On Tuesday, a draft migration law was presented to the Spanish congress, following an agreement between the Socialist Socialist Worker's PSOE party and the Catalan separatist party, Junts per Catalunya.
The accord reached by the Spanish Socialist Worker's Party (PSOE) and the separatist Junts per Catalunya led to draft legislation on immigration in Catalonia which "does not alter the jurisdiction of the State" and is "part of the constitutional framework", said Deputy Premier with the labor brief Yolanda Diaz, the leader of left-wing coalition Sumar, speaking to Spanish public television channel TVE.
"I want to report, as reassurance, that (the legislation) respects the constitutional framework and jurisdictions outlined by European directives", explained Diaz, commenting on the draft law presented to the Spanish Congress by the PSOE and Junts on March 4.
A day after this announcement, on March 5, the Junts party announced that they wanted foreigners hoping to apply for residency to demonstrate they had learnt Catalan, the language spoken in the region, in order to qualify for residency, reported the French news agency Agence France Presse (AFP).
Junts spokesperson, Miriam Nogueras, explained to Spanish public television that for her party, it was natural to expect migrants wishing to settle in Catalonia learn Catalan. Nogueras said: "We are in Catalonia, and in Catalonia, there is an official language, which is Catalan. In the same way, if you go to live in France, the condition is to learn French."
According to the Catalan regional government, Catalan is spoken by about 10 million people, in the Catalan region, and versions of it in some of the Balearic islands and in parts of Valencia and south-western France and Andorra.
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The details of the draft law
The draft legislation, which still needs to be approved in parliament, includes, the transfer of powers to the region over the expulsion and repatriation of irregular migrants, the exclusive management of hosting centers for foreigners (CIE) and border control operations carried out by Catalan police together with Spanish security forces.
The deputy premier quoted article 150 of the Constitution, which provides for "a mandate of shared powers" without altering the State's exclusive powers.
Diaz moreover urged the Popular Party in the opposition to study the draft legislation "in depth and with calm" and to present "all the changes it believes should be made" to the draft proposal as it is being examined by Parliament.
After the agreement reached on March 3 between the groups of the PSOE and Junts per Catalunya, the draft law was jointly presented to Congress the following day.
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Powers delegated from State to Catalan region
The agreement to hand over jurisdiction over migration policies was one of the conditions posed by the Catalan party headed by Carles Puigdemont, to continue his party's support for the minority coalition led by Pedro Sanchez. Sanchez' coalition relies on their support in order to pass their own policies in the Spanish parliament in Madrid. Many of the proposals contained in the draft agreement have angered the right-wing opposition in Spain and even sparked protest.
Even far-left party Podemos has criticized the proposals, casting doubt on whether they will vote for it, which would be needed, to push the law through in the Spanish parliament. Podemos spokespeople said the proposals were akin to "legitimizing institutional racism," reported AFP.
The draft text recognizes that, after the approval of the law, the Catalan government -- currently led by the Socialist Salvador Illa -- will be allowed to implement "a comprehensive policy" on immigration.
Powers delegated by the State to the region include the management of residence permits, the repatriation of foreigners, social integration, labor and language policies as well as actions to protect human trafficking victims.
An additional 1,800 units will be deployed within the Mossos d'Esquadra, Catalonia's police, to reach a total of 23,000 officers. That force would then be expected to handle security in airports, ports and other critical areas, in conjunction with the Spanish state forces, the nataional police and the Guardia Civil.