Valencia calls for 'as many refugees as possible' for region
Sunday, September 6, 2015 @ 9:26 PM
VALENCIA'S regional government has called for president Mariano Rajoy's cabinet in Madrid to agree to take on far more refugees from the war-torn Middle East than the 2,000 he has proposed to date, saying if every town in the eastern federal community housed one family, this alone would cover more than 1,000.
Deputy regional president Mònica Oltra (Compromís), whose party governs in coalition with the socialists says the Comunidad Valenciana and Valencia city will offer its public buildings as accommodation, including local authority-owned empty houses, and universities, particularly halls of residence.
“We want to welcome refugees. We want our region to be a welcoming one,” Mònica said.
The Comunidad Valenciana has joined the list of regions in Spain which have set up a register of residents who have space in their homes to offer rooms to refugees, and has 110 social workers who are qualified to help asylum-seekers acquire refugee status.
Sra Oltra recalls that over 40% of those fleeing Syria are children, and called the situation 'an embarrassment to the west'.
“This is not the Europe we dreamt of,” she said, referring to countries reluctant to take in refugees and those actively trying to keep them out, such as Hungary which is threatening to put anyone who enters the country illegally in jail for five years and is now transporting tens of thousands of migrants by coach to neighbouring Austria.
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