The island institution has sent a letter to the Government Delegation requesting an immediate meeting in the face of the continuing arrival of unaccompanied migrant children and adolescents that strains the system.
The president of the Consell de Mallorca, Llorenç Galmés, has sent a letter to the Government Delegation to request a meeting this week to address the migration crisis and the increase in the arrival of unaccompanied minors on the island. This was explained at a press conference by the councillor for Social Welfare, Guillermo Sánchez, who demanded the involvement of the central government and the urgent provision of spaces to temporarily house minors arriving alone. ‘The Consell de Mallorca’s child protection system is reaching its limits. We lack economic, material and human resources,’ said Sánchez.
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The Consell de Mallorca calls for urgent help from the central government to tackle the migration crisis on the island
The councillor for Social Welfare also pointed out that President Galmés has sent a letter to the Bishopric of Mallorca asking the island’s institution to make space available to accommodate children and adolescents in the face of the current migratory crisis on the island of Mallorca. ‘We consider that this is an extreme situation and that for humanitarian reasons it requires the involvement of the whole of society,’ Sánchez declared.
The current migratory crisis stems from an exponential increase in arrivals in recent years. As Conseller Sánchez pointed out, ‘Mallorca has consolidated itself as a migratory route, which has gone from being a route to a final destination’. Faced with this unsustainable situation, the Consell de Mallorca is calling for the central government to cede spaces, a national immigration policy plan, the declaration of a migratory emergency, and the convening of the Conference of Autonomous Presidents.
Increase of 102 places in one year
The Consell de Mallorca, through the Mallorcan Institute of Social Affairs (IMAS), has increased the number of residential places available in response to the progressive increase in the number of arrivals of unaccompanied migrant children and adolescents. Last weekend, some 40 minors who arrived on the island were transferred to different unused spaces in the La Bonanova residence in Palma and another 5 to a new centre located on the outskirts.
Since July 2023, IMAS has created 102 new residential places for children and adolescents under guardianship or tutelage. Of the new places added to the network, 78 are specialised for migrant children and adolescents. Specifically, last year the IMAS went from having 6 to 10 centres to attend this group and continues to seek new infrastructures ‘We will not leave any child unattended, no matter the origin and these, like the rest of children and adolescents with protection measures, must have their needs covered and receive quality care’, declared the councillor of Social Welfare and president of IMAS, Guillermo Sánchez, this Thursday during the plenary session of the Consell de Mallorca when asked about the voluntary agreement of distribution with the autonomous communities.
Sectorial Conference of Childhood and Adolescence
Sánchez warned at the last Sectorial Conference of Childhood and Adolescence held last Wednesday that ‘Mallorca cannot take on more sharing agreements, given that the services for this group are currently saturated’. Specifically, he pointed out, ‘they are at 500% of their capacity. Never before has there been as much as in the last year. So far this year, 146 children and adolescents have arrived without any adult reference in Mallorca, while between January and July 2023, 60 arrived.
The councillor insists on convening the Conference of Presidents to address the issue, points out that the law on foreigners establishes funding that only covers 58% of the costs and demands ‘a serious migration policy on the part of the central government, not centred exclusively on a solidarity-based distribution and a global contingency plan that takes into account the uniqueness of the Balearic Islands and their consideration as a migratory route.
IMAS currently cares for 283 unaccompanied migrant children and adolescents. Guillermo Sánchez highlighted the efforts and work of the organisations that deal with this group, with whom, he recalled, he is in constant communication and coordination. In fact, given the progressive increase in arrivals, IMAS has launched this July the Unit for the Care of Unaccompanied Migrant Children and Adolescents, a team of 6 professionals who work to provide coverage reinforce the work of these entities and guarantee the quality of the care they provide.