About twenty of the 170 Ukrainian tourists who are trapped in Tenerife and cannot return to their country due to the Russian invasion have been rehoused in the Hotel Catalonia Punta del Rey, in Las Caletillas, municipality of Candelaria. The intervention of the Red Cross has been essential for them to find a roof after finishing their reservations in hotels and apartments where they went for a vacation. This was confirmed by the vice president of the Association of Ukrainians in the Canary Islands, Dmytro Shatruk. He clarifies that the association has held meetings with the delegate of the central government in the Canary Islands, Anselmo Pestana, and the president of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Peter Martin, “but they have told us that they cannot help us”. “Faced with the genocide suffered by the people of Ukraine, we need help,” added Dmytro Shatruk.
The Ukrainian resident in Tenerife assures that the situation that these more than 170 compatriots are going through “must have a solution as soon as possible.” All of them, most of them families with children, traveled to the island to spend a vacation days before the invasion of the Russian army in Ukraine and, now, they cannot return to their country. They have gone from being tourists to refugees. “Many do not have the financial means to extend their stay in Tenerife,” stresses the representative of the Ukrainian community on the Islands. Likewise, he adds that several people have already run out of reserves and “need immediate help.”
Dmytro Shatruk estimates that there are more than 2,000 Ukrainians living in Tenerife. All of them share the “enormous concern” about the terrible consequences of the Russian attacks on their country, which according to some calculations have already caused the death of more than 2,000 civilians. “In addition to the concern of not being able to return to their homes, they are very concerned about what may happen to family and friends who are in their country,” Shatruk explained.
The association hopes that in the next few days another 50 Ukrainians from this group of tourists can be relocated. In the same way, he expresses that many more people have requested help in the Canary Islands. “In this situation, you have to be in solidarity with the Ukrainian people,” says Shatruk, who recalls that the Ukrainians who live on the island are trying to bring family or friends to the island who have had to flee their country due to the armed conflict. .
CEAR asks for support
Along the same lines, another of the associations involved in helping Ukrainians in the Canary Islands, the Spanish Commission for Refugee Assistance (CEAR), manifests itself. His spokesman on the Islands, Juan Carlos Lorenzo, states that he understands that it is “a difficult and complex situation” but clarifies that “the institutions cannot turn their back on them.” Similarly, it declares that an effort must be made to “guarantee human rights” and that there must be a context of collaboration and coordination at the state level in order to “address this situation with guarantees” of the Ukrainians trapped in the Canary Islands “despite of the difficulties”.
international protection
Juan Carlos Lorenzo reports that they are working to help all the people who “contact us”, explaining the different ways to avail themselves of international protection and, if possible, to undertake the process to obtain reception. Regarding the places available on the islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria, he indicates that there are 121 and 148 places, respectively, but all of them are full. “That is why this week we are working on expanding these places,” details the CEAR spokesman. Starting next week, a specific number of new places can be set for those affected by the war in Ukraine.
CEAR has posted on its website a guide on asylum in Spain for people affected by the conflict. It is available in both Spanish and Ukrainian. In it, they are provided with information on how to get to Spain, the requirements needed to opt for the Reception System and how to apply for international protection in Spain. In the same way, the rights they have as people who receive said protection are shown. According to Lorenzo, the first thing they want to guarantee are “the basic rights and needs of any person affected by the conflict.” CEAR lends itself to carrying out the procedure to be able to allow Ukrainian refugees access to work activity, “although it is a long process.” Finally, he recalls that “we must collaborate with the Ukrainians”, since “for them we would be a support network that they need now more than ever”.
rallies for peace
Meanwhile, municipalities in Tenerife yesterday joined the five minutes of silence to ask for peace in Ukraine, an initiative that started from the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP). The concentrations took place in the headquarters of consistories such as those of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Los Realejos, El Rosario, Arona, Adeje or Granadilla de Abona. On Tuesday, the Cabildo de Tenerife joined these symbolic acts in support of the Ukrainian people by placing a Ukrainian flag at its headquarters in Plaza de España.
