The Regional Executive Commission of the PSOE of Ceuta has announced that the party will be present at the demonstration called for next September 2. The leadership has communicated this decision to all members and maintains that it responds to the majority sentiment of the citizens and its affiliates regarding the situation currently experienced by the city.
"We are socialists and we are from Ceuta, and there is no contradiction between both things," emphasized the Regional Executive, which has defended the compatibility between the defense of human rights and the rejection of xenophobic discourses, on one hand, and the demand for security, a real control of the border, and actions that allow for the recovery of "as soon as possible" the normality in Ceuta, on the other.
The position is adopted in the midst of a migration crisis and in a context of strong internal tension within the PSOE of Ceuta, an organization marked for years by episodes of fracture, clashes between leaders, and the departure of members from its parliamentary group, with cases of turncoats that have modified the correlation of forces and the functioning of the Assembly.
The discrepancies have sharpened during the current migration crisis, after the socialist deputy and first vice president of the Assembly, Melchor León, has openly questioned the actions of the Government of Spain and has lashed out at his own secretary general and Government delegate in Ceuta, Miguel Ángel Pérez Triano.
León has held the central Executive and the representative of the State in the city responsible for "abandoning" Ceuta in the midst of the crisis and in recent weeks has joined citizen protests in which the resignation of Pérez Triano has been demanded. "The delegate is the maximum responsible," stated the PSOE parliamentarian, who considers that "the most coherent" thing after having "failed the people of Ceuta" is for the delegate to present his resignation.
In the face of these internal criticisms, the Regional Executive of the PSOE has insisted on separating its presence at the demonstration from any clash with the federal leadership of the party or with the Government of Spain. The organization has emphasized that its participation responds to a "strictly local reality" and does not imply calling into question "the constant commitment of the Government Delegate to Ceuta."
For now, the PSOE of Ceuta has chosen not to clarify whether its secretary general and Government delegate will ultimately be at the march.
The formation has explained that its decision comes after a process of "active listening" to the membership in recent weeks. "Listening, proposing, and acting accordingly is, precisely, the commitment that the Regional Executive Commission assumed from the very beginning," the leadership has recalled.
The party maintains that its central objective remains to articulate an "effective and rapid" response to the crisis, while recognizing the advances already achieved and committing to continue demanding all those measures it deems essential for Ceuta.
In this line, the PSOE of Ceuta admits that it perceives the "exhaustion, concern, and discomfort" that extends among the neighbors and assures that it shares that state of mind. "The defense of Ceuta and the demand for solutions are not the property of any acronym," it has emphasized.
The Regional Executive has marked as insurmountable limits any form of violence or behavior that may harm coexistence, and places its presence in the march within a mobilization that it defines as "peaceful, civic, and respectful of human rights."
"Once again, we reiterate our firm and unqualified condemnation of any form of violence, no matter where it comes from or who it is directed against," the party has emphasized, which has rejected assaults, insults, threats, or acts of intimidation against police, journalists, and public officials.
"Today, more than ever, Ceuta deserves respect and unity. Because above our differences is what we share: Ceuta. Our coexistence. Our people. And Ceuta is far above all this," the formation has remarked.
"In difficult moments, our place is alongside our people, listening, proposing, demanding solutions, and defending Ceuta wherever necessary. That is and will continue to be our commitment," the Regional Executive Commission has concluded.