Sydney O’Hare
Delegate, Republic of Spain
Spain and Safeguarding the Rights of International Migrant Populations
Spain has always been immigrant-friendly, with an ever-growing immigrant
population. In 1996, the amount of emigrants in Spain made up for 1.37% of the
population. In just ten years, it grew to 8.75%. Migrant workers tend to be young
adults and work primarily in construction, agriculture, hospice, and restaurants.
Primarily from Morocco, Ecuador, Romania, England, and Colombia, migrant
workers earn little money for the long hours they work. Some workers get passes
into Spain and never leave, illegally living in forests near small villages. Migrant
workers tended to take jobs no one else wanted, leading to little pay and few
rights. But in 2000, Spain recognized their plight with the Organic Law.
It was in 2000 that migrant workers gained specific rights in Spain. Before
this law, migrants’ basic human rights were protected by the EU, but no specifics
were laid out. Spain’s Organic Law of 2000 helped manage the influx of workers,
but still gave them rights. It was reformed in 2009, when migrants practically
received their own Constitution. The 2009 version gave workers the rights to
healthcare, education, basic social services, legal aid, and protection from
discrimination. Even the law was passed after the economic meltdown of 2008,
Spain’s government felt migrant workers deserved funding and basic human
rights.
Even though the Organic Law was helpful, migrant workers in Spain still
suffer today because the law was not properly enforced due to the current
economic unrest in Spain. When the 2008 recession occurred, Spain was forced
to cut their out-of-control spending. These cuts meant migrant workers receive
few to none of the benefits once promised to them. The UN must assist the
migrants by helping them build proper homes or finding food, since
homelessness and hunger are abundant in Spain. The Organic Law of 2009
stated Spain must assist in the emigration of workers to their homelands. This
would be costly, and Spain has nothing to spare. The UN should provide
inexpensive or even free travel home for migrant workers who no long want to
remain in Spain. To prevent profiling, workers should attempt to register and say
if they wish to remain in or leave Spain. This plan may seem tedious, but helping
the migrant workers achieve what they had recently been promised would be
worth the hardships. By giving migrant workers the rights they had previously
been promised, the UN would help Spain solve one of its many problems.