The president of the Balearic Islands has stated that her reception network is “at its limit” and cannot accommodate more migrant minors in conditions of “dignity.”
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 16 October (EUROPA PRESS) –
The president of the Balearic Islands, Marga Prohens, expressed on Wednesday her willingness to consider the proposal from European Commission president Ursula Von der Leyen regarding the establishment of centres for migrants in third countries, following the Italian model.
“Everything needs to be examined,” she remarked to reporters before participating in a forum for extra-peninsular territories alongside the Canary Islands, Ceuta, and Melilla, organised by Prensa Ibérica. She emphasised that there have already been “multiple declarations” from the EU urging Spain to “seek assistance,” and that all economic and legal mechanisms are now in play.
She also conveyed that it has been acknowledged that Spain serves as the “southern border” of Europe and that “the crisis of irregular immigration must be tackled as a European issue, incorporating European policies and resources.”
Prohens reiterated that we are talking about “human lives,” and when it comes to unaccompanied minors, it is crucial to address the matter in “terms of dignity.” This is not the case in the Balearic Islands, where their reception network is currently operating at 850% of its capacity.
In this context, she pointed out that the influx of migrants arriving from the Canary Islands “is unmatched by any other European region,” and that in this scenario, solidarity must come from the rest of Spain, while stressing that “the situation in the Canary Islands is beginning to be mirrored in other regions” and the rise in irregular immigration is “truly alarming.”
Prohens further reported that the Balearic Islands are experiencing “the worst figures” in their history concerning irregular migrant arrivals, with over 3,400 this year alone, due to a “new established route” via Algeria, which marks an increase of 50% compared to the same period last year, and includes more than 400 unaccompanied minors.
“The Canary Islands are overwhelmed, we are fully cognisant of that, but in the Balearic Islands, we are at our capacity limit. We cannot accept any additional minors in conditions that uphold their dignity; this distribution should not or cannot become an issue of solidarity, it is about capacity,” she conveyed.
CALLS FOR MORE “ENGAGEMENT” FROM THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT
Prohens cited that the Formentera Council already allocates 25% of its budget to support minors and recalled that the Juvenile Prosecutor’s Office had previously issued a “very unequivocal statement” requesting the “engagement” of the Government of Spain and “clearly stating that unaccompanied minors cannot be disentangled from the issue of irregular immigration, which rests solely and exclusively with the Government of Spain.”
Consequently, she has emphasised that “beyond discussing distribution and attempting to pit some communities against others, what we truly require is a strategic shift in international policy and immigration governance.”
In this regard, she has urged the central government to “stop turning a blind eye” and refrain from leaving the citizens of the autonomous communities “to face this humanitarian crisis and the issue of irregular immigration alone.”
Specifically referring to the Balearic Islands, she noted that “the assertion is very clear,” as the “change” in relations with Algeria has resulted in the Balearic Islands being “the region most affected by this still unexplained directional shift enacted a few years ago by the Government of Spain,” leading to the establishment of this migratory route.
“We must act at the source, combat the criminal cartels, allocate resources to the autonomous communities, and ultimately exercise a competence that is specifically the responsibility of the Government of Spain, namely immigration control,” she concluded.
