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Spanish Position on Immigration and the European Union
As the site of two crucial immigration control flashpoints – Ceuta and Melilla – Spain is at
the forefront of the immigration control issue currently facing the European Union. Located on the
northern Moroccan coast, the two autonomous cities “are the only European territories that are not
separated from Africa by water. Unsurprisingly, they've attracted desperate people from the entire
African continent.” 1 In September of 2005, hundreds of potential immigrants stormed the fence
separating the Moroccan and Spanish territories in an episode similar to that which happened earlier
in the same week in Melilla. 2 The issue of immigration controls has only grown since these two
Spanish raids. Fortunately, Spain has already used the EU as an arbitrator for border disputes. In
September 2005, “both Zapatero and Jettou unabashedly called for the EU to help control the tide
of immigration.” 3 The critical nature of these Spanish flashpoints, added to the provisions of the
Treaty of Amsterdam and the Tampere Programme standardizing controls for the EU, has raised
concerns over immigration controls.
But the EU and Spain specifically cannot and should not completely discount the benefits of
immigration. Spain “is one of the most popular destinations for Bulgarian migrants, along with
Greece…Germany,” and Britain, and it attracts 80% of Romanian emigrants along with Italy. 4 In
fact, the country has already recognized the potential economic profits of immigration; in November
of 2012, set on attracting more Chinese immigrants, “it passed a law offering residency permits to
foreigners who buy homes worth more than €160,000, with the specific aim of drawing Chinese and
1 "Fortress Europe: Would-Be Immigrants Assaulting Spanish Enclaves in Northern Africa." Spiegel Online. SPIEGEL
ONLINE, 30 Sept. 2005. Web. 12 Mar. 2013. <http://www.spiegel.de/international/fortress-europe-would-beimmigrants-assaulting-spanish-enclaves-in-northern-africa-a-377616.html>.
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
4 Philipson, Alice. "Romanian and Bulgarian Immigration: How the Rules Have Changed." Telegraph.co.uk. Telegraph
Media Group Limited, 20 Feb. 2013. Web. 12 Mar. 2013.
<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/9882684/Romanian-and-Bulgarian-immigration-how-therules-have-changed.html>.
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Russian investment.” 5 Increased investment from China due to the economic success of Chinese
immigrants “has pumped some life into an otherwise moribund Spanish economy.” 6 As the New
York Times points out, “before Spain’s crisis exploded in 2008, Chinese foreign investment in Spain
was negligible. By last year, it had grown to €70 million, according to ICEX, a government
investment agency.” 7 Similarly, according to the Economist, “a decade-long boom has seen Spain’s
immigrant population swell from 2% of the total to 12%, or 5.6m. Immigrants were big contributors
to Spain’s economic success. As new workers poured in, Spain arrived at levels of immigration
similar to other big European countries, but in a quarter of the time.” 8 Therefore, in some cases,
Spain has benefitted from welcoming immigration.
Nevertheless, national anti-immigrant parties are growing in response to immigration to
Spain, even though immigration numbers have been falling as of late. Even though, as the Economist
claims, “the number of foreigners of working age began to fall in the second half of 2009. Recession
has proved far more effective than policy at stemming the flow,” anti-immigrant parties, such as the
People’s Party (PP) in Catalonia, led by Alicia Sánchez-Camacho, have been on the rise. 9 The Vic
plan in Catalonia, in which “a coalition of Catalan nationalists, separatists and Socialists running the
town hall at Vic, in Catalonia, put foreigners at the centre of debate with a controversial plan to keep
some immigrants off municipal registers of residents,” echoed the PP’s sentiments. Yet perhaps
concerns over right wing anti-immigrant parties in Spain are unfounded. After all, “even in Vic,
where an anti-immigrant party came second in local elections, a poll puts immigrants (who make up
Bilefsky, Dan. "Spain’s Chinese Immigrants Thrive in Tough Economy." Nytimes.com. The New York Times
Company, 2 Jan. 2013. Web. 12 Mar. 2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/03/world/europe/spains-chineseimmigrants-thrive-in-tough-economy.html?_r=0>.
