Xenophobic party asks councilor to step down

A councilor in the town of Salt from the xenophobic Plataforma per Catalunya (PxC) has resigned after being pressured by party officials to step down after they learned she is involved in a romantic relationship with a sub-Saharan migrant.

Joana Martínez, who was the number three PxC official in the Barcelona province town, was interrogated about her relationship by party leader Josep Anglada, who also questioned her about her boyfriend's legal status.

"Anglada told her that if her boyfriend had legal residency in Spain then it wouldn't be a problem," said Carles Bonet, the PxC leader in Salt.

"But that is not the case; he is living illegally in Spain. What is she doing in a party that is against illegal immigrants?" asked Bonet.

Efforts to contact Martínez have proved fruitless.

Roberto Hernández, the PxC secretary general and party spokesman, said all they asked of Martínez was to prove that her boyfriend was in this country legally, but that she couldn't.

The PxC discovered that she was seeing a sub-Saharan after she took her position on the Salt city council in June following the May 22 elections.

"The fact that he is black has nothing to do with it," Bonet said.