“Not so long ago, Spain was also a country of migrants, and many fellow Spaniards looked elsewhere for a better life, a destiny that was impossible for them in their country”, recalled Pedro Sanchez, during a visit to Mauritania on August 27. It is a dissonant voice, carrying an empathetic and positive discourse on migration, that the socialist president of the Spanish government wants to make heard, in a Europe where it is most often only approached through a security prism.
In Mauritania, Gambia and Senegal, where he was looking for solutions to the migration crisis experienced by the Canary Islands – the number of migrants arriving there has doubled since the start of the year, with 27,000 arrivals – Mr. Sanchez extolled the benefits of immigration, provided it was legal. “The contribution of migrant workers to our economy, our social system or to the sustainability of pensions is fundamental. For Spain, migration is synonymous with wealth, development and prosperity »he underlined in Nouakchott. “ Contrary to the discourse which, unfortunately, is starting to gain more and more importance in Europe, migration is not a problem, it is a necessity, which involves certain problems. This is why we must manage the phenomenon of migration in a humane, safe and orderly manner for the benefit of our respective societies”he added.
Opposition remonstrances
This speech, while immigration has become the main concern of Spaniards, according to the Center for Sociological Research, earned him the reprimands of the leader of the opposition, Alberto Nuñez Feijoo (Popular Party, right), who considered “irresponsible” the fact “to encourage a pull effect during the worst irregular immigration crisis”.
Pedro Sanchez wishes to offer a horizon to candidates for departure and a speech of tolerance to the Spaniards. In the three African countries, in addition to the usual cooperation programs, the head of government concluded agreements aimed at developing “circular migration”. The idea of hiring workers in their country of origin to cover seasonal needs in certain sectors is not new. Since 2000, there have been circular migration programs between Spain and several countries, in particular Morocco, which each year sends several thousand women to work in the strawberry and red fruit plantations of Andalusia. People who participate in these programs can work up to nine months per year in Spain, for four consecutive years, at the end of which they can apply for a two-year residence permit.
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Source: Lemonde
