The Podemos MEPs, Irene Montero and Isa Serra, have sent a letter to the European Commission (EC) this Friday in which they request "urgent" action in response to the crisis facing Ceuta, the "negligent" management of the Government, and the recent "racist attacks" against migrant people.
In the letter, addressed to the President of the EC, Ursula von der Leyen, and to the European Commissioners Magnus Brunner, responsible for Home Affairs and Migration, and Hadja Lahbib, in charge of Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, and Humanitarian Aid, the MEPs focus their criticism on the way the Executive is addressing the emergency, reproaching it for a "neglect of its obligations" regarding "protection and reception" of migrants.
"The seriousness of this situation is inseparable from the negligent management of the emergency by the Government of Spain, contrary to the most basic principle of due diligence, and from a worrying neglect of its obligations of protection and reception," they have stated in the letter.
For this reason, Montero and Serra demand that the Commission "carry out specific monitoring of the situation" and ensure that "the Spanish response is fully compatible with Union Law and with international obligations regarding human rights."
Growing hostility in Ceuta
The representatives of Podemos also convey to Brussels "the climate of hostility and hatred" that, they claim, is experienced in the autonomous city, with "the actions of far-right groups" that "are fueling an escalation of violence and harassment."
In this context, they detail the blockade of the Red Cross convoy carried out by numerous protesters this Thursday in Ceuta, as well as the altercations recorded on Benítez beach, which ended with police charges.
As a result of these events, the MEPs ask the Commission to guarantee the protection of "the organizations, activists, and defenders of human rights who work on the ground" and who find themselves in a situation of "severe vulnerability."
Additionally, Podemos informs in the letter of the 16 sexual assaults recorded since the beginning of the crisis in Ceuta and urges the community Executive to "immediately strengthen the mechanisms for prevention and protection against sexual violence," as well as "the identification and care of possible victims of trafficking."
Finally, Montero and Serra demand that the Commission investigate the responsibility of Morocco and "its possible complicity" with the United States and Israel, and that it promote a "consequential diplomatic action" in line with the situation that Ceuta is going through.