Junts reaches deal with Spanish government on unaccompanied minor migrants

The Catalan pro-independence party Junts announced on Tuesday that it had reached an agreement with the Spanish government on the distribution of the unaccompanied migrant children currently residing in the Canary Islands.

According to Junts, an executive order will “establish fair guidelines aimed at both solving the humanitarian situation and being more efficient when it comes to the integration and life opportunities of the minors.”

The guidelines will address distribution in relation to population size, while also considering Catalonia’s effort in recent years in welcoming unaccompanied migrant children.

The Spanish government approved the decree on Tuesday afternoon, which is yet to be validated by Congress.

The agreement not only involves a system for distributing the 4,400 unaccompanied minors currently in the Canary Islands, but the executive's desire is for it to have continuity over time.

Of this group in the Canary Islands, Catalonia will receive the fewest, with 26. Madrid will accommodate the most, with 806.

Spain's Minister for Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, pointed out that Catalonia, the Basque Country, and the Canary Islands have made "a greater effort" than others.

Currently, Catalonia is the main recipient of minors among all regions of Spain per 100,000 inhabitants, with 64 minors being in care in Catalonia, followed by the Basque Country with 62, and the Balearic Islands with 43.  

The state average is 34 per 100,000 inhabitants, and the autonomous communities that take in the fewest unaccompanied minors are Cantabria, Madrid, and Castille-la Mancha, which have 23, 22, and 21 spots, respectively.  

“The distribution will take place within the communities that until now haven’t received [minor migrants] or haven’t made the same effort as Catalonia,” Junts said in a statement. 

The deal will also include “adequate” economic compensation for those autonomous communities, such as Catalonia, that have taken in more accompanied minor children than the state average. 

“This is the only way to create a system that is fair and sustainable,” Junts said.