'Spain' - tagged features

Are you lost in La Mancha? Parts of old, rural Spain are like ghost-towns. Some are falling off the map altogether. The mass migration to cities that took place after the Civil War in the 1930’s decimated the populations of many rural areas. Now some 21st century factors are making things worse still - Spain has one of the largest aging populations in Europe and one of the lowest birth rates. But to re-populate these areas you need romance! Enter former insurance salesman, Manuel Gozalo. He runs a bus service with a big difference. 

Spain’s abortion law is coming under close scrutiny where the government says it is prepared to consider changing the legislation if it can achieve a wide political and social consensus. The announcement follows women from a feminist collective reporting themselves to police for illegal abortions, in order to draw attention to the what they see as the failings of the law. Private abortion clinics have also been on a week long strike to protest against a law they say doesn’t protect medical practitioners or the woman who have abortions. The strike was a response to a recent series of police raids on abortion clinics accused of carrying out illegal terminations. From Madrid, Deutsche Welle’s Danny Wood reports… 

Once you pass through a country’s borders – you might do well to go native and immerse yourself in the local culture – eat the food, cheer on the national sports teams and why not learn the national anthem? Good idea! Unless you’ve moved to Spain that is. Spain is wrapped in controversy at the moment and all because of its anthem. Spain is one of the few countries in the world that does not have lyrics for its national anthem. And now, a six month talent search is coming to an end. About seven thousand Spaniards have responded to a call by the head of the Olympic committee, Alejandro Blanco, to write a verse. Submissions are being carefully examined by a panel of judges before being tested on a children’s choir. Then on December 19th the winner will be unveiled. But as Deutsche Welle’s Danny Wood reports – the whole endeavour is not music to everyone’s ears. 

It’ll be a white Christmas for more European party-goers than ever before this year. Cocaine abuse is on the rise across Europe, and particularly in Spain. So far in 2007, Spanish police have intercepted five shipments each holding over 3 tonnes of the drug. With such high supply, prices have dropped and the Iberian peninsular is awash with the narcotic that keeps you up all night. DW’s Jerome Socolovsky reports from Madrid's Barajas airport, one of the key entry points for smugglers from Latin America. 

Romania joined the European Union on January the 1st 2007. Initially the West feared a massive wave of immigration from Romania and Bulgaria. It wasn’t really like that. Romanians have continued to go to work in Italy and Spain as they used to do before Romania’s entry in the EU. But in recent months, Italian and Spanish newspapers have abounded in rather unflattering articles about the Romanian community there, which is the biggest foreign community in Italy, numbering according to official figures half a million Romanians. 

Crackdowns on illegal immigration by Spain meanwhile have reduced the number of migrants coming from Africa. But one sort of immigrant is coming in greater numbers: underage North Africans. Temporary shelters for the young unaccompanied migrants are overflowing and Muslim leaders are warning that they are ripe recruits for Islamic radicals. 

Next time you get sick how would you like to recuperate in a Spanish health spa, all expenses paid? Well as if Scandinavia wasn’t Eutopian enough already, Norway does exactly this, if your condition requires it. The Norwegian public health system now sends the sick, elderly and disabled on holidays to Spain as part of their medical treatment. Thousands of Norwegians are visiting rehabilitation centres run by Norwegian health associations along Spain’s Mediterranean coast. 

More and more expatriates or expats are getting involved in politics in Spain, for instance in the country’s local elections. Namely, from the country’s large expat community. For more than a decade, European Union citizens have had the right to vote and stand as candidates in local elections, in any EU country if they live there as residents. Until now these expats have been keeping relatively quiet, but that’s no longer the case. In Spain, for the first time, independent political parties with more non-Spanish than Spanish candidates are taking part in local elections. 

The high-speed train network in Europe is expanding, but there's still no connection between France and Spain. Progress is especially slow in and around Barcelona, where controversy still dogs the project. According to the current plans, high speed trains will run underneath the Sagrada Familia, Gaudí's famous and still unfinished cathedral. And the famous project could be under threat. Both the current architects and neighborhood residents are deeply worried. For Radio Netherlands Worldwide correspondent Christoph Schmidt has more. 

Since Spain opened its labour market to workers from the new EU member states Poles have been searching for jobs there. But Spaniards are beginning to fear the influx of migrant workers more and more, despite the fact unemployment between July and September hit its lowest point in 27 years. Poles used to take up just seasonal jobs, but now, many of them have decided to stay for good. Netwrok Europe has been meeting some migrant workers on their tea breaks. 

Well, having to sleep outside could also become a problem in Southern Europe. Every summer, hundreds of thousands of North Africans living all over Europe head back south to spend their month-long European vacations in their native countries. Many go by car, which creates an enormous logistical problem when they arrive on the Straits of Gibraltar.