The vice-president of the Government of the Canary Islands and leader of the PP of the Canary Islands, Manuel Domínguez, denied that the autonomous community was going to give up to unaccompanied migrant minors who arrive in Cayucos via the Canary Islands route, defending the position of their government partner (CC): “What we want is for the law to be respected.”
These statements are part of an escalation of tensions between the State, the prosecutor’s office and the regional government, which published a protocol on Thursday which, in the opinion of the Ministry of Youth and Children, “may constitute a serious violation of rights fundamentals of childhood in Spain».
The Canarian vice-president assures that he will respect the decisions of the prosecutor’s office and that “from there, the prosecutor’s office will be able to tell us where we should take these unaccompanied minors and we are fully available to continue caring for these children. What we will never do is abandon them.”
Canary Islands «At no time did he refuse to welcometo protect or care for unaccompanied minors, but on the contrary,” he stressed.
The Prosecutor’s Office has warned that it will investigate a possible crime of abandonment if the Canary Islands Government does not accept migrant minors, something that Domínguez says is beyond doubt: “The Canary Islands Government has been clear. “We do not abandon minors at any time and we understand that when they arrive in the Canary Islands they are not in distress, but rather in the temporary custody of the State.”
He reported that the agents handed over the minors to the NGOs, although “they were not identified, with a delivery note in specific batches”, which the published protocol wants to resolve. “What we demand is that when this minor is handed over, it will be to the community and not to an NGO because the person who is the notary of this document will be a public official; that they are not delivered on a delivery note, but individually with photograph, fingerprint, name, IDENTIFIER and we know exactly where it’s going to lead us.”
For Domínguez, the goal is to respect the protocol so that things stop as they have been until now.
Serious violation of rights
The Ministry of Youth and Children has warned the Public Prosecutor’s Office that the approved protocol “could constitute a serious violation of the fundamental rights of children in Spain”. As explained, the legislation and the Statute of Autonomy of the Canary Islands itself indicate that the competence in matters of protection of minors is »exclusive“autonomous communities, whatever the situation in which they find themselves.
“With this measure, the Canary Islands are putting at risk the rights of children and adolescents in situations of helplessness,” they warned, adding that the ministry maintains its commitment to the children’s rightsinstitutional collaboration and territorial solidarity.
Assistance to the occupants of the last canoe in La Restinga, El Hierro
While the shuffle between administrations continues, the Canary Islands Route continues to accelerate the pace of arrivals. This Saturday three pirogues arrived on the islands, the last one was rescued near La Gomera with 70 peopleA few hours earlier, a boat had arrived at the port of La Restinga under its own steam. 57 people of sub-Saharan origin on board, including a woman and three minors.
Earlier in the day, a canoe was also rescued in the waters of El Hierro with 28 migrants on board, which is in addition to the relief efforts on Friday, when they arrived 43 people to the same island, including three minors.
