judspud
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Spain!!
I think Spain is already multicultural and has been for a long time. It comes back to the same question of the traditionalists being able to accept it! Jude
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5/2/2007, 2:32 am
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sgolds
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Re: Spain!!
It occurred to me when writing this, that the end result would imply that Spain lacks diversity, which is clearly not the case.
On a simple level the "estado de las autonomias" exists because of a desire to preserve the different cultures that make up Spain - and I am all for that. A Catalan is different from an Andalusian, is different from a Segovian. In a similar way as a Welshman, a Scot and an Englishman.
But, when it comes to foreigners, immigration is still a relatively new phenomenon in Spain, is something that the majority of Spaniards are coming to terms with, and surveys show that "immigration" is one of the "biggest causes for concern" in Spain (see link).
As such, I feel it is something which needs to be looked at, as it is across the continent.
http://www.ucm.es/cgi-bin/show-prensa?mes=02&dia=27&ano=2007&art=48&tit=b[url]http://www.ucm.es/cgi-bin/show-prensa?mes=02&dia=27&ano=2007&art=48&tit=b[/url]
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5/2/2007, 1:01 pm
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judspud
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Re: Spain!!
I agree, It is the conservative traditionalism that makes it difficult for foreigners. There is a lot of red tape for immigrants to work their way through. It will definitely create some interesting situations though. Do you think all foreigers get the same feeling or just developing country immigrants?
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5/2/2007, 3:50 pm
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sgolds
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Re: Spain!!
That's a difficult one, simply because it's a different type of immigrant - although granted does fall into the first/third world divide - and if the reasons are the same, i.e. a desire to live somewhere "better", and it's the definition of "better" which makes the reality very different.
The British, Germans, etc who flock to Spain are looking for a "better quality of life" in terms of sun, sea and sangria. Many are retired and even among those who do work, the fact that many live in British/German/whatever enclaves means they have little or no impact on the Spanish social fabric. (Because of this many don't feel any need to register with Spanish authorities, to the extent that the Spanish health minister last year asked for annual payments of £40m from the British government to pay for the shortfall in medical care money for the elderly who live in Spain!)
On the other hand, you have the immigrants from Africa, South America and, increasingly, Eastern Europe who come to Spain looking for a "better life" as we would traditionally understand it, ie a job, health care, etc. As such they find themselves fighting to occupy a different place in society. Over time, as happened in the UK, this will change. But it takes time.
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5/2/2007, 6:37 pm
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sgolds
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Re: Spain!!
The short (less philosophical) answer is maybe.
Clearly there are Brits implicated in Spanish society, but the red tape is less because they are EU citizens, and by virtue of that have the same rights as Spaniards.
When I worked in Spain, I had a colleague from the US, who because of her nationality was effectively an illegal worker making no national security contributions, etc.
Granted it was easier for her to get to Spain in the first place, but the red tape was there nonetheless.
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5/2/2007, 6:43 pm
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judspud
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Re: Spain!!
We are planning to move to Spain int he not too distant future. It's worrying to think how difficult that might be for Albert.
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5/6/2007, 5:40 pm
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