Assessing the situation of migrants in Spanish-administered Ceuta, Nofel Belamri, president of the Moroccan Human Rights Organization, called on authorities to adopt an approach based on human dignity and legal guarantees. Belamri said forced returns in particular must be addressed within the framework of international human rights law.
Shelter and basic needs for migrants
Belamri said people who crossed into Ceuta and Melilla must be provided with access to shelter, food and water. He said migrants in the two Spanish-administered cities have rights guaranteed by international human rights law, the rulings of European courts, the Spanish judiciary and national legislation.
Opposing the forced return of migrants without protecting their human rights and dignity, Belamri noted that international human rights law prohibits collective expulsions. He stressed that assessing the issue solely from a security perspective would not provide a solution.
Discrepant figures on the July 29-31 crossings
Large-scale irregular crossings took place at the Ceuta border from July 29 to 31, involving tens of thousands of people arriving from Morocco and African countries. Most of those who crossed were later returned to Morocco’s Fnideq.
The Moroccan National Human Rights Council reported 14 deaths on August 7. Spanish figures put the number of fatalities at 80. Moroccan authorities estimated the number of people who crossed at around 40,000, while Spanish authorities put it at more than 70,000.
Belamri called for all migrants in Ceuta to be registered and said the figures made public were not based on an actual count.
Call to protect unaccompanied children
Belamri said the situation of unaccompanied migrant children in Ceuta was more complex, noting that the city’s shelter could not accommodate all the children there. He said some children were left without shelter, food or water on the streets.
According to Belamri, protecting the children requires registering them, determining their identities, interviewing them and enabling them to challenge administrative decisions concerning them. He stressed that the best interests of the children must be taken into account throughout these procedures.
Belamri argued that the authorities governing Ceuta had not yet implemented the practices set out in the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s 2005 General Comment No. 6 on unaccompanied and separated children. The document calls for children to be identified, their identities to be established, guardians to be appointed for them, their views to be heard, appropriate shelter and care to be provided, protection from collective expulsion to be ensured and the opportunity to challenge administrative decisions to be granted.
General Comment No. 16, issued in 2013, addresses states’ obligations concerning the impact of business activities on children’s rights. It emphasizes preventing companies’ adverse effects on children, applying the required due diligence and establishing effective remedies.
Return plan between Spain and Morocco
On August 12, Morocco called for procedures concerning the return of unaccompanied children in Ceuta to be expedited. Markus Lamert, a spokesperson for the European Commission, said on August 18 that EU legislation contains provisions concerning the return of unaccompanied children in an irregular situation.
Lamert said Madrid and Rabat were being encouraged to cooperate to carry out return procedures effectively. On August 19, the Spanish government announced a plan to transfer around 500 unaccompanied children to different parts of the country to ease administrative pressure in Ceuta and strengthen their care.
Belamri’s allegations of violations
Belamri said the Moroccan Human Rights Organization and other human rights groups had identified several violations in Ceuta. He alleged that young women and girls had been subjected to violence and sexual assault.
Belamri said children without shelter, food or water were present on the streets of Ceuta and that they had not been placed in shelters in accordance with international law. He also alleged that some migrants had been attacked by the Spanish Civil Guard and soldiers.
In addition to Ceuta and Melilla, some islands in the Mediterranean are also under Spanish administration. The Moroccan government describes these areas as “occupied Moroccan territories.”
