AM-CC champions a Canary Islands that welcomes those arriving “by plane or in a dinghy”

Asamblea Majorera–Coalición Canaria marks Canary National Flag Day in Fuerteventura with the reading of a manifesto celebrating the identity of the Archipelago, the struggle for its residents’ rights and the need to keep the islands open to those seeking new opportunities.

Nuria Cabrera, the candidate for the Senate for Fuerteventura, has championed the history of Canarian nationalism, the defence of the Archipelago’s identity and the welcoming character of a land shaped by migration.

During the reading of the manifesto, Cabrera said that the Canary Islands must know how to welcome people seeking an opportunity, “whether they arrive by plane or in a dinghy”. She also argued that Canarian identity belongs to those who feel the islands are their own, even if they were not born there.

“This flag reminds us that the Canary Islands belong not only to those born here, but also to those who embrace them as their own, love them and respect them,” she said during the event, held beneath the figure of Miguel de Unamuno. She also recalled the writer’s exile in Fuerteventura.

A flag linked to the struggle for the rights of the Canary Islands

The Senate candidate outlined the historical significance of the tricolour flag, now bearing eight green stars, linking it to the emergence of nationalist movements that began calling for recognition of the Canary Islands’ identity and specific needs.

“A flag that made us a little freer, a little more aware,” Cabrera said, recalling that for decades the Archipelago remained far from the centres of political decision-making.

In this context, she stressed that the flag became a symbol for those who refused to accept that living on the islands meant having fewer opportunities.

The nationalist leader also recalled Asamblea Majorera’s longstanding connection with the flag, which the party adopted from its beginnings, around half a century ago, as an expression of Fuerteventura’s demands.

“Defending the Canary Islands has never been a whim, but a commitment to our land and to the generations to come,” she said.

From political demands to a shared identity

Another central message of the manifesto was the changing meaning of the Canary Islands flag. Cabrera said it had evolved from representing mainly political struggle and the demand for rights to becoming a marker of collective identity.

She referred to the Archipelago’s landscape, customs, music and traditions as part of that shared identity.

Her speech specifically mentioned coastal livestock, Silbo Gomero and the sound of the lapa shell, as well as the emotional ties to the Canary Islands maintained by those who have had to leave.

“For those who are away, it means coming home. For those who live here, it means remembering where we come from and everything that makes us who we are,” she said.

Cabrera concluded by appealing for unity across the Archipelago, whose eight islands share a common history and identity despite being geographically separated.

“A land of eight islands which, though physically apart, find in the Atlantic what unites them: one people and a shared identity,” she said at the close of the manifesto.

Music and art to mark the Canary Islands flag

The event organised by AM-CC featured musical performances by Carlos Cabrera and Jasmina Montenegro, as well as the live creation of a mural by Fuerteventura artist Alejandro Mesa, known on social media as @alemesapaint.

The nationalist party combined the reading of the manifesto with artistic performances to mark a date that, every 22 October, recalls the historical and symbolic significance of the Canary National Flag.

The event also serves as a prelude to the commemorative celebration Asamblea Majorera is holding at the Tetir wrestling arena as part of events marking its 50th anniversary.