80,000 Sahrawis: Spain votes on citizenship

Up to 80,000 Sahrawis could gain Spanish citizenship when Congress in Madrid votes on Thursday, 10 September. The bill covers people born in Western Sahara before 29 September 1977, when the territory was under Spanish administration. It is expected to pass with support from the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, Sumar and their usual parliamentary partners.

The measure would then move to the Senate for further debate. It comes as relations with Morocco remain strained after more than 70,000 people entered Ceuta irregularly at the end of July.

Who could apply

The bill offers an exceptional citizenship grant, known in Spanish law as carta de naturaleza, to eligible Sahrawis even if they do not legally live in Spain. Applicants could use an expired Spanish identity card, a United Nations-authenticated entry on the Western Sahara referendum electoral register, a birth certificate or papers issued by the Spanish administration as evidence.

First-degree descendants of those granted citizenship would have five years to apply themselves. The proposal also changes the Civil Code so Sahrawis can seek citizenship after two years of legal residence in Spain.

Applications under the exceptional grant would be free. They could be filed for three years after the law takes effect, with a possible one-year extension. The law would start four months after publication in Spain’s official gazette.

Vote lands amid Morocco tensions

Morocco claims all of Western Sahara and opposes the bill’s progress. Almost every party except the Socialists has blamed Morocco for the Ceuta crisis.

The People’s Party has signalled it may abstain again, despite backing access to Spanish citizenship for Sahrawis. Vox says it will vote against the measure, questioning the safeguards and the government’s citizenship policy.

Socialist spokesperson Patxi López called the proposal a “historic reparation”. The vote also follows a Supreme Court order suspending voting rights for some people naturalised under the so-called grandchildren’s law unless they can prove their relatives went into exile.

Topics: Politics

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com