Fences cannot hold back the wind

How we in Spain shield ourselves from strangers
On the south side of the Mediterranean, thousands of young 
people have only one wish: they dream of a sea passage taking 
them over the Straits of Gibraltar to Spain. It is above all the huge 
economic gap between the continents of Europe and Africa which
drives more and more inhabitants of the Maghreb and other 
African countries to seek a better life, leave their homeland and
try their luck in the north. With increasing economic globalization, 
the growing importance of tourism and international relations, and
the rapid spread of telecommunications, a paradoxical situation 
has arisen: while the rich countries in the north become more and 
more cooperative and move closer to each other, the practical 
possibility of getting there becomes more and more limited for a 
large section of the African population.
Instead of reacting to increasing emigration efforts with a
coherent policy and thereby regulating this-movement sensibly, 
the European states are meeting the challenge, above all, by 
strengthening their borders. Spain has also been affected by the 
increasing 'harmonization' in European refugee and migration 
policies, which are shifting 'fencing-in' measures and repression 
to the centre of attention. However, there are pecularities in the 
Southern European states and regions which deserve closer 
observation. Whereas the Spanish government has recently 
shown itself determined to keep immigrants away from its shores 
by all possible means, there is a deeply anchored feeling in the

population, especially amongst people living close to Gibraltar, 
that it is impossible to stop them coming - fences can't stop the 
wind!
The following article will attempt to describe the specific 
conditions of current migratory movements from Africa to 
Southern Spain, and the reaction to this by the government,
as well as the governed. 

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The shift forward in Fortress Europe
The Straits of Gibraltar not only separate Spain from Morocco,
but two continents quite different in economic, political and 
cultural respects. At their narrowest point the straits measure 
only fourteen kilometres, which makes the southern Spanish 
provinces the target for 'uncontrolled' immigration, purely on 
geographical grounds. The port on the southerly tip of the Spanish 
coast, Algeciras (Province of Cadiz), is one of the most important 
South European trading centres. Countless ferries shuttling daily
between the two shores connect Algeciras to the two Spanish 
enclaves Ceuta and Mellila, on Moroccan soil. People wishing to
reach Europe without a visa or entry permit have two possibilities 
of landing on the Iberian peninsula. They either choose the route 
via the two Spanish enclaves, or attempt to cross the straits 
directly.
When potential immigrants from Morocco, Algeria or other African
states manage to enter Ceuta or Melilla without being checked, 
many of them discover that the next step, namely crossing to 
Spain, is far more difficult. The Spanish authorities make sure 
that the ('the paperless') cannot head in that direction, even
though they are officially on Spanish soil. Even if they succeed 
in crossing, on the other side of the straits - whether in Algeciras, 
Almeria or Malaga - further checks and strict control by border 
guards and police are waiting for them. Meanwhile, more and 
more migrants in Ceuta and Melilla, hoping for legal status and 
the opportunity to travel on, have to spend a long time in 
overflowing camps. The situation in the camps, which have 
expanded dramatically in recent years, is marked by inadequate 
sanitary facilities, lack of drinking water and generally poor 
provisions. The food, for example, is insufficient and not at all 
adapted to the needs of different religious groups.
The Calamocarro camp in Ceuta, originally intended for 400 
people, is now notorious all over Spain for its unendurable living 
conditions. The fact that up eo 2,000 men, women and children 
from Algeria and other African states have been locked in there 
for periods of up to six months or more has brought protests 
again and again from human rights organizations and NGO's. 
The La Granja camp near Melilla has an equally disastrous 
reputation. When the move to a new camp was delayed in 
September 1999, the inhabitants lost all patience and riots 
broke out, leaving the camp practically demolished. The 
installation of refugee camps in the Spanish enclaves is just one 
more step in the shift forward of Fortress Europe onto the African 
continent. To protect the town of Ceuta from 'undesirable 
immigrants', the Spanish government has spent some 5 billion 
pesetas (ca. 63 Mio. DM) on expanding frontier reinforcemenes. 
