RABAT,
May 23, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – In theory, they are living in
Europe, the far-fetched dream of many of their peers in North African
countries daydreaming about a luxurious living of standard and
prosperous future for their children.
In
practice, more than 10,000 Moroccan immigrants have been crushed by
the harsh reality they are forced to cope with, living in the
southeastern Spanish town of El Ejido.
At
first glance, a visitor may, if not will, reckon that the town with
its ghetto-like nature, plastic-capped cottages, vast swathes of arid
land and rigorous terrains is not at all part of Europe, but rather
one of Africa’s Safari areas.
Moroccan
immigrants are being treated as second, or even third, class people in
El Ejido and the province of Almeria.
Being
illegal workers with no residence papers and often hunted down by
police, they are willing to do anything for a living, facing
exploitation by opportunist employers.
Failing
to find even low-paying jobs, many immigrants hang out in
marijuana-filled cafes to escape reality.
Paradox
|
|
Moroccan
immigrants live in cartoon-capped cottages below the poverty
line in El Ejido.
|
It
is, indeed, paradoxical that El Ejido is one of the poorest and
richest areas in Europe at the same time.
On
the one extreme, one stands speechless to admire the breathtaking
scenery with deluxe hotels, villas and chalets, making the city a key
tourist destination.
El
Ejido, with banks almost everywhere, also occupies a distinguished
place on Spain’s industrial map with dozens of processed food
factories, capitalizing on the thriving vegetable and fruit
cultivation.
Mushrooming
greenhouses have also made the town one of the fastest growing
economies in Europe, according to European Union estimates.
On
the other extreme, Moroccan immigrants suffer appalling living
conditions with wages with less than 20 euros a day, the lowest in
Spain, if not Europe.
Immigrants
are crammed like sardines in cartoon- and –plastic-capped cottages
that barely provide them with shelter from the elements.
Up
to 95 percent of them are living below the poverty line, according to
estimates released by a society defending Moroccan immigrant workers.
Back
in 2000, police cracked down on Moroccan immigrants in bloody racist
raids unprecedented in the country’s recent history, which were
labeled by some newspapers as the “new Spanish Inquisition.”
At
that time, immigrants’ properties were looted and ransacked, forcing
hundreds of them into a panicky flight into neighboring farmlands.
