Necessary, yes, but also fuel for the far right
The Spanish government's decision to undertake a new mass regularization process for undocumented immigrants is a necessary measure, but it also demonstrates that the immigration system is failing. Currently, obtaining a work permit in Spain is a bureaucratic odyssey, a labyrinth where workers and companies become trapped, ultimately leading to the formation of unmanageable pockets of people living among us but in a legal limbo that prevents them from accessing legal employment or decent housing, and forces them to constantly worry about legal status. By cutting off all avenues for social integration, the only result is the creation of pockets of poverty and marginalization that fuel an underground economy, ultimately hindering the country's development.
The government estimates that around half a million people could benefit from the measure, but these are just estimates. Despite some people's outcry, mass regularizations are not a new phenomenon. Felipe González implemented three (1985, 1991, and 1996), José María Aznar two (2000 and 2001), and José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero one (2005), the last one 20 years ago. The regularization process reached Congress through a citizens' legislative initiative (ILP) from the "Regularization Now" collective. On April 9, 2024, all groups except Vox voted in favor of considering the measure, so the PP's opposition is difficult to understand, especially given the support shown by both the economic sectors and the Church. However, it is true that if the regular regularization system were more efficient, these extraordinary regularizations would not be necessary, and in the current climate, they only fuel the far right. Vox's reaction was expected, but in recent hours, the news has even been commented on by figures like Elon Musk and other leading figures in the global far-right movement.
And this is where the media has a responsibility to debunk some of the fake news These rumors are being spread, claiming it's a measure by the socialist government intended to alter the electoral register. In reality, these people will be able to work, but to have the right to vote, one needs to be a naturalized citizen, which is something very different. Having a work permit in Spain doesn't grant them a similar right in other EU countries, as far-right European forces are claiming.
Ultimately, it's a measure with both an economic and a humanitarian or social component. Regularization aims to provide greater legal certainty for everyone—workers and employers—to stimulate economic activity and increase the tax base. Clearly, it also seeks to offer a horizon of human dignity to people who have arrived fleeing poverty or situations of war and extreme violence. And until proven otherwise, and in a context of economic growth and falling unemployment, Spain, and Catalonia in particular, need labor for many sectors that are doomed to collapse without these new workers. For example, the primary sector and the care sector.
