BARCELONA, Spain (AP) 鈥� The junior partner of Spain鈥檚 government wants Spain to reconsider hosting the next World Cup with Morocco after the , when tens of thousands of people and into the European enclave last week.
Sumar, a small left-wing party that shares Spain鈥檚 government with the leading Socialists, presented a motion in the country鈥檚 Parliament on Wednesday asking Spain鈥檚 sports authorities to revisit its plan to co-host the with Morocco and Portugal.
Sumar only has 26 seats in the 350-member Parliament, but its voice is important because it holds ministerial positions in the government of Socialist Prime Minister Pedro S谩nchez, who has faced for the Ceuta crisis.
The motion would be non-binding. Sumar said it is hoping it can gain more support in the parliament, but beyond the potential backing of other small, left-wing parties, that seems unlikely at this point.
S谩nchez has publicly defended the role of Moroccan authorities, saying they were quick to help in the return of almost all the 72,000 people who crossed into Ceuta last week. Some 2,000 people remain in Ceuta, according to Spain鈥檚 Interior Ministry, including .
But opposition voices and even Spain鈥檚 defense minister have asked for Morocco to give a more detailed explanation on its response to the crisis, which was encouraging people to cross the frontier. More than 80 people died when they tried to swim in a mass crossing around a breakwater and border fence from Morocco into Ceuta, a Spanish city perched on the North African coast, on Thursday and Friday.
Sumar’s Nahuel Gonz谩lez, one of the parliament members who authored the motion, accused Morocco of using migration flows for political ends.
鈥淭he Moroccan state, the Moroccan monarchy, does not respect human rights, it uses migrants to exercise political pressure,鈥� Gonz谩lez told Spanish broadcaster TVE.
When asked, Gonz谩lez did not clarify if Sumar wants Morocco to not host the World Cup or for Spain to abandon hosting the event.
鈥淲e ask that Spain鈥檚 sports institutions reconsider this World Cup that is to be shared with Morocco because we believe that we must defend human rights,鈥� Gonz谩lez said.
A small party in Portugal鈥檚 parliament, Livre, shared the concern. It sent a letter to Portuguese Prime Minister Lu铆s Montenegro and to the President of the Portuguese Football Federation calling for a reassessment of the World Cup, calling it 鈥渦nsustainable鈥� after the Ceuta crisis.
The majority of the is to be co-hosted by Spain, Morocco and Portugal, with Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay also due to stage a game each. The South American connection will mark the centenary of Uruguay hosting the first World Cup in 1930.
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Videojournalist Helena Alves contributed from Lisbon, Portugal.
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