The previous fence has proved to be too full of holes. As the 
technical installation electrifying the fence had often failed, 
countless people climbed over it, or simply cut the wiring with 
pliers. In April 1999, for example, a young woman gave birth to a 
child in Ceuta after climbing the fence; she was nearly eight 
months pregnant. With the help of a three billion peseta budget 
(ca. 38 Mio. DM), half of which derives from EU funds, the fencing
in of these enclaves is to be further advanced. A three-metre high 
barbed wire fence and surveillance apparatus such as 
videocameras, thermal cameras and night-vision instruments 
are planned.

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Repatriation agreements and inter-state cooperation
For years now, Spain has been trying to enlist Morocco's help in
its immigration policy. This has proved difficult, however, because 
of the virulent political and economic conflicts between the two 
countries (Morocco's claim to Ceuta and Melilla, arguments 
about Spain's role in the West Saharan war, conflicting interests 
in the farming and fishery sectors). Spain has repeatedly 
demanded stricter exit control from its African neighbour, as well
as a repatriation agreement for Moroccan citizens and all others 
who entered Spain 'illegally’ via Morocco; this was finally signed in 
1992. Although financial incentives were included in the 
agreement, Spain criticized its implementation sharply in the 
first few years and accused the Moroccan police of lack of 
enthusiasm and corruption. At present, the cooperation in 
deporting Moroccan citizens appears to be working satisfactorily 
from the Spanish point of view, not however with regard to the 
repatriation of other migrants, especially those from Central Africa.
A number of governments, for example the Algerian, refuse to 
cooperate in identifying refugees caught in Spain. In December 
1998, a further bilateral agreement between Spain and Morocco 
was signed, with the aim of expanding police cooperation in the 
fight against uncontrolled immigration. A proportion of the 
migrants in the camps in Melilla and Ceuta have since been 
allowed to set foot on the Spanish mainland. In 1998 alone,
3,000 of them entered the country; altogether it has amounted 
to more than 5,000. Whereas they had no papers of any kind at
first, most of them now hold 'travel documents' which permit 
them to seek work.

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“The largest mass grave in the world"
With the expansion of Fortress Europe, the Straits of Gibraltar 
have become a deathtrap for countless refugees and migrants
and is therefore described again and again as the world's 
greatest mass grave' or 'the 
cemetery of the Mediterranean'. Our organization 
(Algeciras Acoge/ Algeciras welcomes) has also repeatedly 
drawn attention in demonstrations to the shockingly high number
of refugees who have paid with their lives attempting to cross the 
straits. As a result of the increasingly clandestine nature of 
attempts to enter Spain, it is not possible to make exact
assessments of the extent of this secret immigration.
It is roughly estimated that more than a thousand people have up
to now been drowned trying to cross in the Straits of Gibraltar in `
pateras' (little fishing boats). As a rule they have no life-belts or
radio equipment, so they are exposed to wind and weather and 
cannot call for help in emergency. They are the 'silent travellers' on
the sea, and have to remain concealed, and try to slip through 
undetected. Very often the tiny boats collide with the giant cargo 
ships, oil rankers, ferries, or container ships which cruise round 
the Mediterranean in their thousands. The numbers who have 
died in this way will never be known, as their bodies are seldom
found. Only a few are washed up on the Spanish or Moroccan 
shores.
In the future too, more people will die at our front door, as they 
have no legal or safe way to enter Fortress Europe. In June 1999, 
a small boat - bouncing helplessly on the sea with fourteen
women on board - was stopped in the middle of the straits. They 
all came from Morocco and were immediately deported by the 
Spanish border police.
The following figures were published by the Spanish Ministry of 
the Interior in June 1999 and are based on particulars given by 
survivors: 1998: 557 pateras stopped, 75 people reported missing, 
155 rescued from drowning, 5 corpses found. 
1999 January - June): 137 pateras stopped, 10 people reported 
missing, 67 people rescued from drowning, 5 corpses discovered. 
In the last few years, not only Sin Papeles, but also large 
amounts of hashish have been found on pateras. Although 
the migrants had nothing to do with the attempted drug 
smuggling, they were arrested by the Spanish police, 
presented as dangerous criminals to the public and some of
them sentenced to long prison sentences. In many instances, 
the Spanish police no longer differentiate between the crime of 
smuggling migrants and that of 'illegal' drug smuggling. The
growing reports of an increase in the number of drowned and 
missing people led however to a wave of sympathy, despite all 
attempts at criminalization. On August 6, 1998, for example, the 
press reported that 38 bodies had been found three sea miles 
from Melilla, a fact which had been concealed for over a month
by both the Spanish and Moroccan authorities.
