Some twenty social organizations specialized in migration have filed a complaint with the European Commission this Thursday in which they denounce the “collapse” of the appointment system to request international protection or asylum in Spain.
The state coordinator of the legal service of the Spanish Refugee Assistance Commission (CEAR), Elena Muñoz, has denounced the “deficiencies” of this service which, according to the European directive on this matter, should receive the applicant for protection within a period of between 3 and 6 days; but that in Spain there is an average waiting time, “for those who can access an appointment” of around six months.
This implies, as warned by the head of the legal area of the Jesuit Migrant Service (SJM), Diego Fernández Maldonado, that potential asylum seekers end up living in the country without a receipt that identifies them as such and, therefore, without power access the rights that this entails, such as access to the asylum system in the country.
The absence of this accreditation, as indicated by Fernández Maldonado, also leaves migrants in a precarious situation when the time of stay in the country is over.. “They live with the fear and anguish of not knowing what can happen in their circumstances,” he pointed out..
Reporting the issue since 2018
In some cases, asylum seekers end up living on the street, warned the legal officer of the NGO Andalucía Acoge, Elvira Pérez.. The expert has pointed out that this situation has been reported since 2018 and worsened with the imposition of the online appointment with the pandemic. In fact, as Pérez has indicated, in recent years complaints have been filed with the Ombudsman for this situation and recourse has also been made to the judicial sphere..
Pérez has also explained that three months ago “attempted to solve the problem” by implementing telephone appointments or other procedures, depending on the province, but the current problem is that these telephones are not even picked up. So the situation remains the same.
The NGOs hope that, after this complaint before the European Commission, “the infraction” that Spain is committing will be recognized, according to Muñoz.. And it is that, from the NGOs they remember that the country has not transposed the European directives that establish the legal obligations in this matter.
According to the NGOs, the right to request asylum and the application of the principle of non-refoulement, which is included in article 18 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, is being violated; as well as article 41 of this same text, on the right to good administration. The entities denounce that article 6 of the European directive on common procedures for the granting or withdrawal of international protection, which stipulates a maximum period of three business days to register the application from the formulation made by the applicant, is not complied with either..
More human and financial resources
The entities are also demanding more human and economic resources, as Fernández Maldonado has pointed out, who has recalled that, as demonstrated with the Ukrainian refugees in Spain, “when there is political will” this procedure can be done quickly.
Asked about the number of people who could be in this 'limbo' situation without being able to request protection, Muñoz explained that they cannot be quantified. The lawyer explained that precisely this lack of data prevents the necessary material and economic means from being implemented to cover the real needs of these people..
The NGOs that have promoted the presentation of the complaint to the European Commission, in addition to CEAR, SJM and Andalucía Acoge, are the Atalaya Intercultural Association, the Claver Association, the Loiola Etxea Association, the Padre Lasa Center, CESAL, the Neighborhood Coordinator, Creando Huellas, Diaconia , Ellacuría Foundation, Migra Studium Foundation, Red Íncola Foundation, San Juan del Castillo Foundation-Centro Pueblos Unidos, La Merced Migraciones, MPDL, Progestión, Provivienda, Red Acoge, SJM Almería, SJM Valencia and Sercade.