Irregular immigration in the Canary Islands is an issue that is overwhelming both the State Government and the autonomous Executive and the institutions that make up the Canarian administration. Migration is something that has happened in all times of human society and, throughout history, we can study the different migratory flows. People who use irregular immigration do so to seek an opportunity; not resigning themselves and fighting to achieve a better life is something inherent in the human condition.
A few weeks ago I was following up on the numbers of immigrants who have arrived in the Canary Islands by sea from January 1 to September 30, 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. The data is devastating: in 2019, 978 people arrived on our coasts in 69 boats; in 2020, 6,081 people have arrived in 225 boats (not counting the last boats that arrived last week).
Behind irregular immigration lies desperation, the hope of a better life and the misery of the human race that takes advantage of the need to make economic profit, which is what the mafias do with the transfer of people, being aware that many may perish at sea.
Once again, the Government of the Canary Islands and the Cabildo of Lanzarote do not take a strong position against the State Government. On the contrary, they show an affable attitude without convincing demands and, in the meantime, we suffer the inaction of not defending ourselves before the central Government, not for a matter of political sense but for a partisan issue.
This happens to the state-level parties that maintain a homogeneous political line without understanding the very heterogeneity of the Spanish State. The Canary Islands need help, they cannot face irregular immigration unilaterally, but as long as we continue to have a submissive attitude towards the State Government, which does not have a marked roadmap on how to face this situation in the Archipelago.
After canceling his visit due to his busy schedule (note the irony), the socialist Minister of Migration, José Luis Escrivá, made his appearance last week in the islands and it is no secret to anyone that the meeting gave rise to many headlines, not only because of the number of boats that arrived but also because of the clash with the president of the Cabildo of Fuerteventura, also from the PSOE.
Here, in Lanzarote, we are still waiting, we wonder why, being one of the islands where more boats arrive, the minister did not include us in his visit to the Canary Islands, as he did with Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura. Even more so when at the same time as his tour of the Canary Islands, five boats arrived on our island in a single day. Lamentable!
I am still surprised by the obedient and servile attitude of the president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Mª Dolores Corujo, also from the PSOE. I have said it repeatedly, she does not raise her voice and, not even in such a critical moment with the arrival of five boats and with the minister in the Canary Islands has she reacted to defend us.
So it is clear that we cannot expect more from her than what she is doing, which is to relocate irregular immigrants in warehouses and hotel establishments, as she can and without raising her voice, when it is something that does not concern or is the responsibility of the Cabildo of Lanzarote and, much less so when it is done to cover the neglect and incompetence of the State Government.
In addition, if we read between the lines, what is evident is that the PSOE of Lanzarote has little weight in the Government of the Canary Islands because with the rise in the arrival of boats, we have not been taken into account when organizing the minister's visit. Therefore, Lanzarote is doubly forgotten: by the Government of the Canary Islands and the Government of the State.
Society is experiencing very complicated moments, the situation of Covid-19 together with the economic difficulty is a complex context for everyone. What we need right now are institutions with strong leaders that generate confidence, that tell us what is the plan to follow that must pass, obviously, among other issues, by demanding the transfer of immigrants from the Canary Islands to the Peninsula, the operation of the Integrated System of External Surveillance (SIVE); the reinforcement of FRONTEX, the European Agency for Border and Coast Guard and the use of diplomatic channels through the various institutions to implement development policies in the countries of origin.