Torrevieja As Multicultural as New York or London

IT IS official; Torrevieja is as multicultural as New York and London. A report released this week states that there are a total of 124 different nationalities living together in the city and that the range of nationalities is so diverse that the only other cities in the world that it can be compared to is London or New York. Of the 102,655 residents in the city, only 12,000 have lived in the city for their whole life and are true Torrevieja born residents. The rest are classed as new to Torrevieja and derive from countries all over the world as well as from other parts of Spain. Just a few decades ago Torrevieja was a very small fishing village with very few residents. In 2010 the municipal census counts more than 100,000 residents with only 47 % them Spanish nationals

POSITIVE

In the most recent census data, which is reviewed monthly, countries with a national as a resident in Torrevieja include Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Syria, Gambia, Iraq, Vietnam, Ivory Coast and Andorra. The majority of immigrants come from the UK with 12,933 people registered on the census. Other large sections of the population come from countries such as Morocco (3100), Russia (3261), Sweden (2844), Norway (2268) and Germany (3889). Torrevieja’s Councillor for Foreign Residents, Pedro Valero, told RTN: “The findings of this report are very positive and it shows how accommodating our city is to foreign nationals. What is interesting to see is that as a result, multi national births have increased and these babies have a combination of eye colours and skin tones. These babies are not immigrants, like their parents; they are the ‘new’ Torrevieja residents and this shows just how much of a multicultural society we live in; with cultural influences and customs from all around the world.”

WEDDINGS

A perfect example of this multicultural society is the first baby born in 2010 at Torrevieja Hospital. The child has a Spanish Father, a German Mother and a French Grandmother. “I remember the first weddings that were performed at the Town Hall office in 2003. The first was a Chinese and Spanish couple and the second was between a Romanian lady and a Dutch gentleman.” says Valero. “The Town Hall is making a positive contribution to this multicultural society.” However, there are occasions when things don’t run as smoothly as the Town Hall would hope. He said: “There are occasions when there are xenophobic outbreaks, but these usually occur in times of crisis. I think it can be difficult for those people who dismantle their entire life, leave their home and country to work in a foreign country, only to be become unemployed. As a Town Hall, we try to help these people as much as we can.”

CULTURAL CLASHES

The report also states that the city is divided by ‘colonies’ with many of the nationalities congregating together and living in the same area. For example, more than 2000 Ukrainian born nationals live close to the city’s fire station. Pedro continued: “We do know of cultural clashes in areas like the Toretas where British, German and Spanish live in the same area and there are residents who after many years still do not speak Castilian. But who are we to force them? They are the losers.” He added: “For many years they watch their own country’s TV or go to bars and supermarkets run by fellow nationals. That is their prerogative but from the other point of view, Torrevieja has become a richer place for it as you can find a teacher of almost any language in the world, try almost any food or hear almost any music. Multiculturalism characterises Torrevieja society in everyday life.”

Article from RTN - 564 south

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