The mayoress, Ana Sala, and the councillor for Social Services, Itziar Doval, met this morning with representatives of the Cepaim Foundation (Consortium of Entities for Integral Action with Migrants), specifically with Marta Alcántara, from the Regional Directorate of the Valencian Community, Abdelkader Alef El Messari, state coordinator of the area of reception, emergency and international protection and Ana Sirvent, coordinator of the Alicante Centre.
CEPAIM opened a few days ago a reception centre in the Aparthotel Carriosol, which currently houses 97 irregular sub-Saharan and North African immigrants, although it is expected to reach 140 immigrants next Monday.
The centre is managed by CEPAIM and financed by the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Immigration and has been set up due to the national emergency situation in the Canary Islands and the need to look for residential centres on the mainland. This centre is part of the Humanitarian Emergency Programme.
The CEPAIM representatives have conveyed a reassuring message to the municipal representatives, pointing out that ‘the centre has external security 24 hours a day, we have technicians, trainers, psychologists and translators. All users have signed a set of rules of coexistence with their rights and obligations and a commitment to participate in the programme. The immigrants in the Calpe centre have already passed a first filter in Fuerteventura and many of them are eligible for international protection (fleeing from war, sexual orientation or religious denomination). If someone does not comply with their obligations, mechanisms are initiated to get them out of the municipality and there is an interdisciplinary structure for the inspection of the centre’.
In principle, the centre will remain operational until 30 April and during this period CEPAIM technicians will study the vulnerabilities of each case for integration into the international protection system, if appropriate, or if there is a social network (family) in Europe, the transfer to the destination will be facilitated. An intervention itinerary is drawn up for each person, with the aim of avoiding exploitation and international trafficking.
The mayor stressed the lack of information from the Consistory, to which CEPAIM pointed out that the guidelines should have come from the Sub delegation of the Government, but that as it is a national emergency, the procedures have been rushed. Ana Sala also wanted to emphasise that ‘although the Town Hall is not involved in this situation because municipal authorisation is not required, we will be in constant and permanent contact with those responsible for the Calpe centre’.
The councillor for Social Services, Itziar Doval, also pointed out that ‘we want to send out a message of calm, this is an organised and controlled situation’.
As a curious fact, those responsible for CEPAIM have pointed out that this is not the first time that this foundation has created an emergency centre in Calpe, as it already did in 2022 in the Imperial Park Residence with the reception of Ukrainian immigrants due to the war.