The 'pact of silence' on the human tragedy in the Mediterranean, 
maintained by the authorities over a long period of time, was 
finally broken. In June 1999, the campaign “No more deaths in
the Straits of Gibraltar" was launched. The objective of these a
ctivities, organized by an alliance of Spanish and Moroccan
NGO's, was to warn potential migrants of the appalling dangers 
of crossing in small boats and explain their basic rights to them.
As the organized crossing in boats can sometimes cost up to 
200,000 pesetas (2,600 DM), more and more migrants, among 
them many children, are attempting to enter Spain by other 
means.
A popular method is to hide in the cabin or cargo space of a
lorry travelling on the big ferries between Ceuta and Algeciras. 
A growing number of 'illegal passengers' has been discovered on 
container ships of on the supply ships transporting drinking water 
to Ceuta. Only a few months ago, a handful of refugees from 
Sierra Leone were captured on the tiny island of El Hierro, 
which indicates a new route from Africa via the Canary Islands
to Spain. Where a large demand exists, there are always 
commercial suppliers, who, organized mostly in widespread 
networks, are always pondering on new routes to Europe. 
El Roto, an Andalusian cartoonist, made this point: 
“You just have to turn into a commodity, then you have 
no trouble coming here".
 

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Treatment of migrants by the state
Even if the total number of migrants living in Spain is 
insignificant by comparison with other West European states 
(estimates place it at 600,000'legals'and 300,000 'illegals'), Spain 
has still developed in the meantime from being a traditional 
emigration to an immigration state. The reaction of the Spanish 
authorities over the last few years has been mainly to keep as 
many undesirable people as possible away from their border, or 
create the means to expel them at once. The boat refugees
picked up in the Mediterranean form the bulk of those deported. A
ccording to statistics published the Policia Nacional in 
1997,98.5% (22,230 out of 22,572) of those deported were
Moroccans.
Most refugees who succeed in remaining undiscovered on entry
try to leave the southern coastal region as soon as possible. 
Their preferred destinations are the home towns of relatives or
friends, or areas where they can best find work: the provinces of 
Murcia or Almeria, Catalonia, Castile, or further north in France,
Italy or other EU countries. For many migrants, Andalusia is too 
close to Africa. The Law on Aliens (Ley organica 7/1985, 1 Julio, 
sobre deredhos y libertades de los extranjeros en Espana) 
basically regulates the residence of migrants in Spain. It dates
from 1985 but is to be updated in the year 2000, although none 
of those affected expect any improvement in their living conditions.
The Aliens Law names the 'conditions for legal residence' and 
defines 'offences against these regulations'. In the penal code, 
fines of up to 2,000,000 pesetas (ca. 25,000 DM) as well as 
prison sentences from six months to three years are to be 
imposed on people found residing 'illegaly’ in Spain.
Identity checks in the interior of the country are part of routine 
measures taken by the police. Because many local people are 
familiar with the arbitrary police practice of demanding identity 
papers without a concrete reason (it reminds them of the Franco 
era), there has been repeated criticism in the past of increased 
surveillance and the growing presence of police on the streets. 
The Brigada de Extranjeros, a very well-equipped unit, is
responsible for rapidly expanding number of controls in streets, 
railway and bus stations, or in soup kitchens run by state welfare,
places where people are concentrated who do not look 'Spanish'.
The police are not allowed, however, to simply deport people 
already in Spain and without papers.
In most cases they are taken on arrest to the commissariat 
responsible; here, after checking their identity, 'official 
proceedings on voluntary departure' are instigated, fixing the 
period within which those arrested must leave the country. After
that they are generally released. The possibility exists of 
appealing against this expulsion order on stating humanitarian 
grounds (children, relatives, other social relationships) so as to
obtain an extension of the time-limit. Most migrants do not do 
this, because they aim to be more careful in future in avoiding 
the state control network. If there is, however, another arrest 
after expiry of the time-limit, official deportation proceedings 
are instigated (Procedimiento de Expulsi¢n) together with the 
court decision as to whether those concerned should go to a 
deportation camp (centro de internamiento) or not.