6 Ibid.
7 Ibid.
8 "Bad New Days." Economist.com. The Economist, 4 Feb. 2010. Web. 12 Mar. 2013.
<http://www.economist.com/node/15464909>.
9 Ibid.
5
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23% of the population) below parks and car parking as matters of local concern.” 10 Additionally,
these parties may deteriorate further as the outlooks of immigrants deteriorate. Their unemployment
rate, for instance, was above the national average at 30% in 2010. 11 Therefore, concerns over the rise
of anti-immigrant parties in Spain appear to be, for the moment, less pressing than the worries about
human rights concerns throughout the EU.
The most effective way to increase border security and reduce illegal crossings and
simultaneously develop a more cohesive immigration policy is to continue with the current actions.
Since its creation in 2004, the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at
the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union (Frontex) has aided Member
States in border controls. It has already successfully completed various operations with Spain as the
host country with the aim of assisting “Member States to jointly organise the return of persons
subject to an individual removal order from the territory of EU/Schengen Associated countries to
their country of origin.” 12 Frontex has been the most successful provider of immigration and border
controls assistance for Spain, and continuing to support the agency in the European Council is the
most feasible and effective course of action for Spain, and the EU, in the future.
Maggie Beck, Spain Delegate (Council of the European Union)
Ibid.
Ibid.
12 "Frontex | Archive of Accomplished Operations - Georgia & Ukraine." Frontex | Archive of Accomplished
Operations - Georgia & Ukraine. FRONTEX, n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2013.
<http://www.frontex.europa.eu/operations/archive-of-accomplished-operations/J8owPn>.
10
11
In 2008, the global economy collapsed into what would become known as the Great Recession, the largest economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. This recession is also responsible for triggering the Eurozone Sovereign‐Debt Crisis; as governments began to deficit spend in an attempt to ease the recession, the level soared to extremely high levels. Concurrently, the European Central Bank began to inject capital into the Eurozone by buying toxic assets and other open market operations. This infusion of capital, however, forced many countries, including Kingdom of Spain, to be in violation of the Maastricht Treaty of 1992. The Kingdom of Spain has been particularly hard hit with the Great Recession and the Eurozone Sovereign‐Debt Crisis, as growth in major markets (construction, infrastructure, exports, and tourism) plateaued as a result of rapid decline in housing prices and improper banking practices. As a result, unemployment, particularly for those under 35, has skyrocketed to over 50%. Since the sovereign crisis, though, the Kingdom of Spain has made tremendous progress through austerity reforms. A crowning achievement of the Spanish government was to reform the labor market by changing the inflexible parts of the current collective bargaining system (e.g. Severance pay is decreased, wages are more flexible). To further aid the recovery of the Spanish economy, the Kingdom of Spain continues to invest in domestic, renewable energies so that energy imports would no longer be necessary. For the past few decades, the Kingdom of Spain has allowed illegal immigrants to naturalize, since they helped the Spanish economy boom by supplying needed labor to the construction boom. Today, however, in these tough economic times, the Kingdom of Spain can no longer afford the cost of illegal immigrants. Action must be taken, but the Kingdom of Spain is cognizant of difficulties of patrolling its large coastline and a decreasing budget. The Kingdom of Spain also strongly disapproves of human rights violations of illegal immigrants. Nativist sentiments are often tied to the economic health of the country; the European Union should thus maintain a strong focus on economic growth. Once the economies of Europe begin to recover, the nativist feelings will decrease as citizens begin to feel more secure. This focus on economic growth to reduce nativism is a long term goal, and to ensure the basic rights of immigrants, steps must be taken to unify the European legal system. The differences in laws among the European nations detract from the goal of unity that the European Union promotes. The Kingdom of Spain believes that a unified legal system will discourage anti‐immigrant attacks and discrimination. The Kingdom of Spain’s Delegate to the Council of the European Union William Jen