The president of Ceuta, Juan Jesus Vivas, called for the creation of a special space to hold migrants who remain in the city following the mass influx on July 30. According to the Ceuta government, between 8,000 and 11,000 people who illegally crossed the border that day are currently in the city. This represents at least 10% of the total number of migrants who arrived in the city on July 30 — between 72,000 and 80,000 people.
Vivas described the situation as “unacceptable” and “unstable.” On Monday, he called for a “necessary” and “priority” measure — the creation of a space that would function as a Centro de Internamiento de Extranjeros (CIE), or Foreigner Detention Center. According to him, migrants could be accommodated there and their movement temporarily restricted. In the view of the Ceuta government, this would ensure their basic needs are met while preventing thousands of people from being on the streets and would accelerate the processing of their deportation cases.
Security and expedited deportation
After meeting with the Minister of Territorial Policy, Angel Victor Torres, Vivas stated that the “thousands of people” who continue to “wander” the city “create danger” and “pose a high risk to coexistence.” The CIE proposed by Vivas would differ from the existing Centro de Estancia Temporal de Inmigrantes (CETI), or Temporary Stay Center for Immigrants, in the city. In the CIE, as envisioned by him, the freedom of movement of migrants would be restricted, although the center itself would not have a penitentiary status.
“Their freedom of movement will be restricted for objective and fully justified reasons until the deportation cases are reviewed and completed,” Vivas stated.
The president of Ceuta also called for the cases opened against each migrant who arrived in the city to be “considered with the urgency that the situation demands.” To achieve this, he demands an increase in material and, above all, human resources, including strengthening the units responsible for migration issues, justice, prosecution, and police. According to Vivas, only by “deporting” the illegal migrants remaining in the city can “normality be restored” in Ceuta.
Vivas demands unified command
At the same time, the president of Ceuta insists that the crisis in the city should be managed by a “unified command” of the central government. Vivas wants the government in Moncloa to “coordinate, direct, and carry out monitoring and evaluation” of further measures through all the ministries involved.
The central government has already rejected this proposal when Vivas presented it on July 30 — the day of the mass influx of migrants across the border from Morocco. Last Friday, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez held a coordination meeting with the ministers of defense, interior, migration, children’s affairs, and foreign affairs to discuss the situation in Ceuta. Vivas, however, also demands to be given a voice in this coordination body.
Source: El Mundo