The police report is decisive for this There are officially six 
internment centres in Spain, with SS0 places, built in 1985 and 
run by the Ministry of the Interior. Although the authorities 
repeatedly stress that they are not prisons, internment 
regulations issued in 1998 put the unendurable living conditions
in these camps (including limitation of contacts and freedom of 
movement) on a firm legal basis. If migrants without papers are 
caught, in many cases they can avoid internment, if for example
they can prove they have a fixed address. If those affected do 
not appeal against imminent deportation, the orders become 
official and their names recorded in the state bulletin 
(Boletin Oficial Esp.). This then leads eventually to further arrests
- with few exceptions - then to placement in a camp and 
expulsion to the country of origin. On the whole, the main aim of 
the authorities seem to insist in demonstrating their ability to 
act, to keep the situation under control and not so much to issue
as many deportation orders as possible.
Whereas the number of checks and arrests has almost doubled 
in the last few years (in 1996 it was 20,690, and in 1998, 40,710) 
the number of deportations carried out has remained constant 
(1996: 4,800, 1988: 5,525). There may well be different reasons
that the legal possibilities for deportation from Spain have not 
yet been fully implemented. On the one hand, violent expulsions 
have been repeatedly criticized, and on the other, they cost the
Spanish state a great deal of money if they involve flying migrants 
out escorted by police officials. In addition there is the fact that
Sin Papeles can be very useful as temporary cheap labour, or it 
is assumed Spain is merely a transit country for many migrants, 
who with or without expulsion orders will travel on to countries 
in the north. A further source of information on 'illegals' already 
living in Spain is provided by the (rejected) applications for work
or residence permits (the so-called 'cupo'). In 1999, for example, 
only 30,000 out of 94,819 applications were positively decided in 
Spain.
This did not however lead to a wave of deportations, even though
the names of those rejected are known. Moreover, migrants can 
only be interned for a maximum of 40 days. Any people who are 
not expelled within this period because of unknown citizenship, 
or refusal to accept deportees by the country of origin, or lack
of transportation facilities, have to be released. 

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Visa obligations
The phenomenon of 'illegal' immigration was first discussed and 
made public in 1991, after the government had introduced visa
obligations for people from Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. Up to 
this point Moroccans could visit Spain without any restrictions;
for example, to earn money by seasonal work at harvest time. 
Many Moroccan students chose this way of financing their 
studies in their homeland. After the restriction on freedom of 
travel and residence, organized mafia-like groups have come on
the scene. Beside these, we find corrupt administrators and 
policemen who deal in visas and enrich themselves at the
expense of the migrants. And then there are countless Spanish 
businesses who employ people without papers simply because
they are so easy to exploit. [

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Work opportunities and access to social benefits
Without a residence permit, migrants in Spain cannot sign any 
contracts. Even if an employment is legal and social contributions 
are made (which is not foreseen legally, but still happens) no 
claim to state benefits such as unemployment benefit or medical 
care is established. It is possible to appeal to the labour courts 
against an employer, be it for false calculation of working hours, 
too low wages, or no wages at all. But most migrants do not take 
advantage of even these minimal rights, as they have to come out 
into the open and thus endanger further residence. The 'illegal' 
employment of people without papers takes place in many 
sectors in Spain.
Work done by sin papeles has one thing in common: the working 
conditions are bad, the pay is low, they have no rights and no
social recognition. Many women without papers work as 
domestics or end up as prostitutes. Above all in farming it is
normal to employ 'illegals' who can be deployed in various 
regions and provinces depending on the time of year and harvest.
Often the migrants turn to solidarity organizations or Caritas so 
that they can pay their transport costs to the next place of work.
Other 'sin papeles' try to get by with odd jobs or petty crime.
Regular work contracts, however, require not only the right of 
residence; the Spanish ministry of labour must also confirm that 
the job in question cannot be done by an unemployed Spaniard.
