For the past few days, three families have been spending the night outdoors at the entrance to the Samour Social Dario Pérez Madera Center at 10 San Francisco Street. The space, located in Madrid’s bustling La Latina tourist area, left her feeling helpless all day for several days, and her symptoms worsened at night.
The family hails from Peru, Syria and Georgia, and includes several minors. In some cases, this includes infants and children under the age of two. One of them also has an intellectual disability. The three met at the location on the night of last Wednesday, November 12, but sources for this paper say two of them returned on Thursday night and remain in the area. These people only had access to city spaces to use the toilets.
Sources from Samur Social told Somos Madrid that in view of this situation, they have received only one direct order from the city council in this regard, which is to receive a report from social services so that the city of Madrid can consider custody of the minor. Specifically, the order says, “to determine whether appropriate intervention by the Commission on the Protection of Children and Youth is appropriate.” This newspaper consulted the field of families, equality and social welfare to inquire about their position on the family’s situation and the local government’s response, but so far we have not received a response.
An official from Samour Social explains how the family was able to reach this situation: “They are asylum seekers who have nowhere to go because it is a long process.If you want to request protection from an international organization, you have to submit an application.” But that process takes months. At the same time, during the process, the council considers you an asylum seeker and does not consider you an emergency. That’s why we need to shorten the deadline and make sure we have space. If not, we need to elevate our resources. ”
He cites the case of the Syrian family as a paradigm of the system’s anomalous nature. “They arrive in Spain, apply for asylum and are accommodated for international protection. They then go to Germany, where they are denied asylum, return to Spain, where they are denied again. The Red Cross does not give them asylum, because they have abandoned the network.” The employee explains that the Las Caracolas temporary emergency center, which focuses on international protection, “only has an emergency location if it is in the right place, but at the moment there is no alternative.” He also stressed that “every day there are families left stranded on the streets in search of accommodation.” He added: “The vast majority are leaving, but if everyone who remains stayed every day, the problem would become more obvious, but the problem is already there and it’s getting worse.”
Opponents accuse Almeida of ‘lack of humanity’
Mas Madrid city councilor Cuca Sánchez accused José Luis Martínez-Almeida’s city council of a “lack of humanity”, saying: “It is absolutely unacceptable that in a rich city like Madrid, in mid-November, when it is cold and rainy, three families with minors are sleeping on the street at the entrance to Samur Social.”
“Almeida’s government, despite Madrid’s abundance of resources, allowed infants and minors, including those with intellectual disabilities, to get wet and cold last night. We are talking about families who have fled the country from extreme conditions. The city council has left them completely helpless, without the most basic thing: a roof to take shelter in,” Sánchez warned.
“The Almeida City Council always washes its hands and instead of resolving this emergency, it is asking the community to consider the custody of minors. In other words, the mayor’s solution is to separate minors from their parents before providing accommodation to families,” the mayor charged. “How is it possible that boys and girls are sleeping outside in the cold and rain when we have the equipment and resources that need to be activated for these conditions?” he asks.
For him, this is a “grave violation of the rights of the child and the obligations of the city council” and he therefore calls for “immediate action by the mayor of Madrid”. “These families now need adequate accommodation, access to social services and the support that people in international protection deserve. We cannot turn a blind eye while there are minors sleeping on the streets. It is urgent, it is necessary and it is their responsibility,” he says.
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