Spain moves to grant citizenship to Sahrawis born during its rule of Western Sahara

MPs backed the measure on Thursday by 168 votes to 31, with 145 abstentions. However, the bill must still pass through the Senate before it can become law.

The initiative comes at a particularly sensitive moment in relations between Spain and Morocco, following the unprecedented arrival of tens of thousands of migrants in Ceuta from Morocco at the end of July. ALSO READ: Spain had warnings of mass migrant crossings into Ceuta, but not their scale, documents reveal.

Under the legislation, Sahrawis born before 29 September 1977 would be entitled to obtain Spanish nationality through a certificate of naturalisation. Their children would also be eligible, including those who are not legally resident in Spain.

The date used in the legislation reflects the legal process surrounding Spain’s withdrawal from its former colony and the completion of decolonisation.

There is no definitive figure for the number of people who could benefit. Estimates generally suggest around 70,000-110,000 Sahrawis could qualify directly, while some calculations put the potential total at close to 200,000 once descendants are included.

If the legislation receives final approval, eligible Sahrawis would have three years from its official publication to submit their applications.

Proving eligibility

Applicants would be able to demonstrate their connection to the former Spanish territory through several forms of documentation.

These include a Spanish national identity card, a birth certificate or inclusion in the census verified by the United Nations for the referendum on Western Sahara’s future status that was planned but never held.

Other evidence could also be accepted, including school records, Spanish driving licences, pension documentation and hospital or medical records.

The measure was promoted by Sumar, the junior partner in Spain’s coalition government, and ultimately received the support of the governing Socialist Party (PSOE).

The main opposition People’s Party (PP) abstained, as did the Catalan pro-independence Junts per Catalunya (JxCat) party, while the far-right Vox voted against the measure. Both the PP and Vox had supported the proposal during earlier stages of its parliamentary journey, when the PSOE had been more reluctant to advance it.

One of the most prominent supporters of the legislation has been Sumar MP Tesh Sidi (main image), who was born in the Sahrawi refugee camps around Tindouf in Algeria and became the first woman of Sahrawi origin to sit in Spain’s parliament.

‘With the adoption of this legislation, we are restoring – and I emphasise, restoring – the Spanish national identity card to those Sahrawis who once held it and from whom this state took it away,’ she said.

Sidi also described the measure as an attempt to address what she considers a longstanding injustice towards Sahrawis seeking Spanish nationality.

‘We are correcting a historic injustice: cutting the process down to two years once you have legal residence in Spain. Until now, Sahrawis had to wait 10, 14, or even 24 years to apply for Spanish nationality, despite having a Spanish father and legal residence,’ she said. ‘Abstaining or voting no means siding with Morocco.’

Spain’s colonial legacy in Western Sahara

Spain controlled Western Sahara under different colonial and administrative arrangements from the late 19th century until its withdrawal in the 1970s.

Morocco subsequently asserted control over much of the territory and continues to claim sovereignty over Western Sahara. The United Nations, however, classifies Western Sahara as a non-self-governing territory.

The Polisario Front, backed by neighbouring Algeria, seeks independence and recognition of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.

The unresolved dispute has left the Sahrawi population divided geographically. Many live in Western Sahara itself, while a substantial refugee population has lived for decades in camps near Tindouf in Algeria. Others have settled in Spain and elsewhere.

Western Sahara has also long been one of the most difficult issues in relations between Madrid and Rabat.

For years, Spain supported a UN-backed process envisaging a referendum on the territory’s future. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s government changed course in 2022, however, when it endorsed Morocco’s proposal for Western Sahara to operate as an autonomous territory under Moroccan sovereignty. ALSO READ: Pedro Sánchez visits Morocco to mark ‘new stage’ after Western Sahara reversal.

Madrid described the Moroccan plan as ‘serious, credible and realistic’, helping to restore relations with Rabat following a period of severe diplomatic tension.

Vote comes amid renewed tensions over Ceuta

The citizenship legislation has now advanced against a very different diplomatic backdrop.

Relations between Spain and Morocco have again come under intense scrutiny since at least 70,000 migrants entered the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco during an unprecedented surge at the end of July. ALSO READ: Spanish court to investigate deadly Ceuta migrant surge as possible ‘hybrid warfare’ operation.

The Spanish government has avoided publicly blaming Rabat for the crisis. Opposition parties, however, have accused Morocco of deliberately facilitating the crossings as a means of exerting political pressure on Madrid.

Morocco claims sovereignty over both Ceuta and Spain’s other North African enclave, Melilla.

Despite the potential sensitivity of granting Spanish nationality to large numbers of Sahrawis, the proposal has so far not resulted in formal condemnation from the Moroccan government.

Moroccan media previously quoted Ramadan Messaoud, a member of Morocco’s Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs and president of the Sahrawi Association for Human Rights, as saying that Rabat had ‘no problem’ with Sahrawis obtaining Spanish citizenship. He noted that others had already acquired Spanish nationality ‘over the past few years’.

Wider debate over citizenship and voting rights

The legislation also comes amid a wider political and legal debate in Spain over the granting of nationality to descendants of Spaniards living abroad.

Spain’s 2022 Democratic Memory Law opened a route to citizenship for descendants of Spaniards who left the country during the 1936-39 Civil War and the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco.

The PP and Vox have accused Sánchez’s government of using that measure to expand the overseas electoral register with voters they believe are more likely to support parties on the left, particularly among communities in Latin America.

This week, Spain’s Supreme Court provisionally suspended the inclusion on the Electoral Census of Absent Residents (CERA) of some people who obtained Spanish nationality through the Democratic Memory Law, pending stronger evidence that they meet the required conditions. ALSO READ: Spain’s Supreme Court provisionally restricts voting rights for some descendants granted nationality under ‘grandchildren’s law’.

Sánchez said on Wednesday that he disagreed with the court’s decision and called for the matter to be resolved before Spain’s next general election.

The separate legislation concerning the Sahrawis must now proceed to the Senate. If it completes the remaining parliamentary process, it could provide Spanish citizenship to one of the largest groups of people directly affected by Spain’s withdrawal from Western Sahara half a century ago.