A total of 11,026 migrants have returned from Ceuta to Morocco since August 10, of which 513 have been expelled and the rest have made what the Government qualifies as voluntary returns. This was announced this Thursday by the Minister of Territorial Policy and head of the single command in the autonomous city, Ángel Víctor Torres, during a press conference in which he updated the data on the migration crisis.
Of all the returns counted, 2,783 have occurred in the last nine days, a period that coincides with the eviction of the migrant settlement installed on Trampolín beach. Torres explained that many people choose to return to Morocco due to the opening of administrative files and the possibility of being transferred to the Temporary Attention Center for Foreigners (CATE).
The minister defended that the procedures are being carried out with information about the possibilities of requesting international protection and rejected the complaints about alleged returns without the due guarantees. "No one is being deceived because we have said from the beginning regarding international protection," he assured.
The Government dissociates the eviction from the visit of the kings
The removal of the settlement from Trampolín beach has coincided with the preparations for the visit of the kings to Ceuta and Melilla, scheduled for October 13 and 14. However, Torres denied that there is a relationship between the two events and pointed out that the operation was scheduled in advance.
According to the minister, the eviction concluded without security incidents between the migrants and the State Security Forces and Corps. He also highlighted that the work was completed within the planned deadlines.
More than 2,800 minors in the protection system
Attention to minors constitutes another of the main challenges of the migration situation in Ceuta. Currently, 2,827 boys and girls remain in the regional protection system, while the authorities have completed the initial procedures for identification and opening of files, known as triage, for 200 minors.
In the case of adults, 4,039 triages have been carried out, 819 more than last Tuesday. In addition, 24 family reunification files have been sent to Morocco, while 86 minors have been reunited on the Peninsula and another 173 have been transferred to reception resources in different autonomous communities.
For its part, the Prosecutor's Office has requested 627 files to determine the age of migrant persons. The Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences has already sent the corresponding reports for all these requests.
Ceuta has 7,377 reception places
The migrant care device currently has 7,377 available places, about 5,400 more than at the end of August. The Government continues to work on the habilitation of a new space in Mendizábal to expand the reception capacity if necessary.
Torres has also updated the situation of public services in the autonomous city. According to the data provided, student attendance at educational centers is around 90%, while of the 212 hospital beds available, 93 are occupied and only 13 correspond to migrant persons.
In parallel, the Executive has begun to pay direct aid aimed at entrepreneurs and self-employed workers affected by the migration crisis. So far, 1,700 applications have been submitted to access these compensations.