When a migrant lands in the Canary Islands and claims to be underage but has no documents or appearances to prove this, the Administration must verify the veracity of these statements. Like? With a bone test that determines years of life based on the condition of the bones. Forensic doctors are tasked with carrying out these procedures, but the increase in cayucos in the Archipelago since the beginning of August has overwhelmed them. Yesterday island president Fernando Clavijo warned that 1,500 young people would arrive ashore from the port of La Restinga. They sporadically wait for confirmation that they are indeed under 18. An uncertainty that forces the custodial Autonomous Community to keep them in reception centres, but prevents them from enrolling in school or becoming part of integration programmes.
Clavijo underlined that the delay in conducting this medical test was four to five months because the services “could not cope and these papers had to be signed by an official.” And doctors need to carry out age accreditation, but then the prosecutor’s office must make the final decision. If it is determined that the young person is under 18 years of age, he or she is handed over to child protection services. However, if adulthood is proven, the treatment will become that of an irregular alien, meaning there is a higher chance of repatriation.
The boat leak continued yesterday. Marine Rescue teams responded to seven ships near Lanzarote Fuerteventura and El Hierro. At 2:20 a.m. the first sighting of the day took place with 42 men traveling from Dakhla to Lanzarote. At the same time, Salvamar Adhara also went in search of 56 immigrants to take them to El Hierro. Early in the morning, a merchant ship found a boat with 69 people on board near Fuerteventura. La Restinga took two more cayucos with 316 passengers, including a pregnant woman. Another was detected 28 kilometers from the island of Lobos and had 52 people on board, which the Talía Guard took to Arrecife. The last one, along with 71 members, was captured in the south of Tenerife.
With 25 barges seen in the waters near the Canary Islands over the weekend alone – between Friday and Sunday – social services had to deal with 128 new children in addition to the more than 3,000 children the Community had already welcomed. Clavijo reminded that the central government has the capacity to determine the distribution of people under the age of 18 to the Islands among the autonomous states, and said that he regretted the invalidation of the last agreement envisaging the transfer of 700 people to the Peninsula.
He assured that he tried unsuccessfully to contact the Ministry of Social Rights, headed by Ione Belarra, to address the issue. In the same vein, the bishops of the Canary Islands issued a statement yesterday calling for the solidarity of the remaining regions, because “the archipelago cannot face this situation alone.”
El Hierro “I can’t take it anymore”
The president warned that El Hierro “cannot take this anymore” because its resources have “completely collapsed.” 2,355 people in an irregular situation have arrived in this settlement since Tuesday –385 yesterday–. Clavijo explained that although minors and adults were sent to other islands, they also began to be affected by the increasing migration pressure. Evidence of this was the 200 migrants who had to sleep at ground level at the Los Cristianos pier on Saturday morning due to lack of space in the Temporary Care Centers for Aliens (CATE), where the maximum number of new arrivals is located.72 Hours for the first policing operations.
Only 50 minors can be adequately housed on Meridian Island, and its facilities currently house more than 230 people. Island Council President Alpidio Armas yesterday condemned Clavijo for the “inaction” of the Ministry of Social Welfare towards challenges requiring care. For so many children on an island with only 11,154 people. He ensured that these adolescents were provided with shelter, beds, and food, but not access to education or integration programs. “No matter how good our intentions are, this is beyond our capacity,” he said.
According to the statement of Social Welfare, since the outbreak of the political and social crisis in Senegal, 573 minors have arrived in El Hierro, and 340 of them have been transferred to the capital islands. The Canary Islands president also highlighted yesterday that another 150 people are expected to leave El Hierro centers in the next few days.
Adults also move to make room. Due to the number of arrivals in less than 24 hours yesterday, the ship chartered by the state, which is authorized in this regard, sent 280 people to Tenerife. On Saturday, 584 more ships were embarked to the neighboring island.
Clavijo criticized, “I don’t know what else needs to happen for the central government to look after the Canary Islands, take care of us and put a single command into action,” but Madrid has a different perception on this issue. Although the Autonomous Administration claims that the islands have collapsed due to recovery, Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska stated yesterday that Spain has the “necessary personal and material” means to confront the situation of the Archipelago. He reminded that the increase in ships is temporary and that there is a “real policy of cooperation and coordination” with Senegal and Mauritania regarding the stopping of barges at their points of origin.
Health spends 3.5 million euros at the bottom of the pier
2,355 people landed irregularly in La Restinga since last Tuesday, disrupting the health services of Meridian Island. Yesterday, Cabildo president Alpidio Armas condemned the Canary Islands Administration, saying that the lack of tools to deal with the migration crisis has led to a shortage of health centres, especially in El Pinar. The island’s President, Fernando Clavijo, said yesterday that health workers in El Hierro were enduring “endless shifts” to care for the new arrivals. In an effort to stop the collapse of the Canary Health Service (SCS) in El Hierro, Clavijo has teamed up with the College of Physicians to bring retired professionals to the island and, together with the Red Cross, is leading the installation of a hospital campaign in El Pinar. José Javier Sánchez, Director of Social Inclusion of the humanitarian organisation, explained last Friday that the State had signed an agreement with them until 2026, ensuring the provision of care at the highest level, but was also aware that they needed special reinforcements in intense situations. From SCS.. This aid amounted to an expenditure of 3.5 million Euros for the Community’s coffers between January and August, of which 102.00 Euros were allocated to the island on the meridian. Health explains that the recovery has increased this item significantly compared to other years.