According to a government survey in 1996, only 55% of (legal) 
migrants from non EU countries had steady employment in Spain;
only half of them had a written labour contract and their 
wages were on average lower than those of local people. The 
Spanish government tries anew every year to control the number 
of such labour contracts via contingents - the so-called cupo. For 
the year 1999, 30,000 work permits, valid for one year, were 
issued for help in home and harvest; they could, however, be 
extended. From the 176,022 migrant work permits issued at the 
beginning of 1999,60,939 (34.5%) went to women, most of whom
(32,883) came from Central and South America.
Female domestics in particular, have to endure a working day 
of up to 16 hours, for monthly wages often lying below 100,000 
pesetas (ca. 1,250 DM). A new agreement with Morocco provides
that in future, ca. 300,000 Moroccan men per year may apply for 
entry visas tied to temporary work in the farming or building 
sectors (areas where the toughest conditions exist). On
termination of their work they must leave Spain at once. The 
Spanish government will take over the Costs of transport, 
accommodation and medical care during their stay. Similar 
agreements are to be reached with Columbia, Ecuador, Romania, 
Poland and Mali.

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Health services
Principally, migrants in Spain have, independently of their legal
status, the fundamental right to free treatment in hospital in 
cases of emergency. Usually documents are not checked at the 
hospital on grounds of the medical code. But that is all: the right 
to continuous or out-patient treatment does not exist. To keep 
track of the situation and regain a minimum of control over it 
(that concerns, among other areas, AIDS and epidemic
prevention) metropolitan administrations in particular, in 
cooperation with humanitarian organizations like Medicus 
Mundi and Caritas, have signed agreements for the
establishment of health centres. There are so few of these 
stations in most provinces that, in the event of illness, migrants
without documents might have to walk up to a hundred 
kilometres for treatment.
Sometimes, health centres are connected to hospitals. Above all,
regional differences exist, e.g. in the province of Donosti 
(San Sebastian) an internal and inofficial agreement exists 
between doctors and Basque health authorities to include Sin
Papeles in outpatient treatment. Usually they receive a special 
pass assigning them to a GP. In the case of specialist treatment,
the usual problems exist. The apparent paradox is that it would 
certainly cost the Spanish authorities less to integrate migrants 
into the existing health system than to finance new institutions.
Still, this would finally mean acknowledging the rights of these 
people, which is nor in the interests of the government. 
Their interest is to put obstacles in the way, instead of pulling
down barriers.
For the children of illegal migrants the situation is quite different: 
the Spanish government provides welfare until they are of age. In
Ceuta, even the police have recently drawn attention to the 
unlawful practice of deporting minor, unaccompanied refugees 
to Morocco without consideration for their special status. Human 
rights organisations such as Algeciras Acoge have also called 
for better conditions and more rights, especially for under-age 
migrants, and free admission to the Spanish health and education
system. In the meantime, some projects and initiatives exist 
that are financed by the government, especially to support young
migrants (e.g. in sheltered accommodation); however, only a 
fraction benefit from them. A lot of young people live more or less 
on the streets and try - often as petty criminals - to make their 
way in life, with the tantalizing promise of Spanish consumer 
society before their eyes. 

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The reaction in society to “illegal" immigration
The growing number of foreigners arriving in Spain is increasingly 
generating mistrust and fear, and in some cases even violent 
reactions. Algerian immigrants, in particular, are falling victim to 
racist attacks and discrimination over and over again. 
Nevertheless, in the south of Spain, relationships with “strangers" 
have traditionally been characterized by hospitality, especially in 
the region around Algeciras. There has always existed a tradition
of solidarity with legal and “illegal" immigrants. However, even in 
our region, the positive attitude towards immigrants is changing to
one of rejection. Most people think if people are “illegal" they 
must have come into conflict with the law, even more so as a 
connection between immigration (especially from Morocco) 
and the drugs trade has been established in the coastal regions.
The Straits of Gibraltar have been a trade route for hashish to 
Europe for centuries. Today, an increasing number of people 
without documents, whose only “crime" consists in looking for a 
better and more dignified life, are taking this sea route. In those 
cases where the “clandestine" stay of immigrants is sponsored 
and supported by Spaniards, they are being threatened by fixed 
penalties (fines of up to 2,000,000 pesetas appr. 35,000 DM - and
prison sentences of up to three years). Especially those who 
show solidarity with the Sin Papeles for purely humanitarian 
reasons are increasingly criminalized by the authorities.
