Just as Ibiza’s summer season has kick started, the authorities have ruthlessly shut down three of the island’s best-loved venues.
DC10 has been ordered to stay shut for two months, and Bora Bora and Amnesia for the next month, effective immediately. All three venues have been slapped with a 6000 Euros fine.
The vicious mandate came straight from the top – local police and Guardia Civil, acting on behalf of the Government, took action against the venues based on investigations conducted during 2005 and 2006 that allege the three did little to stop the use and/or dealing of drugs inside the venues.
The authorities argue that that clubs are partly responsible for the sale and consumption of narcotic substances in Ibiza during the summer months, an activity that is “dangerous”, and “harmful” to tourism.
Also they report that during the opening weekend last week, 450 people were arrested on the island for possession of controlled substances.
Zero Tolerance
The closure of the three venues is evidence of the authorities flexing their zero-tolerance muscles.
The clubs are the main reason people travel to Ibiza, so closing them demonstrates a will to enforce a zero-tolerance law regardless of the consequences.
And the consequences for Ibiza’s tourism industry, local economy and the global dance music scene are severe.
Thousands of clubbers have already booked holidays to the island with the intention of visiting the three popular venues in the next two months – their trips to Ibiza are now effectively ruined.
Mass Redundancies
And what about the club promoters, DJs, bar staff, flyer girls, security and dancers that work at those three venues? Effectively the authorities have just made a huge chunk of Ibiza’s workforce redundant – hundreds of people could now be without work.
The question is why now and why these venues?
DC10, Amnesia and Bora Bora – from Beatportal’s experiences – have always done just as much to combat the consumption and dealing of drugs as the other clubs on the island.
What’s more the police assert that their brutal actions are based on evidence gained during investigations conducted in 2005 and 2006.
So why did they wait till the beginning of the 2007 season to ruin the party?
Maybe because they knew that if the venues had been shut down a few months earlier the island would lose a hell of a lot of tourism – it is now too late to cancel most trips.
That means sadly it is the clubbers who’ve slaved away all year for their annual pilgrimage to the island who will lose out the most.
The three venues plan to fight what they see as an injustice in the courts, but being forced to close for two months could put DC10 out of business forever.
It will also cripple Amnesia and Bora Bora’s finances – a month of no trading during the height of summer is surely a haymaker too great to bear.
Is this the beginning of a new era for Ibiza? Are DC10, Bora Bora and Amnesia to become the scapegoats for Ibiza’s drug problem?
Let’s hope the answer to both of these crucial questions is no. The world of dance music awaits.
