Balearic Government challenges two migrant child transfers

The Balearic Government is challenging orders to move two unaccompanied migrant children from the Canary Islands and Melilla to the Balearic Islands. Its governing council approved legal action on Friday in Palma, Mallorca. The orders were issued on 15 July and 20 August by the Government delegations in the Canary Islands and Melilla respectively.

The regional government says neither decision puts the children’s best interests first or properly explains why the Balearic Islands were chosen. It also says a return through family reunification was not considered before the transfers were ordered.

In one case, the government says the family described as protective, with whom the child had been living, can be traced and has a positive emotional bond with the child. It did not say which of the two transfer orders this concerns.

The government also argues that the decisions appear to have been generated automatically by a computer application, without a clear explanation of why the islands were a suitable destination. It says each transfer must take account of the individual child’s circumstances.

It warns that the distance and the Balearic Islands’ bilingualism could make it harder to maintain family ties and could cut children off from their social and cultural surroundings. The government also says specialist centres for unaccompanied migrant minors on the islands are operating far beyond capacity, and places should be prioritised for children without a family able to care for them.

Topics: Migration · Politics · Palma

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com