Certainly, there are many commercial “human traffickers" 
and employers who cynically exploit the despair and the misery
of the immigrants - and are (in opinion of our organisation) 
rightfully prosecuted and punished by the Spanish authorities. 
However, if those who chance to meet people without documents
on the street and take them by car to the nearest bus stop - 
out of pure helpfulness and without taking any payment, are 
portrayed as “human traffickers" in public, this is an open attack
on the last remnants of humanity and compassion towards the 
weak in Spanish society.
During the last few years, the authorities have undertaken to 
arrest those Spaniards accused of actively supporting “illegal
entry' and “illegal stay” and punish them with fines or prison. 
Before the introduction of new legislation on “the fight against
illegal immigration" in the Spanish penal code, there were a 
great number of people in our region who offered help to new
arrivals and supplied them with essentials - water, food, 
clothing, in6rmation, a lift to the next large city or the nearest 
bus stop. Nowadays, certain streets and highways in the south 
of Spain are considered unsafe for immigrants, because public 
transportation, especially buses, is constantly being checked by 
police, and tourists repeatedly have to show identification. 
Although there are still a few people who support the Sin Papeles
as a matter of course, on the whole, fear of prosecution is 
growing. Nobody appreciates being arrested, treated like a 
criminal or risking trouble with the police. Therefore, spontaneous 
help for people without documents has become rather the 
exception today.
Prosecution by the authorities for showing solidarity with Sin 
Papeles leads to fear, and this growing fear is supposed to
teach us that we must shield ourselves against foreigners. In 
the spring of 1998, our support network “Acoge" launched a 
campaign in Algeciras calling for “solidarity with the criminalized 
supporters of immigrants". Thousands of people signed the 
appeal, 'confessing' that they were supporters of Sin Papeles.
Similar petitions were organized all over Andalusia, as well as in 
Barcelona and Madrid. In Barcelona, the assembly “Papers per a
Thotom" handed 5,000 signatures to the mayor of Greuges; in 
Cadiz, the Association for Human Rights collected 4,000, and in 
Madrid the alliance “Documents for Everybody" collected 1,500
'confessions'. Despite increasing attempts at criminalization, 
up until today a strong interest in the development of immigration 
and a deeply rooted consciousness of the unjust fate of the Sin 
Papeles exist among local people.
This is related to the many tragic deaths in the Straits of
Gibraltar. These deaths are happening at our own front door. 
Citizens of the coastal town of Tarifa keep carrying flowers to 
the mass graves of the drowned, who have been buried hurriedly
outside the town without ever being identified. Besides our 
organization, there are others helping people without documents 
in securing shelter with local farmers, or providing for a safe 
journey in order to give them a chance to begin a new life in
,,wealthy and enlightened" Europe. The Catholic Church, with 
its ongoing support of people without documents, plays an 
important role in Spain.
The Church has proved to be an influential advocate in 
numerous negotiations with the Ministry of Home Affairs, and 
besides the pulpit, it commands privileged access to the mass 
media. The Church has certainly succeeded in putting pressure 
on the state, but it avoids any kind of direct confrontation with 
the authorities. As for direct assistance, Caritas possesses 
considerable resources in funding and personnel, and can 
therefore offer various kinds of assistance: legal aid, soup 
kitchens, apartments (sometimes even rent payments), rent 
security, language classes, job placement and payment of
transportation costs. Asylum and sanctuary seekers can a
lso apply for financial support from the Red Cross (up to 480 DM).
Independent initiatives and solidarity groups are involved in 
supporting refugees and immigrants, and in political circles they
are the strongest critics, speaking up against the state's 
immigration policies and current legislation on aliens. The 
demand “Docurnents for all" is relatively new in Spain. Up to 
now, most initiatives in this direction have been launched by
refugee and immigrant groups in possession of legal status. 
