Bangladesh has urged Spain to expedite the efforts for releasing five Bangladesh nationals detained in a prison in Galicia province.
At a bilateral meeting with Director General for Consular Affairs Xavier Martí Martí of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation of Spain held in Madrid recently, Bangladesh Ambassador to Spain Mohammad Sarwar Mahmood solicited support from the Spanish Foreign Ministry in expediting the release of five Bangladeshis.
The Spanish director general for consular affairs assured the ambassador that he would take up the issues with the authorities concerned and necessary steps would be taken, said a media release.
Bangladesh Ambassador Mahmood also sought simplification of visa procedures for Bangladesh nationals seeking to travel to Spain.
The ambassador said Spain is Bangladesh's second-largest export destination in the EU while Bangladesh is Spain’s fourth-largest trade partner in Asia.
Bilateral relations in trade, investment and other prospective areas are expanding day by day, he said.
Simplification and easing of the visa process would contribute to the expansion of the relations further and reap benefits for the two peoples, particularly for private sector entrepreneurs and businessmen, said the ambassador.
For Spanish residence, Bangladeshi expatriates are required to produce a Police Clearance Certificate (PCC) issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs of Bangladesh, rather than by the Department of Police.
The ambassador said more than 50,000 Bangladeshis staying in Spain constitute the second-largest expatriates' community in the EU.
“They make significant contributions to both the economies. Digitalized PCC issued by the Department of Police of Bangladesh is acceptable to and recognized by all countries of the world, except Spain,” he said.
Obtaining a PCC from the Ministry of Home Affairs is a very tedious, time-consuming and burdensome process.
Since all Bangladeshi passports are now either Machine Readable Passports (MRPs) or E-Passports, if Spain accepts PCC issued by the Department of Police and subsequently legalised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh that will alleviate people's suffering a lot, said the ambassador.
He also requested Spain to consider expatriates' marriage certificates issued and legalised by the competent authorities in Bangladesh acceptable.
He said the Spanish economy could be benefitted from recruiting skilled workforce and professionals from Bangladesh, particularly in the agriculture and ICT sectors.
