The department of Education of the Valencian Government governed by right-wing PP-VOX alliance justifies the disappearance of 244 groups, 8,450 job positions and 61 teachers by stating that there are classes with a minimal student presence. However, one of the most severe cuts occurs in “Spanish for foreigners”, a language that in Torrevieja has a waiting list of 2,000 people.
Bárbara Soler, head of the area of Foreign Residents of the PSPV Executive, has supported the concentrations of teachers and students of the EOI (Official Language School). “Rovira hides behind the lack of students for the severe cuts he proposes, while the truth is that Spanish for foreigners is one of the most in-demand services. In Torrevieja, with a very large foreign population and an EOI that has been requesting more and more places in this specialty for years, the groups will go from 29 to 12. And it is not the only city where the waiting lists to learn Spanish far exceed to those who finally manage to enroll. Alicante or Valencia are not left far behind.”
The spokesperson for the socialist municipal group assures that there is a significant number of citizens who need to learn Spanish to be able to access their residence permits or even to work in the Valencian Community. “This may precisely be the problem,” says Soler, “it is evident to socialists that these cuts have an ideological background: the Spanish language since it is aimed at migrants. For their part, Arabic, Valencian or Basque have been severely affected by the cuts because they are minority languages or are considered “suspicious” languages by the centre-right Partido Popular (PP/EPP) and the far-right VOX party (ECR) ruling together in the Valencia region.
Bárbara Soler has announced that several members of the Socialist Party of Torrevieja will volunteer next year to offer language exchange and Spanish language classes to residents and migrants. “The department of Education should provide this public service to citizens who need it. We know that our volunteering is far from being sufficient for the existing demand but we are not going to allow people who need to learn the language to be left even further behind. “To the extent possible, we will find the means and the help.” The spokesperson clarified that this is not an ideological issue but “one of justice and necessity” and has encouraged citizens to join these activities, both to teach and to learn the Spanish language.
