The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, closed his African tour in Senegal on Thursday with a message of support for “ordinary” migratory movements and a call to fight against the mafias that profit from irregular immigration. “Migration is not a fairy tale, we Spaniards know that well. But it is necessary and it is practical. And I am talking about orderly and regular migration. Because the irregular situation is directly a hell that leads to extreme situations of exploitation and carries a clear risk of death for young people who fall prey to the mafias. We must promote regulated migration and fight against irregular migration,” he said.
Sánchez reiterated this Wednesday the beneficial effects of regular migration, but he considerably toughened his discourse on migration by describing as “essential” the return to their country of those who arrive irregularly in Spain. This was stated by the president during an appearance in Dakar, Senegal, the third stop on his official trip to Africa.
“This return sends a dissuasive, clear, clear and strong message to the mafias and those who put themselves in their hands, but essentially because European and Spanish legislation requires it,” Sánchez said at an event at the Cervantes Institute in Dakar. The “Africa Advances Alliance” initiative was launched to promote investment in Senegal, the last stop on the tour that also took him to Mauritania and Gambia.
It was in this speech that he publicly raised for the first time during his tour the need for the return of people who arrived illegally in Spain. He did so after discussing the current migratory pressure and insisting on his defence of “regular and orderly” migration, as he maintains that it opens the way to prosperity and economic and cultural development and is good for both the country of origin and the one that receives them.
Along the same lines, Sánchez highlighted the importance of circular migration that Spain promotes with several countries, including Senegal, and through which workers are hired in their country of origin to carry out seasonal work in Spanish territory and, once finished, they return to their country. Pedro Sánchez assured that security is an absolute priority and that is why he will continue to support Senegal in this area in general and in particular in matters of migration.
The Prime Minister regretted that criminal networks of human trafficking “continue to grow and play with the lives of thousands of people” and are associated with other crimes such as “illicit trafficking and terrorism.” “To combat this threat,” said Sánchez, “the return of those who arrive irregularly in Spain is essential.”
PP accuses Sánchez of “evolution” of its position
The words of the Senegalese government president were echoed by the Popular Party, which noted an “evolution” in the government’s position on migration. Feijóo’s party criticizes the fact that yesterday several ministers attacked the PP leaders for talking about expulsions and that Sánchez then defended “the need to expel those people who enter our country irregularly,” they say.
The PP demands “apologies” from those who have “questioned” their “moral high ground” and “called them xenophobic,” they emphasize, while trying to distance themselves from the position of the government and that of Vox, without specifying, from all of them. If so, what do they mean? “We do not agree with the irresponsibility of the government of Pedro Sánchez in matters of immigration, nor with the more intransigent position of other parties,” say the sources of the Popular Party, who criticize “the inaction of Pedro Sánchez” in the “migration crisis.” that affects several autonomous communities, despite the fact that the PP itself refused a few weeks ago to approve the distribution of migrant minors among the communities.
The mayor of Badalona, the “popular” Xavier García Albiol, also attacked Sánchez, considering that he is now saying “the opposite” of what he said a few days ago about migration. Albiol directly linked migration and crime and wrote it on Twitter a few days ago, which was harshly criticized by the left-wing parties, who highlighted the xenophobia and racism in this tweet.
