New, stricter regulations have been passed by the conservative Popular Party for beaches in Murcia.
New regulations in Murcia, including the ban of nudism, loud music, saving spots on the beach and urinating in the sea are what the Popular Party are backing. These rules will now be met with a fine of up to 750 euros, if not respected.
Other political parties like; Ciudadanos, the Socialist Party and United Left, have expressed that the rules are too restrictive, and have said they are now some of the toughest in Spain.
The most controversial rule is the banning of complete nudity, despite the fact that some beaches have a nudist tradition that dates back to the Spanish dictator: Francisco Franco. However, under the new regulations, article 10 states that “no beaches are naturist” in the municipality, although two of its six beaches have had a nudism tradition for a long time.
The new regulations come as a part of the rise in visitors to the area. Councillor Silvia Egea, from Murcia, has said that they are “no longer the isolated paradise they were a few decades ago,” and now the local government is trying to making the beaches “family and sport-based tourism.”
Continuous debates have gone on in Spain over these topics, when the issues were brought up in Barcelona, Cádiz and Valladolid in recent years.
The president of The Spanish Naturist Foundation, said the ban is illegal and unconstitutional, and under Spanish law, nudism is allowed in any public space, and the council cannot ban it.
Under the Spanish law, complete nudity in public spaces was considered an offense until 1988, but since has been removed from the penal code. However, in Cádiz, nudity has been banned since 2009, but only on urban beaches, not in natural areas or ones that are further away from the city, as well as Valladolid banning nudity on its streets back in 2012.
In order to attract more tourists and visitors to their beaches, they are also fining people for loud music and saving spots on the beaches after 8am. And although still unsure of how to implement it, article 18 of the new regulations: ban of urinating in the sea, will also bring fines if not respected.
More than 30 new bans have been copied from other areas of Spain and applied on the beaches of Murcia. So just make sure you’re up to date with the regulations of your local beach in order to not face hefty fines.