Spanish aid group urges halt on migrant transfer to Senegal

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - The Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid (CEAR) Tuesday called on Spanish authorities to immediately suspend plans to transfer 168 migrants to Senegal.

A Spanish police vessel rescued last week a ship full of migrants making the dangerous journey to the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa, according to police association AUGC.

The original plan was to drop the migrants off in Mauritania, but the Mauritanian government did not agree.

By Monday, AUGC was demanding “an urgent solution” to the extremely difficult situation onboard the vessel. The association said the police have been trying to cook and clean for the extremely full ship while avoiding “mutinies” organized by the migrants. According to the association, Spanish police have had to fire into the air twice to calm things down.

However, CEAR is sounding the alarm that Spain could be breaking international law by sending the migrants to Senegal without due process.

“Returning these 168 individuals to a country like Senegal, which is undergoing a very delicate political and social situation, could constitute a serious violation of rights and be considered a collective expulsion," warned Estrella Galán, general director of CEAR.

The organization emphasized that the migrants, currently under the control of Spanish authorities, have the right to apply for international protection. Under European law, they also have the right to be informed by trained personnel about their rights, supported by interpreters and legal advisers.

CEAR emphasized that Senegal is grappling with increasing instability, citing recent arrests of thousands, including the main opposition leader, who protested against the government.

The powerful aid group said the incident serves as another example of the pitfalls of European migration policies that prioritize border control over human rights.

CEAR lamented the continued failure of such policies and called for a focus on providing legal and safe routes for migration. It argued that prioritizing human rights would prevent the desperate attempts that force people to risk their lives on dangerous journeys to Europe.

According to the police association, the migrants are expected to arrive in Senegal early Wednesday.