The Menorca Council rejects the minister's "political interference" and reaffirms that it will not demolish the Rafal Rubí bridge.

Brick"The Menorca Council will not throw the Rafal Rubí Bridge under the bridge." This was the statement made on Thursday by President Adolfo Vilafranca, who expressed his conviction that "UNESCO will make a decision based on technical criteria and without political interference," such as that exerted by the Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun.

Vilafranca appeared alongside his Vice President, Simón Gornès, to denounce the minister's "serious interference" with the Council's powers. 48 hours ago, Urtasun sent a letter to the President and Margalida Prohens, asking them not to move forward with the project to continue the Rafal Rubí viaduct without waiting for UNESCO's decision, as this could "jeopardize" the declaration of Talayotic Menorca as a World Heritage Site.

But the Consell government is very clear that UNESCO experts will not contradict their own, who have already determined that resuming work on the bridge is the best solution to make road safety compatible with heritage protection.

"We know how things should be done and we don't need anyone from Madrid to tell us how to do them," Vilafranca stressed, for whom the minister's letter "is an ugly and desperate political maneuver by Mas and, possibly, the PSOE. The minister is politicizing the issue to try to gain political advantage.

For this reason, the island president has asked Urtasun to "respect the autonomy of the Menorcans and the Consell and not try to influence UNESCO or harm Menorca."

In fact, he pointed out, the minister's letter is based on an "error," since "UNESCO only sent a report of recommendations, not obligations." UNESCO delegation for telling them, "without any technical endorsement," that the bridge would be low, when there wasn't even a project.

"From that politicization now comes this mud of the Minister of Culture," Vilafranca has reproached, who has demanded "respect for the government of Spain. Minors" historical heritage and that their institutions be respected."

The current PP government has said: "We have tried to depoliticize the issue of the road to let the technicians speak." And the almost unanimous pronouncement of the technicians of the Consell and of the external ones that have been contracted has led to the project that will soon begin to be executed.

In this sense, the president has rejected the "personal attacks" suffered by the author of the heritage report, Jordi Tresserras, "one of the greatest UNESCO experts in Spain, who they have sought to discredit despite being a professional with extensive experience and recognized prestige" bridge and he didn't do it," he highlighted the significant heritage responsibility that, according to a legal report from the Quatrecases firm, the Consell would have if the structure were demolished. "That is possibly why previous rulers didn't do it either," he stated. favorable," even the one signed by the director of the Menorca Talayotic Agency, hired shortly before the change of government in the Consell. He himself, "who is not suspected of having been placed by this government, says that the measures now being proposed would contribute to mitigating the visual impact on the navetas" by Rafal Rubí. "disregard by the Spanish government" towards the Menorcan institution and has reminded Minister Urtasun of the "outstanding debt" he still has with the island: the payment of half a million euros in favor of Talayotic Menorca that he committed in 2022 to his predecessor in office, Miquel Iceta ~BK_SK