However, in something like an echo to the “sans papiers" in 
France, a movement came into being in Spain that 
called itself “papeles para todos", demanding legalization of all 
foreigners on Spanish territory who want to stay One of the first 
groups formulating this demand was the “Assemblea papers per
tothom" in Barcelona, where immigrants without documents 
are organized. The movement gained impetus when in October
1997 the “Plataforma papeles para todos y todas" was 
constituted in Madrid, with an affiliation of 49 groups and 
organizations. In the Basque country this initiative is supported 
by SOS-Arrazakeria; in Andalusia - a region where the number 
of Sin Papeles is considerable - by local groups of “Andalusia 
Acoge" (“Andalusia welcomes") and the “Asociaciones por
derechos humanos" (Association for Human Rights).
As a consequence, on the basis of their activities more platforms 
and solidarity networks have developed in many cities in 
Andalusia. Except for these initiatives there is no movement 
here that is led by people without documents. Temporary 
coalitions exist, even if these rarely function beyond the scope
of specific activities. One action took place in June 1998; after 
52 Sin Papeles had occupied the cathedral in Malaga, they
demanded the immediate legalization of 215 immigrants from 
Central Africa who had been transferred from Ceuta and Melilla 
and left on the street without documents. The occupation, 
which was supported by the “Plataforma de solidaridad con 
los inmigranres", ended successfully This way, the demand 
“Documents for all", as well as the demand for civil rights for 
all Sin Papeles in Spain, gained a much wider public and 
more legitimization, as previously they had been regarded 
as rather naive notions.
Furthermore, interest in cooperation on a European level was 
created, even if direct networking has not yet progressed 
beyond the early stages. We in Algeciras and the southern
provinces of Spain are often the first contact with Spanish 
society for the new immigrants. Besides the embassy in Madrid, 
Morocco has only one consulate in Algeciras, with jurisdiction 
over the whole southern part of the country All Moroccan 
immigrants wanting prolongation for their passports have to 
travel to Algeciras. It is quite interesting to observe the enormous
efforts made to enable those who have settled here legally and 
permanently to have a nice comfortable trip home - mostly during
the summertime, when hundreds of thousands take their cars 
to spend their vacations in North Africa. Many immigrants from 
the Maghreb spend millions of pesetas on their trip “home". In 
the port of Algeciras they are welcomed by a great number of 
institutions and services (e.g. Arabic-speaking staff and medical 
personnel) all designed to make the wait before embarcation as 
agreeable as possible for them and their families - which is 
indeed a positive development. Still, how would these people be 
treated if they were “new immigrants", finally trying their luck in 
the north - likemany of their compatriots before them? 
In May 1999, the Spanish Ministry of Home Affairs announced 
plans for expenditure of an additional 25,000,000,000 pesetas 
(ca. 315 million DM) for the fortification of the borders in the 
south of the country. At the core of the future measures are an 
increase in personnel and reinforcement of the border police, 
with more speedboats, new helicopters and sophisticated 
technical equipment. This includes highly sensitive radar able
to differentiate between a boat and the crest of a wave in the far 
distance; cameras reacting to body heat which are automatically
directed towards groups of people, infra-red night vision devices, 
and many others.
The operation of this equipment will be coordinated in Algeciras
in order to make immigration controls at the southernmost end 
of the Spanish coast more effective. The Straits of Gibraltar are 
to be off limits for “pateras" and their unwanted cargo. The 
following quotation from the article “Subsaharianos en Espana", 
by Juan A. Cebrian and Simon Bihina, published in the Spanish 
magazine “Migraciones" (3/1998), perfectly illustrates our attitude 
towards immigration: “Almost all nations known to us today are 
the results of long historical processes, of an ongoing struggle
between preservation of native culture and acceptance of 
cultural values that are foreign to us. The principle of a mix of 
ethnic groups and cultures has proved to be the dominant one. 
The history of many European nations shows us that the 
peaceful coexistence of diverse cultures for longer periods of 
time has been a reality. Without underestimating the difficulties
of such peaceful togetherness, the task today should be to a
chieve common universal values in order to facilitate intercultural
communication. This is only possible if we accept what appears 
to be fundamentally different and foreign, and try to bring 
about peaceful communication."

This article is a summary of two contributions by Peio Aierbe 
from Donostia (San Sebastian), an activist from Mugak and
the organisation “Algeciras Acoge" (algeciras wekomes).
(noborder.org)

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