Voluntary tax made the payments in the municipal offices

The Partido Popular have demanded that the Junta de Andalucía remove responsibility for town planning away from the Socialist controlled local council in the village of La Viñuela in Málaga province.It follows reports that hundreds of owners of illegally built properties in the municipality have been asked to pay a ‘voluntary tax’ of upto 12,000 € to make their properties legal and that their licences to build have been revoked and their homes face demolition.
The PP spokesman in the village, Francisco González, said that those affected, mostly foreign residents, built their homes with the licence granted by the Town Hall, but are now being told that such licences are no longer valid on judicial order after appeals placed by the Junta de Andalucía.González says that asking for money as the Town Hall has done is not part of any recognised judicial procedure and for this reason he has called on the Junta to withdraw town planning responsibilities from Juan Millán, who he considers is responsible for all this. The PP is also demanding that the regional government regularise the homes concerned.The Socialist Mayor of La Vinuela, Juan Millán, has meanwhile denied that he ever required a tax to be paid to regularise the homes and has blamed a third party for ‘possible fraud’ in the matter. However some owners claim that they have already made the payment in municipal offices.The Junta has meanwhile said it will open an investigation into the whole affair, which they have described as ‘unheard of’. Sources at the Junta say they want to see if the tax allegations are correct or not.


Our mission

SOHA is a newly formed group of local residents whose mission is:
the protection of the rights of Axarquia residents in accordance with article 8 or the European Convention on Human Rights
to help residents protect their homes with legal help and direct action
to actively campaign for the establishment of an amnesty for honest home-owners in Axarquia.
Save Our Homes in Axarquia was formed in January 2008. We have no ambition other than to save our homes. We have no alliances with any external group or political party.
We aim to achieve our objectives through peaceful means, through discussion and engagement at the highest levels possible. We wish to encourage our political leaders to see that the demolition of homes causes widespread negative effects not only to homeowners but the population as a whole. Depressed economic activity, fewer europeans arriving, empty houses and higher unemployment. No good can come of this other than an agreement to do things right in the future by all parties.
Should it become necessary we will engage legal services to fight our case even up to the European Court of Human Rights. This takes a lot of money and one of our most pressing objectives is the raising of funds, it is more cost effective if we all pull together than to pay for it individually.
Ultimately, though we hope it will not, we will be prepared to take to the streets to plead our case and even stand together as one between the buldozers and our homes. Stand with us.

Join SOHA now.