Britain accused of acting like ‘Pontius Pilate’ over 40-year ordeal
of Moroccans in Gibraltar
9 December 2010
The British government was accused today (Thursday 9 December)
of acting like Pontius Pilate over the continued discrimination of
the 1,200 Moroccans living in Gibraltar.
A new report, commissioned by Unite, the largest union in the
country, highlights the 40-year ordeal that the Moroccans have
endured since they were invited to work in Gibraltar when Spain’s
dictator, General Franco closed the border in 1969.
Unite national officer Kevin Coyne today accused successive
British governments of ‘acting like Pontius Pilate’ for allowing
the Moroccans to be denied such basic human rights as the right to
vote and access to affordable public housing.
New research published today (Thursday) on the eve of the United
Nation's international human rights day (10 December) has
revealed that the Gibraltarian government can easily afford to
provide justice for the long-term Moroccan and non-EU domicile
communities and that ‘the current treatment of the majority of
non-EU domiciles amounts to nothing more than ‘economic
racism’.
The report Equal rights on the Rock – an economic perspective
demonstrates that Gibraltar has the “financial resources to cope”
with a change in policy with regard to non-EU domiciles. The
report, which included a survey of 104 Moroccan men and women,
revealed widespread discrimination.
Kevin Coyne said: “This report has proved that the Moroccan
community consists of hard workers who pay their taxes and take
very little back, in other words net contributors to the economy.
It is now time to end 40 years of discrimination and to give these
hard working and loyal workers the same rights as the rest of the
population.
“For decades the Gibraltarian government has been peddling the
myth that Gibraltar is too small, too poor to allow Moroccan
workers equal rights. This report blows these myths out of the
water. Gibraltar has a thriving economy and can clearly afford to
do the right thing.”
Unite, the UK and Gibraltar’s largest union, commissioned the
research by the Trade Union Research Unit, Oxford to dispel the
myths that the Gibraltar government propagates that the small
country would be swamped by the families of migrants and that
Gibraltar’s public services would be overrun.
But according to the report the economy of Gibraltar is thriving
with strong and consistent growth which has produced a considerable
budget surplus - £29.7 million in 2009/10 - and has done so every
year since 2004.
"December 10 is the international day of human rights and
instead of celebrating human rights and human dignity Gibraltar
stands accused of human rights’ abuses. Unite is calling on
Gibraltar's government to take immediate action to start the
process of giving Moroccan workers permanent residency." added
Kevin Coyne.
The key findings of the report highlight:
- 54 per cent of respondents had applied for permanent residency
(21 per cent more than once), yet only 14 per cent of respondents
had been successful in gaining permanent residency. 27 per cent had
been waiting for over five years simply for a response to their
application.
- Only 10 per cent of respondents said they would seek family
reunification, should they be successful in gaining permanent
residency.
- Only 21 per cent of the respondents had ever applied for any
form of state welfare benefit. The majority of those that did
receive state benefit were in receipt of a state pension, for which
they must have paid sufficient SIC in order to qualify.
ENDS
Notes to news editors:
For more information, please contact:
Unite communications officer Shaun Noble on 07768 693 940
Unite press officer Liane Groves 07793 661 657
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