An island with a census of 11,423 inhabitants is evidently overwhelmed when a thousand unforeseen visitors arrive in a single day. Even more so if this flow is repeated day after day. This is what is happening with the migratory surge, a problem that was known to occur but no solutions were foreseen.
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Why are there now massive arrivals of immigrants to El Hierro?
Because outflows from Africa have varied. Morocco’s control of the coastline has been strengthened, although it is not always regular. This has caused migration mafias to look for new exit points in recent months and they have found them in a country mired in a serious political crisis: Senegal. The ocean currents make it easier for boats leaving from that country to end up in Tenerife and El Hierro.
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Since the so-called canoe crisis of 2006 and 2007, experience shows that boats leaving from Morocco or Western Sahara preferentially stop in Fuerteventura (90 kilometers away at the closest point) and Lanzarote; If they do so from Mauritania, arrivals usually occur in Tenerife, and if from Senegal, in El Hierro and also in the south of Tenerife (port of Los Cristianos).
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Why is it a very dangerous route?
First of all, because from Senegal to the Canary Islands there are at least four days of sailing; later because if the boat loses its way, it can disappear in the immensity of the Atlantic Ocean. Remains of canoes that left Africa have been found on the American coast. In that sense, El Hierro is the last possible arrival point.
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Was this migratory surge planned?
Yes. The Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Interior had reports that warned of the rebound that has been occurring for weeks and also of this movement of the mafias towards southern Africa. The Canarian Government also had reports that warned of the collection of canoes and motors by the mafias. The improvement of relations between Spain and Morocco has led to greater control on the coastline under Moroccan tutelage, while Senegal’s collaboration with Spain to stop the departure of canoes is at a minimum. The political instability in that country does not help, with the addition that Senegal, like other states, already refuses to return migrants who are not its citizens.
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Why is it a problem that arrivals are centered in El Hierro?
Because reception resources are scarce. During the last term, the Government of Pedro Sánchez focused its efforts on the islands of Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura. In 2020 and 2021, stable camps were set up on those islands but not on the rest of the islands. El Hierro currently has no reception capacity and no human resources: when the cayucos arrive, health personnel have to leave their work in the island’s hospital and health centers to attend to the dock in La Restinga. . The port area itself is collapsing due to the accumulation of canoes that can only be removed with a court order.
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How is the central government reacting?
Basically, with referrals of immigrants from El Hierro to the islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria, as well as from Lanzarote and Fuerteventura to Gran Canaria. For this purpose, Civil Guard boats and also Naviera Armas boats have been used, a company that links the islands with high-capacity ferry-type vessels.
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And what is the problem of unaccepted minors?
The law leaves its protection in the hands of the Autonomous Community, which has the collaboration of the councils and town councils to enable reception resources. The problem is that the Canary Islands are once again faced with almost 3,000 minors to care for until they come of age and do not have sufficient resources. The collaboration of other autonomies to distribute these minors is very limited, focused mainly on the Basque Country and Navarra. This week the Canarian Government has declared a social emergency due to the lack of reception resources.
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What do the Canarian authorities demand?
Anger with the central Executive is growing, both on the part of the Canarian Government (Canary Coalition and Popular Party) and the island councils (the equivalent of the councils on the Peninsula). The El Hierro, chaired by the socialist Alpidio Armas, has demanded this week that the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, travel to the island to learn about the situation, as she did last month in Lampedusa (Italy). The Canarian Government basically demands two things: information from Madrid on what is happening in Africa and the efforts being carried out there to control migratory flows, and that there be a unified command in this matter. This is a demand that was already raised in the crisis of 2020 and 2021, when the Arguineguín dock (Gran Canaria) was the most visible face of the problem.
And the fact is that the Foreign Ministries intervene in the migration issue (management in Africa and before the European Union); Interior (deployment of the National Police and the Civil Guard, in addition to dialogue with their counterparts in Africa); Defense (a large part of the reception resources are enabled on military soil and participate in search and rescue efforts); Migrations (the management of reception facilities); Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (controls the Maritime Rescue and Safety body); and Social Rights (he is the interlocutor for the distribution of minors and the authorization of items for their care).
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