Coalición Canaria (CC) and Vox, both partners in the municipal government of Arona Town Council along with the Partido Popular (PP), have once again made their differences public, this time due to events organised for LGTBIQA+ Pride Week. Under the slogan Arona Lives with Pride 2025, the programme—driven by the Equality department of the Social Services Board and the Festivities Department—will transform the municipality into a space for visibility, reflection, and celebration from 20th to 27th June.
While the council has already held activities focused on the visibility, diversity, and rights of the LGTBIQA+ community, Vox—a government partner—has distanced itself by issuing a statement with an openly critical stance.
The spokesperson for the party in the local council, Naím Yánez, stated that his party will not participate in or support “any LGTBI event organised by the Partido Popular or Coalición Canaria”. According to the current Culture councillor, these activities “solely respond to the agenda of our government partners and do not reflect a view shared by the entire municipal group.”
The statements from the far-right party have prompted a swift public response, even from within their own government colleagues. The councillor responsible for the Social Services area, Ruth Martín (CC), the department organising these events, responded on social media with a direct message:
“Well, dear VOX colleagues, you’ve come up against an Equality councillor who fortunately is at the antipodes of your ideology, and who, as long as they allow her, will continue to contribute her little bit to defend and give visibility to a community that has been historically massacred and persecuted. And I couldn’t care less about your party’s opinion on the matter.”
Martín concluded her message with a direct greeting: “Happy LGTBIQ+ Pride Week”.
This episode bears some similarities to a recent incident in Granadilla, also involving VOX. After the raising of an LGTBIQ+ flag at a local school, the party issued a statement demanding its removal, which provoked a reaction from one of the Socialist group’s councillors, who criticised the party’s stance.
The ideological divide, both in Arona and Granadilla and from various parties, is becoming increasingly evident, especially concerning rights and diversity issues.
