Non-discrimination

According to participants, Spain's legal framework lacked an umbrella law to protect and sanction discrimination on all grounds. Civil society organisations agreed on the need for a comprehensive law on equality at national level to address all types of discrimination. They also said that Catalonia had a law on equality. A law on equal treatment was currently being discussed by the Congress of Deputies. Public authorities also said that they were setting up training groups to raise awareness about equality in the public administration and provided information on initiatives to ensure effective equality of women and men in Spain (the Organic Law 3/2007 of 22 March 2007 on the effective equality of women and men in force since 2007, the proposed comprehensive law on equal treatment and non-discrimination, policies on conciliation, the Draft Bill on Family Diversity and Support for Families or the institutional response to gender violence).

Participants reported progress in several areas. They underlined the ratification by Spain of the Council of Europe's Revised European Social Charter in May 2021. Similarly, in March 2021, the Action Plan to Combat Hate Crimes was established to fight hate speech in general and online. This protocol was presented by the Spanish government with the involvement of civil society, legal professionals and internet companies. Participants also appreciated the large social diversity of police officers. Public authorities said that the fight against discrimination by the Ministry of the Interior focused on combating hate crimes based on race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, intellectual or physical disability, sexual orientation or other similar factors. The 2019 -2021 Action Plan had recently been evaluated, and that evaluation would inform the Second Action Plan against Hate Crimes.

Roma people were still considered the most discriminated against minority group in Spain, facing generalised discrimination in all areas of daily life, particularly communication, social media, access to employment and housing. Ethnic profiling of Roma people by the police was considered to be very frequent, with Roma people being stopped by police ten times more than the rest of the population. Participants called for equality bodies such as the Council for the Elimination of Racial or Ethnic Discrimination to be more involved in fighting anti-Gypsyism. In this regard, public authorities provided information about the Strategic Plan for Inclusion, the Inter-institutional Plan for the fight against racism, xenophobia, LGBTI phobia and other forms of intolerance, and the National Strategy for Roma Equality, Inclusion and Participation 2021-2030. Some progress was also reported, such as the creation within the Congress of Deputies of a committee to fight anti-Gypsyism, involving civil society.

Women still faced burdens in the area of family care, which complicated their access to the political, economic and employment spheres. The participants explained that more women than men occupied precarious or temporary jobs and that women faced higher unemployment rates and lower salaries than men. Participants also highlighted gender violence, with murders of women rising considerably during the pandemic. Sexual violence was also considered to be on the rise. Public authorities said that they were taking measures to improve work-life balance and care facilities to address gender equality.

The LGBTIQ community reported concerns regarding an increase in hate speech on social media, particularly against trans people. Participants also considered that hate speech against the LGBTIQ community mainly stemmed from certain political groups. Participants also explained that reporting on situations of discrimination or hate crimes to the police was difficult. Moreover, they considered that the Spanish legislation on hate crime was not efficient. Lastly, participants expressed dissatisfaction with the interpretation of the law by the judiciary, which had at times limited the freedom of the community. 

All participants demanded a reform of Spanish immigration legislation, which they felt was obsolete and inappropriate for the needs of migrants. According to participants, migrants were particularly subject to precariousness and human rights violations, and had limited access to public services (such as health and education). Participants signalled their concerns as regards the management of migrants 
arriving in Spain within the Spanish internment centres (Centros de Internamiento de Extranjeros). Participants explained that some people were held up to 60 days without access to a lawyer or the possibility of obtaining legal advice. They said that most of them were deported by plane to their country of origin.

Another problem presented by the participants was the fact that one "racialised" person or migrant was around seven times more likely to be arrested than the rest of the population. Participants reported that the Law on citizens' security included a set of provisions allowing for refoulement of migrants crossing the border, without checking their situation or their being able to ask for asylum.

People with disabilities still faced discrimination in several areas such as health, employment, housing and education. Therefore, representatives called for a cross-cutting approach covering all these areas. Participants were particularly concerned about forceful medical treatments for people with mental disabilities and the impossibility for them to obtain information on their medical treatment. Participants 
complained about other difficulties linked to disability. The EESC delegation regretted that one of those difficulties was reflected by the experience of one of its members during the country visit. Upon arrival at Madrid airport, EESC member Pietro VittorioBarbieri's wheelchair was misplaced. Police officers removed him from the plane, after Mr Barbieri had been waiting for his wheelchair for over an hour.
Participants also discussed the legal capacity of people with a disability as referred to in Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. They noted that public authorities had taken steps to implement legal capacity. For instance, progress had been observed as a result of a reform of the civil code providing better legal support for people with disabilities.

Lastly, participants highlighted the difficult situation of the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic, who suffered some human rights violations in retirement homes and centres.