Spanish judicial associations rejected the mass expulsion of Moroccan migrants from occupied Ceuta to Morocco, who entered the city on July 30, while the governor of Ceuta threatened to resort to the judiciary against the government of Pedro Sanchez, if it does not act to address this issue, accusing it of inaction which suggests, according to him, that it wants to relinquish the city’s sovereignty to Morocco.
The governor of Ceuta said that Sanchez described the entry of some 80,000 migrants, mostly Moroccans, into Ceuta on July 30 as an “attack on Spanish territorial integrity,” but that he had not taken any concrete steps to address the situation.
The head of the Ceuta government directed sharp criticism at Madrid, considering that there was a “lack of firmness” and a “lack of responsibility” in dealing with the issue, as well as the possibility of avoiding taking measures that might upset Morocco “in order to maintain good relations,” and not taking action in the face of what he described as “a Moroccan plan to ultimately bring down Ceuta.”
The newspaper “El País” commented that the speech of the head of the Ceuta government was “strong and unusual”, considering that he was indirectly accusing Sánchez of wanting to “cede sovereignty to Morocco”, while he threatened to resort to the Supreme Court if the situation did not change.
These statements come in the context of pressure exerted by the head of the Ceuta government on the central government to expedite the deportation procedures for migrants who are still in the city.
Europa Press news agency reported that associations representing workers in the judicial sector are rejecting the mass deportation of the remaining migrants in Ceuta, most of whom are Moroccans, to Morocco, after they entered the city on July 30.
The agency reported that more than 75,000 migrants had left Ceuta, while a few thousand remained inside the city.
Judicial associations, including the Independent Judicial Forum and the Association of Judicial Professionals, stressed in their statements the need to respect international laws that guarantee the protection of migrants, by studying the file of each migrant individually.
The Association of Judicial Professionals explained that Spanish and international law require that each migrant's case be studied individually, noting that some migrants may meet the conditions for applying for asylum.
She added that illegal entry into Spain does not give the migrant the right to remain there, but it does not prevent him from submitting an asylum application, especially since he has the right to remain until his application is decided, whether by approval or rejection and the resulting deportation.
The positions of the judicial associations come in response to the intention of the Spanish central government and the autonomous government in Ceuta to carry out mass deportations of migrants to Morocco.
The newspaper “El Faro de Ceuta” reported that the Moroccan migrants who are still in the city, estimated to number a few thousand, want to apply for asylum and refuse to leave Ceuta for Morocco.
They began organizing peaceful protests to demand their right to asylum, instead of being expelled and deported to Morocco. In response, the central government erected large tents to temporarily house approximately 1,500 migrants.
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