Facultad de Derecho

Yesterday morning I made a trip to another of UGR’s beautiful departments, for a meeting with Francisco Balaguer Callejón in the Faculty of Law. Alongside teaching in the department, Francisco is a member of the UGR Migration Institute, a network of academics across various disciplines with a shared interest in the many facets of migration.

© Francisco Balaguer Callejón

Primarily, I needed an overview of the legal parameters affecting Spanish immigration through Ceuta. Francisco not only provided this but went into great detail about the nuances of immigration laws in Spain. He explained the national / regional legal system, which means Ceuta (as an autonomous city) has jurisdiction over its health and social care systems but cannot create its own legislation; the debate over the constitutional rights afforded to migrants and asylum seekers; and his hopes that the welfare of immigrants might improve with the new governing party.

I spent an enjoyable hour in the UGR Botanic Garden after our meeting, following up on several of Francisco’s suggestions and considering how this new information feeds into the implementation of my project.