Spain addresses migrant flow to Canary Islands

MADRID — The Spanish government is ratcheting up its response to the steady build-up of migrant arrivals to the Canary Islands from Africa, including a fresh diplomatic offensive.

Though the government has come under pressure from local officials to transfer a significant number of migrants and asylum seekers to the Spanish mainland, Interior Minister Fernando Grande-marlaska said Friday that the main focus will be on deporting those who don’t qualify for refugee status or work in Europe.

“We have to fight against irregular migration and prevent the establishment of irregular entry routes into Europe,” the minister said in the Moroccan capital of Rabat following a meeting with his Moroccan counterpart, Abdelouafi Laftit, to discuss how to speed up deportations and stem the departure of boats heading to the Canary Islands.

Moroccans have been the most numerous among recent migrant arrivals to the Spanish archipelago, whose nearest islands lie around 70 miles west of the north African nation.

More than 18,000 people fleeing poverty, violence or other circumstances at home have arrived in the islands this year, a 1,000 percent increase from the same period in 2019, and more than 500 have died in the attempt. Around half of those arrivals —and most of the deaths— have been in the past 30 days, a spike that has strained resources on the Canary Islands.

Most of those who survive the perilous Atlantic route to Europe are rescued at sea and transferred to a port in the Gran Canaria island. Migrants are supposed to spend the 72 first hours under police custody. That is the maximum time the law allows for identification, but testing for coronavirus has often kept them detained for longer, according to human rights groups.