The President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo (CC), has warned that he will not hesitate to take the matter to court if the central government continues to remain silent regarding the islands‘ request for assistance in the face of the surge in migration along the Canary Route that has been ongoing for weeks.
Clavijo made this statement on his arrival at a forum organised by Europa Press, when asked about the response to the letter he had sent to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez calling for six urgent measures to be adopted to tackle the resurgence of the Atlantic migration route and prevent the Canary Islands from once again coming under extraordinary migratory pressure.
«We have not received any reply,» said the President of the Canary Islands, who hopes that «at some point this morning» someone from the Spanish Government will get in touch with him or his team.
El Hierro: Clavijo announces a visit and support
Clavijo has announced that he will travel to El Hierro first thing on Wednesday, because the situation there «is very complex» on several fronts: «from healthcare to logistics, right through to resources. At the very least, they should feel the support of the Canary Islands Government and know that we are there,» he said.
The President of the Canary Islands has emphasised that his government «has been saying for months that the implementation of the new European Pact on Migration and Asylum would have consequences of this kind», in the form of a resurgence of the Atlantic Route, «as confirmed by the reports from the Ministry of the Interior and the CNI themselves»
«We do not understand why, from the point of view of institutional loyalty, we have not been able to obtain information, discuss matters or coordinate our efforts,» he added.
Clavijo emphasised that the Canary Islands Government «has never refused to help» and pointed out that it has «even had to take the matter to the Supreme Court to ensure that the rights of migrants and Canary Islanders are respected».
Clavijo wants to discuss matters on a government-to-government basis
Regarding the suggestion made to him on Monday by the Minister for Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, concerning the need for CC to ask its coalition partner in the Canary Islands, the PP, «to lend a hand and offer support at national level», Fernando Clavijo said that he «speaks on a government-to-government basis» and is not going to «get drawn into the political battle and row because there are elections coming up».
«I don’t have to speak to my coalition partner; I have to speak on behalf of the Canary Islands Government, and the Canary Islands Government, which is also a signatory to the Migration Pact, has shown what its actions were at all times. And I call on those with the authority to act: the Government,» he asserted.
Clavijo pointed out that, at the time, when the Spanish Government needed parliamentary support to amend Article 35 of the Immigration Act, in order to oblige all the autonomous communities to share the responsibility for taking in migrant children in situations such as those experienced by Ceuta, Melilla and the Canary Islands, he spoke with ERC, Junts and Podemos to ensure that this reform went ahead.
«What the Canary Islands are now calling for does not require a change in the law or the support of the PP, but rather ‚action by the central government‘ to ‚convene a Security Council, allocate resources‘ and speed up the ‚transfer‘ of adults to the mainland, not from El Hierro to Gran Canaria, as was done this weekend,» he replied.
As for unaccompanied minors, the President of the Canary Islands has called for the matter to be referred to the Public Prosecutor’s Office «if any region refuses to take them in, because the law must be obeyed».
For all these reasons, he has emphasised the need to «stop passing the buck and to convene the Security Committee».
«The health situation in El Hierro is very complex: the hospital is completely overwhelmed, staff are stretched to breaking point, and the situation at the CATE, given the conditions under which they are caring for these people, leaves a great deal to be desired… And, once again, La Restinga finds itself in a situation where all its economic activities are suffering,» he added.
Should the Spanish Government continue to remain silent in the face of all these demands, Clavijo has warned that «the Canary Islands‘ only ‚Plan B‘ is to take the matter to court», a course of action he has admitted he would prefer not to take, as he believes there is no difficulty in convening the Security Council, a request he «does not even consider unreasonable».
«I don’t see what the problem is with members of the two executive bodies meeting weekly to coordinate our efforts, as I have asked the President to do in one of the points. I don’t see what the difficulty is in asking Europe for help to mobilise Frontex or to send resources. It’s not against anyone; it’s in the interests of the Canary Islands and in the interests of the migrants,» he said.
El Hierro: Clavijo outlines the consequences of 1,000 arrivals
Clavijo replied to Minister Torres, who is also the leader of the PSOE in the Canary Islands, saying that «if he considers that the arrival on an island with a registered population of 11,000 and an actual population of between 7,000 and 8,000 of more than 1,000 migrants is not a problem, let him tell that to his citizens».
«I’ve been contacted by members of the public, the volunteers‘ association, hospital staff, the National Police regarding the conditions they’re facing, and trade union representatives regarding the conditions they’re having to deal with. I know, because the Director-General for Children has told me, that I have children sleeping on mattresses because, when they arrive, we can’t get them out due to the logistical constraints on El Hierro,» he stated.
He also referred to the transfer of 380 adults this weekend from El Hierro to Gran Canaria and asked Torres «whether that is normal», to make it clear that this is not the sort of normality he wants.
The President of the Canary Islands has reported that the archipelago «once again has 2,700 migrant children» in its care, which indicates that «the situation has worsened again»; the aim is not to «reach the point where there are more than 6,400», as the Canary Islands did at one stage, but rather to «take remedial action before that happens». EFE
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