Over 300 child asylum seekers moved to the peninsula
The central government will increase, from September, the pace of referrals and transfers of minor migrant asylum seekers from the Canary Islands to centres on the mainland, with a plan to create 110 places across several autonomous communities.
To date, around 260 minor asylum seekers and another 40 who have turned 18 have already been moved, a figure the Canary Islands government reduces to just over half a hundred and labels “insufficient” after the inter‑administrative committee meeting.
Sources from the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration say the State Secretariat for Migration is in talks with several autonomous communities to secure additional resources for these children “in the coming days”.
Despite “difficulties opening centres in August”, two new transfers of unaccompanied minor asylum seekers will take place this week from the “Canarias 50” centre – a temporary reception facility set up by the Secretariat – or directly from resources managed by the Canary executive.
“We will also increase the number of autonomous communities we have worked with, so we can speak of a higher rate of referrals. I think that’s important; we are working smoothly. It’s especially a good message that we can not only maintain compliance with the Supreme Court rulings but also cooperate with the Government of the Canary Islands,” Pilar Cancela, Secretary of State for Migration, said.
To protect the children, the Ministry will not disclose the destinations of the transfers, emphasizing that the priority is to safeguard them “as much as possible to avoid them becoming targets of persecution”.
- The Secretary of State for Migration has pledged to present a bi‑weekly schedule of transfers at each meeting starting next week.
- Officials highlighted the complexity of the whole process and said they are giving special attention to the most vulnerable: the youngest, girls, and minors with particularly complicated personal situations.
- Finding suitable resources is “even more complicated” because the goal is to place minors in locations that best meet their individual needs and demands.
From the Canary Islands government, Candelaria Delgado, Councillor for Social Welfare, Equality, Youth, Childhood and Families, stressed the urgent need for the State to comply with the Supreme Court’s mandate and adopt immediate measures guaranteeing a steady flow of unaccompanied minors with international protection from the Canaries to the mainland.
“The situation has not shown significant progress; no calendar or protocol of action has been approved,” Delgado said. “So far the balance is clearly insufficient compared with the commitments made at the August 5 meeting, where it was agreed that by the end of August about 60 minors would have left – a figure that will not be met.”
Delgado added that the current pace of transfers does not reflect the gravity of the situation in the Canary Islands nor the requirements of the judicial ruling. She warned that “this non‑compliance with the Supreme Court’s order is inadmissible; the Canary Islands cannot be held responsible before the High Court for the State’s lack of diligence, which must guarantee swift and effective referrals to relieve overcrowding in the archipelago’s centres.”
Nevertheless, she expressed gratitude to the Ministry of the Interior for keeping the processing of international asylum applications up to date and conducting interviews with the children “with great diligence”.
- 133 interviews were carried out in July, 170 in August, and 123 are planned for September, according to a government note.
“The only viable path is strict compliance with the Supreme Court rulings, which oblige the State to deploy all necessary resources to guarantee the dignity of the minors and the viability of the reception system in the archipelago,” Delgado concluded.