The recent arrival of 17 Algerian immigrants has caused a huge problem – there is nowhere to put them. The result is that they might be just set free.
When they were brought into Motril port, an SOS was sent out to NGOs for somebody to find accommodation for them – there is no room in the port holding facilities. Furthemore, even if there were, they would have to be kept separately in quarantine.
When none of the NGOs came forward, Motril Town Hall laid on a bus Sunday night to take them to Granada, reasoning that immigration is the Central Government’s responsibility.
The provincial representative of the Central Government (Subdelegación del Gobierno) just said that there was a protocol in place but because of present circumstances, things have become very complicated.
The Mayor of Granada, Luis Salvador, explained that they had taken charge of the immigrants and housed them temporarily in the Paquillo Fernández Sports Complex, “out of a sense of solidarity.” Nevertheless, he said that the Subdelegación had to get their finger out otherwise the immigrants would be left outside their offices in the city.
The Chairman of the Motril branch of Cruz Roja pointed out that the procedure is always the same. The Government has deals signed with several NGOs, who are supposed to provide shelter for the immigrants once the first 72-hours have expired at the port holding facility – the authorities have that amount of time to process the new arrivals to ascertain their age and procedence.
Alternatively, instead of calling on the NGOs, they can go straight to Internment Centres for longer stays, but the trouble is they’re all closed. So, no Internment Centres and no NGOs able to help… Hence what happened on Sunday.
Lastly, the Ombudsman considers that the Ministry of the Interior cannot ignore the situation.
Editorial comment: it is ridiculous that at a time when the citizens of Spain have been confined to their homes for the better part of two months under strict quarantine regulations, we have people from another continent with little or no control of contagion wandering through the streets with nowhere to go.
If there was ever a time for the Government to act decisively without giving ground to the inevitable hand-wringing from the lenient left, then it is now. If Madrid can understandably suspend certain citizen rights in favour of the public health, then it can gather up these people and immediately take them back to Algeria. This is either a Lock Down or it is not.
(News: Motril, Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)