The bipolarity of the Italian lobby in the Canary Islands: between scaring compatriots and giving advice so that they come to live

 

'He who eats and does not give, will die of satiety', goes one of the popular sayings from the extensive Spanish proverb collection. A saying that could be applied to the implausibility of seeing how one of the main colonies that enjoy and make residential use of our tourist areas criticizes the place where it lives and from which, for whatever reason, it has not left but on the contrary, grows in members every year.

 

This is the case of the Italian lobby based in the main tourist areas of our islands, which seems to have grown tired of its own compatriots and has launched a campaign to discourage the arrival of Italians to the islands.

 

Mass tourism, a "monotonous" climate, and a high cost of living are some of the 12 reasons given to influence Italian tourists' decisions to stop visiting the Canary Islands. The newspaper Leggo Tenerife , which caters to the Italian community in the archipelago and also has an edition for the province of Las Palmas , published this article that has caused such a stir on social media and has served as fuel for a tentative movement against tourism and foreign residents in the islands.

 

The article was published in January, but it has only now, after a media outlet on the neighbouring island picked up on it, that it has gained some more relevance. However, the Italian diaspora on the island has had a rather ambiguous position for years regarding the reception of new members.

 

For years, the Italian community on the islands has been sending contradictory messages about the islands. Already in 2022, a blog aimed at the Italian community, “Italiano Alle Canarie” (which also collaborates with the newspapers mentioned above, as announced on its blog), published a similar article with 10 reasons not to visit the Canary Islands, citing some reasons as implausible as the amount of rubbish generated in the municipalities, the haze or the presence of cockroaches. However, the blog itself shares advice and guidance to those Italians who are thinking of settling in the Canary Islands.

 

Following the Spanish proverb: “Where I said I say I say Diego.” This expression is applicable to the contradictory techniques that have been applied for years among the Italian community of the archipelago; and not only from the specialized media, but from the very business network with Italian capital that is based on our islands.

 

This is the case of an Italian real estate agency based in Tenerife that specializes in advising Italian citizens interested in living in the Canary Islands. On its YouTube channel, which boasts over 20.000 subscribers and more than 300 videos, the agency shared a video in 2021 titled “10+3 Reasons Not to Come Live in Tenerife,” citing the 13 reasons that the blog “Italiano Alle Canarie” shared a few months later (highlighting the connection between the main players responsible for “promoting” the archipelago to the Italian community in the islands).

 

However, the same channel published a video in 2023 with a completely opposite narrative, titled “13+1 Reasons to Move to Tenerife and Live in the Canary Islands” ; with contradictions such as highlighting the islands' climate and cost of living when other publications present those reasons as negative. Returning to the proverb, but this time with a regional one, a clear example of the saying “every time he pees, he thinks.”

 

It is worth noting that in San Bartolomé de Tirajana the Italian community is the largest foreign community residing in the municipality, and that although this type of publications and specialized media are aimed at the Italian diaspora that is on the islands, a bad image of the archipelago can end up taking its toll and affecting tourist arrivals from Italy, a market of great value for the sector on the islands precisely because of the large influx of compatriots and Italian businesses that can be found in the main tourist areas.