Residents of Adeje, one of the key municipalities in the southern part of Tenerife, reached out last week to the Imanastem Social Archaeology Collective to express concerns regarding the potential implications of a new electric tower being erected in an area of archaeological significance. Although the collective reassured that this installation does not directly interfere with the Guanche rock engravings in the vicinity, they highlighted a troubling overall condition of the site. Just a few days ago, they reported that the deposit, previously denounced by Imanastem for vandalism, has experienced further degradation with new white graffiti, which attempts to mark boundaries, despite these patterns being part of the Cabildo de Tenerife’s Catalogue. “We are uncertain whether they have prepared this with the City of Adeje.”
The collective reminded that an electric tower had previously been installed just twenty metres away from these engravings. “We possess evidence that these deposits are recognised by the Cabildo, yet we are unsure if the Town Hall has included them in their catalogue, which remains poorly developed despite the obligation set forth by the Cultural Heritage Law to complete this three years ago.”
For the group, “the neglect is unmistakable in an area that, like many of the municipalities in Tenerife, continues to display a state of abandonment and disgrace. There is neither effective protection nor a single initiative aimed at recognising and promoting the archaeological values that, due to being forgotten, are inevitably damaged by ongoing interventions of all kinds that modify and disturb our supposedly protected landscape.”
In this regard, they reference the recent case involving “the destruction of a sector related to an archaeological site that has already been surveyed and studied in a morra de Aric, granting permissions for such installations and numerous other projects that practically render deposits irreparable, thereby conveying a message of absurdity and lack of accountability.”
Following a halt in construction a few months back, members of Imanastem lament that they have now been informed “that the project will proceed, accompanied by assurances that they will exercise more caution and will install fences and signs indicating that there were Guanches remains present, without anyone being held responsible for the destruction or facing consequences, which only adds to the ongoing issues.”
Municipal archaeological registers still pending
Consequently, they criticise the fact that the municipal archaeological registers “remain uncreated or, at best, are still in development. The lack of immediate responses, attributed by technicians to a shortage of resources and an overload of work, in many municipalities, hampers the willingness for citizen collaboration, particularly in light of the numerous attacks and complaints that go unanswered. We have personally experienced the apparent disinterest from the political realm, evidenced by their actions, indicating that for them, Guanche culture and the heritage legacy are not priorities.”
Furthermore, they also criticise the “lack of coordination among administrations, a recurring issue highlighted by our group. In reality, attacks against heritage often occur even concerning values classified by the council’s heritage department – which the local governments lead in this respect – underscoring the present chaos and mismanagement that inevitably results in the sustained destruction of the ancestral heritage across all of the Canaries.”
