The plenary session of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, held this Friday, has approved, with 10 votes in favor, 9 against and 3 abstentions, the motion by which the first island institution is urged to "fly, in a prominent place of its headquarters, the national flag of the Canary Islands (white, blue and yellow, with seven green stars) during the week of October 22, on the occasion of the 51st anniversary of its creation".
As the initiative includes, it is about recognizing this flag, created in Algiers in 1964, which symbolizes "the aspirations of freedom, brotherhood and progress of the people of the eight islands, as well as the Canarians from abroad, as well as the legitimate right of our people to decide their future in freedom".
The motion had been sent to all political groups of the Island Council by the October 22 Coordinator, a work space in which, for the second consecutive year, citizens and various groups from the island of Lanzarote converge and whose objective is to recognize the relevance of this symbol in the political, social and identity construction of the Canarian people.
Finally, the defense of the flag motion was assumed by the political group of Somos Lanzarote in the Cabildo, to whose votes (2 councilors) were added those of Coalición Canaria (7) and that of the councilor of the Party of Independents of Lanzarote (1). The PSOE group voted against the motion (5 councilors, of whom one was absent during the session), the PP (3), Ciudadanos (1) and the councilor of Nueva Canarias (1). The Podemos group (3 councilors) abstained.
From the October 22 Coordinator, they "congratulate this recognition because, as the text of the motion indicates, from the date we commemorate, October 22, 1964, the Canary Archipelago, even in the midst of the Franco dictatorship, begins to assume this flag as a collective symbol." To which is added that "in a country like the Canary Islands, so marked by the insular fact and by the imposition of political and cultural models alien to our reality, the assumption of a common and own symbol, with which to represent collective aspirations of freedom, brotherhood, progress and respect for our national identity is an event of undoubted historical significance".
The October 22 Coordinator - Lanzarote also informs that it has sent identical motion proposals to the rest of the island's institutions, to the various political groups, in order for the recognition of this symbol to be as broad as possible, coinciding with the anniversary of its creation.
Complete cultural and vindictive days
In addition, the October 22 Coordinator plans to hold a series of public events on the occasion of this anniversary. Thus, on Wednesday, October 21, a round table is scheduled in La Plazuela de Arrecife, whose theme of debate will be "Canarian identity in current cultural creations", in which artists of the stature of the timplista Toñín Corujo, the musician Manuel González, member of Mestisay, or the filmmaker Armando Ravelo have already confirmed their presence.
For its part, on Thursday, October 22, anniversary of the tricolor, the symbolic act of raising the flag is planned, in the surroundings of the Reducto beach, in Arrecife, with a reading of the manifesto and exhibition of traditional sports. Finally, on Friday, October 23, a musical event will be held to close the conference, with performances by various artists from the islands on the banks of the Charco de San Ginés.
With these events, and for the second consecutive year, the October 22 Coordinator intends to open up to reflection and bring citizens closer to the Canarian identity, as well as the role of its symbols in the national construction of the Archipelago.
