Venezuelans escape to Spain and ask to return old favour

Once, Spaniards fleeing repression and poverty in Francisco Franco’s dictatorship found themselves building new lives in Venezuela, given refuge by their cousins across the Atlantic.Now, Venezuelans are asking them to return the favour. A shared language and cultural heritage draw Venezuelans escaping from hardship under the socialist government of President Nicolás Maduro. But many new arrivals say Spain’s authorities are failing to recognise them as genuine refugees, forcing them into legal limbo and black economy jobs. More…