Congress in Spain backs citizenship for Western Saharans born before 1977

Spain's Congress approved legislation Thursday that would allow those born in Western Sahara before 1977 and their descendants to obtain Spanish citizenship, according to EFE.

The measure, promoted by junior coalition partner Sumar, passed the Congress of Deputies by a 168 - 31 vote, with 145 abstentions, said the report.

Sahrawi groups estimate that between 80,000 and 120,000 people could benefit from the legislation, which supporters described as addressing a “historical injustice.”

Western Sahara was a Spanish colony until 1975, when Spain relinquished its administration under agreements with Morocco and Mauritania.

Sumar lawmaker Tesh Sidi, who was born in a Sahrawi refugee camp, said the measure would return Spanish identity documents to Sahrawis who once held them before Spain “took it away.”

The governing coalition's partners backed the legislation, while the conservative People's Party (PP) and Catalan party Junts abstained. The far-right Vox party voted against it.

The bill will now go to the Senate, where amendments are expected, before returning to the lower house for final approval.