France is one year away from holding presidential elections, if there is no advance. The current president, Emmanuel Macron, cannot appear due to the legal limitation of mandates, so the battle is fierce to take over from him. Both in his party, the liberal, and in the extreme right, which the polls show as the winner.
The message of Marine Le Pen’s party becomes radicalized as the polls approach, trying to instill fear and offer easy and populist solutions. And the usual right, The Republicans, is infected by their bets and agenda so as not to be relegated, after having lost their ability to govern, losing the old alternation with the socialists.
In this framework, immigration is, once again, the workhorse. Everything is judged and everything is debated. So the recent legislative initiative in Spain to regularize hundreds of thousands of foreigners in an irregular administrative situation has inevitably jumped into the French political arena. It is generating a wave of reactions and, also, misinformation.
Before her, the leading newspaper in the neighboring country, The Worldhas decided to analyze the real events behind this process which, according to French conservative sectors, represents a “dangerous call effect.” Not at all, they say: it is a matter of “exaggerations” and “inaccuracies.” There will be no “call effect” nor will those regularized in our country work in France. A message that should not only be read beyond the Pyrenees, but on this side…
Bulo por bulo
The first lie that attacks is the origin of the process itself. Unlike what has been suggested in some forums, this is not an “arbitrary” decree from the Government of socialist Pedro Sánchez. The process, the newspaper states, was born from a Popular Legislative Initiative (ILP) that gathered more than 700,000 signatures and had the support of some 900 NGOs. Even from the Catholic Church, he emphasizes.
In the Congress of Deputies, remember, the measure was admitted for processing with an overwhelming majority: 310 votes in favor compared to 33 against Vox. As the article notes: “Almost all Spanish political parties, including the Popular Party (“right”), voted in favor of starting the debate on this extraordinary regularization.”
And how many people are we talking about, really? Because the National Group, the most radical party, has come to speak of “millions.” No. The figure of 500,000 people is what dominates the headlines, but The World clarifies that the final text still needs to be negotiated and the figure could vary. The ultimate goal is to regularize those already in Spain, not to attract new migrants. According to the text, the measure would apply to foreigners who were in Spanish territory before November 1, 2021.
One of the central arguments to defend the measure is integration into the formal labor market. The newspaper highlights that regularization would allow thousands of people who already work in the underground economy (agriculture, care, hospitality) to begin contributing. He emphasizes that the objective is to “put an end to the precariousness and violation of the rights of people who already live and work in the country”, in addition to strengthening public coffers.
Tensions in France
The French right and extreme right have used this case to criticize European migration policies. Political figures have described the measure as “irresponsible.” However, the analysis of The World remember that Spain has already carried out similar processes in the past (including six regularizations under governments of both the left and the right, such as that of José María Aznar, of the PP, in 2000).
Faced with accusations from the French right and far-right about a possible increase in illegal immigration in its territory, the media cites various experts who indicate that there is no proven direct correlation between these regularizations and an increase in arrivals. The Spanish approach is based more on a “pragmatic reality” of a country that needs labor and seeks to surface the underground economy.
Although the process has caused a political earthquake in France, in Spain it is perceived as a measure of social justice and economic necessity that has managed to unite traditionally opposing political forces, leaving the extreme right as the only dissenting voice in parliament. It is the best clearer.
