. Last year, around 16 million tourists visited the Canary Islands. Many tourists come from Germany and the UK, but also from mainland Spain.

Around four out of ten inhabitants of the archipelago work in the tourism sector. The industry accounts for 36 percent of the Canary Islands' gross domestic product (GDP).