For years Roses has become the epicenter of top manta on the Costa Brava during the summer months. These days around 500 manteros, according to municipal data, tend their merchandise on the busy promenade. A figure that multiplies by ten the one that existed more than a decade ago. “In Roses there have been manteros all their lives, before they were mostly from the area or from Figueres; Now they come from Barcelona, Salou and other parts of Catalonia to do the season”, explains the Councilor for Security, Olga Simarro (PSC). After the downturn caused by the pandemic, which resulted in much less tourism in this area of the north of the Costa Brava frequented by the French, the number of illegal vendors has been growing. And the attempts of the different municipal governments to put an end to the illegal sale have not finished curdling.
The bike lane that was delimited on the asphalt six years ago to discourage them did not have an effect. The merchandise is placed right on the line in which the bikes should circulate. The patrolling of agents accompanied by private security was also not effective, since the actions compromised the integrity of the police, neighbors and landlords.
The strategy of the last municipal government was to intercept the merchandise before it reached the promenade. In recent years, between 2021 and 2022, 5,700 kilos of products were seized in different actions. This summer, with a new municipal government, the police strategy is similar: seize the merchandise before the manteros can spread it on the asphalt, but increasing collaboration with other security forces. "The performances compared to last year have grown," says the mayor responsible for security in Roses.
Until the beginning of August some 4,850 kilos had been seized. Only on August 2, in a joint operation between the local police of Roses, the Castelló d'Empúries and the Mossos d'Esquadra, more than 3,880 items were intercepted, mainly counterfeits of well-known brands of shoes, T-shirts, bags, sunglasses or sports equipment. The seizure was possible after weeks of investigation, which allowed agents to learn the behavior patterns of street vendors. Thanks to this surveillance, they intercepted a van and six cars that were transporting a large volume of material when it was going to be distributed among the manteros, who are most of the time the lowest link in the organizations dedicated to the import and sale of fake products.
Traders are under the impression that the top is on the rise. “On the promenade, the occupation is more extensive than in other years when they were only on the bike lane; now they are also placed on the other side of the promenade, so that they leave a small corridor for passers-by and it is difficult to circulate”, explains Ricardo Moraes, president of the Associació Santa Margarida Comerç. In addition, he adds that this year the African street vendors, who are the majority, have been joined by others and even minors, who are in charge of the business. “The lack of police control gives them peace of mind in the sale, unlike a couple of years ago, when they were constantly hiding from the police,” he adds.
The Councilor for Security points out that the municipal government will have “zero tolerance” with the vendors, although she acknowledges that 500 vendors cannot be eliminated overnight. The municipal strategy is to catch them before they reach the promenade. "If we acted there, that could be a pitched battle," explains Simarro, who points out that this summer the cooperation of the local Roses police with other security forces such as the Mossos d'Esquadra, the National Police and the Civil Guard has increased. to tackle a problem that neighbors, merchants and the City Council consider damages the tourist image. "We don't want Roses to be a benchmark for spreading the blanket," says Simarro. Next summer the Consistory plans to adopt a regulated market model similar to that of other tourist towns such as Empuriabrava.
