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Spain opposition wants to restrict Islamic veil
Spains conservative opposition, seeking to make immigration a major issue ahead of next months elections, says it wants to restrict use of the Islamic veil. The number of foreign residents in Spain has gone from very low levels to 10 percent of the population in about a decade and the conservative Popular Party (PP) wants to make immigration a major election issue for the first time. The PP will announce its immigration policy on Saturday (today). Its going to deal with defending equality between men and women and ensure that the veil isnt used for discrimination in schools or anywhere else, the PPs justice spokesman Ignacio Astarloa said late on Thursday. Party leader Mariano Rajoy, who wants migrants to sign a contract promising to respect Spanish customs, said he also wanted to enforce bans on genital mutilation and polygamy. The governing Socialists, who lead by 4-6 percentage points in polls ahead of the March 9 vote, have said the PP proposals have a whiff of xenophobia and address non-existent problems. Until this week, the PP had focused on the deteriorating economy, but analysts believe the immigration proposals are aimed at working class voters competing with new arrivals for jobs and public services. Spain has not had the sort of immigrant tensions that other parts of Europe have seen but there have been several cases of schools trying to make Muslim girls take off headscarves. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said he wanted to apologise to Spains immigrants for statements by the PPs economic spokesman, Miguel Arias Canete, who complained they were overloading hospitals. Youve got to have some really discriminatory, putrid ideas, said Zapatero, in response to Arias Canetes use of the example of an Ecuadorean woman taking advantage of the Spanish health service for a free mammogram. Immigrant groups have also reacted with horror to the PPs proposals, which generated unease on the streets of Canada Real, a shantytown on the outskirts of Madrid. Its just to win votes, said Moroccan Ali el Moaffati, who has lived in Spain for 32 years. The most important thing to us is that they leave us in peace. Posted by: Fred 2008-02-09 |
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