Spain proposes citizenship for Sephardic Jews
Jews mourn in front of the house of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, spiritual leader of Israel's Sephardic Jewish community and the ultra-Orthodox Shas party following his death on October 7, 2013 in Jerusalem. The rabbi's death came just two weeks after he underwent heart surgery at the city's Hadassa hospital in Ein Kerem, where he eventually passed away. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ
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The Spanish Embassy in Tel Aviv has been inundated with calls from eager Israelis after Madrid proposed a potentially far-reaching change to its laws that would allow citizenship to be offered to all Jews whose ancestors hail from Spain.
Until now the descendants of Jews expelled from Spain during the 15th century – known as Sephardic Jews – could claim Spanish citizenship only after living in the country for two years, and then only if they renounced their previous nationality.
The new bill, which is still to be approved by the Spanish parliament, will allow the estimated 3.5m Sephardic Jews who are alive today to claim Spanish nationality without having to give up their current passport.
All Spanish Jews were either expelled or forced to convert to Christianity in 1492, as part of the Catholic reconquest of Spain that also saw the entire Muslim population either driven from the country or forced to convert. Though estimates vary, historians believe at least 200,000 Jews lived in Spain before the expulsion.
While the biggest community of Sephardic Jews lives in Israel, other communities also exist in Latin America, Turkey, the US and other parts of Europe. The proposed offer of Spanish citizenship would also apply to them.
Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, the Spanish justice minister, said the move was an attempt to address the 1492 expulsions, which he described as one of Spain’s “most important historical errors”.
“Now they have an open door to become once again what they should have never stopped being – citizens of Spain,” he added.
Abraham Haim, chairman of the Council of the Sephardi Community in Jerusalem, welcomed the move as the latest step in a reconciliation process that began with the establishment of diplomatic ties between Spain and Israel in 1986.
“We do not forget the tragedy or torture of the Inquisition but we have always regarded Spain as the place of our origin,” Mr Haim said, adding he did not see any “material benefit” for the struggling Spanish economy.
However, the attraction of an EU passport with access to residence, education and welfare could be attractive to many Sephardic Jews across the world.
Those wishing to obtain Spanish citizenship would be required to prove their status by way of a certificate issued by the Federation of Jewish Communities in Spain or the rabbinical authority in their home country.
They would also have to do so in the first two years after the change is passed – suggesting the law is a one-off opportunity.
The Spanish embassy in Tel Aviv warned applicants they would have to be patient.
“Those interested in applying for Spanish citizenship through this channel must wait for its entry into force as law to process their application,” the embassy explained.
Spain’s Jewish community welcomed the move, which it described as “a step towards righting a mistake and an injustice”.
However, Chaim Hames, head of the Centre for the Study of Conversion and Inter-Religious Encounters at Ben-Gurion University, questioned how many applicants would be successful.
“Unless they are very, very relaxed about how they are going to check criteria of who actually is a descendant of a Spanish Jew, it is going to be impossible for most people to prove,” said Prof Hames.
“How many people can go back 10 or 15 generations in their family? Even if they do have names which are Spanish in origin, they might have been adopted or changed.”
He added: “However, if they are going to be very loose with their criteria, I might even apply.”