EU-Commission urged to collect evidence of human rights violations at Spanish immigration detention centers

Brussels. Catalan MEPs Jordi Solé and Josep-Maria Terricabras urge in a letter to the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, Dimitris Avramopolous, that he launch an investigation into the situation at Spanish CEIs, because “the violation of human rights and human dignity cannot be permitted by any member states”. The MEPs also explain in the letter that highly regarded NGOs such as Amnesty International, Migra Stadium foundation, SOS Racism, CEAR, and Karibu “have repeatedly denounced that the Spanish detention centers are effectively jails for foreigners where human dignity is not respected”. Solé and Terricabras decided to take this action after Avramopoulos answered them in parliamentary session that the Commission has no evidence of this situation but that it would take the necessary procedural steps if the claims were substantiated.

The MEPs from the Catalan Republican Left party had denounced the situation in the Spanish immigrant detention centers before the EC through a parliamentary question last February. Even though the Commission promised “to take the necessary measures” in the event that the claims could be corroborated, Commissioner Avramopoulos finally answered that there were no evidence that could confirm the accusations. Therefore, as the MEPs explained in writing, they felt obliged to present further evidence regarding these serious allegations, and offered to provide any assistance that the Commission may require "in collecting its own evidence of these problems”.

The two MEPs were referring specifically to the complaints of three very prestigious NGOs which  specialize in this field and have denounced the "violation of the human rights and the human dignity in the detention centers for years".