Authorities in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta say they are still caring for around 1,100 unaccompanied minors after last week’s mass migrant surge. Many of the children are sleeping in temporary shelters or on the street.
The situation in Ceuta is slowly returning to normal after last week’s large influx of migrants, DR reports. But concern is growing for one group in particular. Thousands of people who risked their lives to reach Europe have returned to Morocco, while hundreds of children and teenagers remain on the European side of the border fence.
Ceuta’s regional leader, Juan Jesús Vivas, said authorities in the city are currently looking after about 1,100 unaccompanied minors. The figure was reported by Reuters and the Spanish news agency Europa Press. Their status as unaccompanied means they cannot simply be sent home.
According to Reuters, many of the minors are sleeping in makeshift accommodation or outdoors, because the city’s reception centers are full. A 40-year-old local resident, Hamza Sitouni Moreno, told the agency he had offered one minor a place to sleep in his car. He also said he had built temporary shelters for other children, and that so many had arrived that the authorities could not cope.
Images from Ceuta show several of the minors lying on flattened cardboard boxes in the streets, DR reports. Europa Press noted the administrative difficulty of identifying and protecting the children, since unaccompanied minors cannot be deported in the same way as adults. The agency added that the situation remained difficult even as the wider migration pressure eased.
Save the Children’s Spanish branch warned that the lack of safe accommodation, identification and specialized support increases the risks facing the group. Jennifer Zuppiroli, a migration expert at the organization in Spain, said in a press release that a teenage girl who is alone and outside the system can be especially vulnerable to violence, exploitation or human trafficking. The organization is calling for the minors to be identified as quickly as possible.
Save the Children also urged aid organizations and the authorities to seek out those children who have not come forward on their own.
Why the pressure is happening now
The immediate cause is last week’s mass arrival, after which many adults were returned to Morocco while minors stayed on the Spanish side, according to DR. Reuters reported that local authorities are still trying to place the children in reception centers that are already over capacity.
Coverage of the number varies slightly. DR describes more than 1,000 unaccompanied children, while Reuters and Europa Press cite the figure of about 1,100 given by Vivas. The Local Spain reported that Ceuta’s child protection system is under severe strain.
