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piqer for: Climate and Environment Global finds Globalization and politics
I'm a freelance journalist, currently based in Madrid. I used to be a News Producer at CNBC in London before, but I thought a little bit more sun might do me good. Now I write for several news organizations, covering a range of topics, from Spanish politics and human rights for Deutsche Welle to climate change for La Marea.
Migration In Spain: Chaos Reigns Away From The Aquarius Spotlight
Summer is here, and with it an increase in the number of people who reach Europe across the Mediterranean looking for a better life. Although the number of migrants fell over the last few years, the far-right discourse has gotten through to several governments, including Italy and Germany.
In this environment, a couple of weeks ago Spain opened the Valencia harbor to the Aquarius flotilla, composed of three ships. The vessels, carrying around 600 people rescued in front of the Lybian coast, were in distress after the Italian administration closed its ports.
The new Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, was cheered as a hero. Sanchez, a social-democrat who had just won the government through a successful no-confidence vote on conservative Mariano Rajoy, has recently repeated the gesture by allowing the ProActiva Open Arms ship to dock in Barcelona.
Despite the good news, human rights associations have denounced that Sanchez is mostly playing to the gallery, and this article by Sam Jones gets really close to the bullseye. Spain is overwhelmed, lacks resources and organisation, and its policies haven't really changed. Chaos reigns. In June alone, 6,800 people have reached Spain by sea, and most of them don't receive even the most basic attention. They are often illegally detained. Other times they are abandoned to their fate on the streets.
The EU is not better: Brussels just wants North African countries to set up detention facilities to impede migrants travelling to the EU. Matteo Salvini hailed the agreement as "real progress". Macron did too.
This is the most complete article in English I've found on the topic. The stories are relevant and the critique is accurate, and although the author should have talked to more sources and explored the root causes of the problem, it's a good way to get a taste of the real situation, far from the crowds cheering the Aquarius in Valencia.
I'm afraid my own article, to be published soon in Deutsche Welle English, will be much harder.
