Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By richards on May 12, 2015

MADRID (AP) -- For Alfonso Paredes Henriquez, it was the opportunity not only of a lifetime - but of a half-millennium. The Panamanian real estate developer, a descendant of Sephardic Jews kicked out of Spain five centuries ago, was elated when the country announced it would atone for the Inquisition by granting citizenship to people who can prove lineage from exiled Jews.

Then came a long wait, as Spain's Sephardic Jew citizenship law took two years to wind its way through Parliament. Amendments were tacked on that made the application process tougher and delayed approval for a bill that faced virtually no opposition.

Frustrated, Paredes Henriquez turned instead to Portugal. The neighboring country had enacted its own law to grant citizenship to descendants of Sephardic Jews exiled during the Inquisition, which forced Jews to flee, convert to Catholicism or be burned at the stake. He submitted his Portuguese citizenship application in late March.

"Spain came out saying they would make a law but Portugal did it first and it's easier in Portugal," said Paredes Henriquez. "Portugal just swooped in."

Spanish lawmakers are finally preparing this month to approve a law that potentially allows hundreds of thousands, and possibly millions, of Sephardic Jews around the world a shot at citizenship, though there are no reliable estimates of how many people might be eligible.

A Spanish passport means those who get it would be able to live or work anywhere in the 28-nation European Union, and apply for citizenship for immediate family members. While some European nations are experiencing a surge in anti-immigration sentiment, Spain and Portugal are not, and the laws have not generated opposition.

Many would-be applicants thought the Spanish law, announced in 2013, would carry few requirements beyond thorough vetting of ancestry. That's the case with the Portuguese law, which was proposed after Spain's but went into effect in March 1.

But Spanish lawmakers ended up adding amendments making the process for Sephardic Jews similar to that faced by permanent residents seeking citizenship. The hurdles are significant: Sephardic applicants must learn and be tested in basic Spanish if they don't speak one of several Jewish languages rooted in Spanish. They also must pass a current events and culture test about Spain. And they have to establish a modern-day link to Spain, which can be as simple as donating to a Spanish charity or as expensive as buying Spanish property.

Paredes Henriquez - whose Spanish ancestors were driven into Portugal by the inquisition - predicted the extra steps would translate into more lost time, money and frustrating red tape. In Portugal, he only has to prove his family history and that he has never been convicted of a crime punishable by three or more years in prison.

"Portugal is being more friendly about the process," he said. Indeed, the country is currently examining its first round of applications with decisions expected in a few months. "There's more willingness to do it, and they're doing it right."

Continued here:
Spain Sephardic citizenship plan hits snags, unlike Portugal

Category: Sephardic
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