Morocco denounces exploitation of isolated murder in Spain
Morocco-Spain, Politics, 2/8/2000

The Moroccan government denounced the exploitation of a murder of a Spanish woman in El Ejido (southern Spain) by a mentally-disturbed Moroccan to challenge the new Spanish immigration law.

The government issued a released strongly condemning the incident that will tarnish the reputation of Moroccan community in Spain and denouncing its exploitation by "some Spanish circles."

The Moroccan consulate in Algesiras called Moroccan residents to stay calm while the Moroccan media castigated the attacks against Moroccans in El Ejido, a farming town of 45,000.

Hundreds of anti-immigrant protesters marched through the town shouting racist slogans and smashing shop windows.

Some immigrant workers' homes had been burned in the clashes between local protesters and Moroccan immigrants.

Spanish Interior Minister Jaime Mayor Oreja labeled the incidents "racist" and a "total and absolute embarrassment for Spanish society." Foreign minister Abel Matutes appealed for calm, saying Spaniards needed to get used to the idea of living alongside immigrants.

"We need to reflect on how we need to change our behavior in a pluralist society that each day will... have more immigrants, that each day will need more immigrants to take our country forward," Matutes told state radio.

El Ejido, a center of fruit and vegetable production on the southern coast, relies heavily on cheap immigrant labor and has attracted large numbers of North Africans and Latin Americans.

Previous Stories:
  UNESCO chief concerned by racist attacks in Spain   (7/30/1999)
  Spanish political parties, NGOs hold anti-racist rally after events against Moroccans   (7/23/1999)
  Moroccan government very worried by racist wave in Spain   (7/20/1999)

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