Demo against foreigners law planned for tomorrow

The Committee for Democracy and the Social Globalisation of the Balerics has called on everyone to join in a demo which will be held at noon tomorrow outside the government representative's office, in protest at the law on foreigners, which has been in force for a year now. Spokesman Pep Juárez said that the law has been “aggressive” and “attacked human rights” and has done more to instigate police action rather than integration. He quoted as an example the detention and probable expulsion of 40 immigrants in Almeria a few days ago, or police action in Palma against Equatorian immigrants who regularly meet in a square near the Guardia Civil barracks. Another spokesman, Jaime Zambrano, said that Colombian immigrants were also being targeted and were automatically suspected of being delinquents. The Committee is also protesting at the situation at the Foreigners' Office, where there is a huge backlog of work and residence permits, which often take 18 months or more to resolve, while the central government has done nothing to provide more staff or speed up proceedings. The Committee has also accused the administration of promoting irregularity in the labour market, as “while there is a demand for labour and the permits do not arrive, firms are obliged to contract illegal workers.” Juarez said that the law is favouring the existence of a black market and the exploitation of workers.