4 January 2016

Brooke Whittemore

On Tuesday, January 4th the story was released that a woman was caught smuggling a teenage African migrant in her suitcase into Spanish territory. Authorities stopped the woman last week at a border crossing into one of the two Spanish territories in North Africa called Ceuta. The migrant inside of the suitcase was a 19 year old from Gabon. The man was immediately offered medical attention due to lack of oxygen inside the compact travel bag. Border control became suspicious of the woman when they noticed she was carrying her suitcase on top of a trolley. The Spanish officials added that she was showing an “evasive attitude while going through the established controls and nervousness” while speaking to agents. Ceuta, along with Melilla to the east, are Europe’s only land borders in Africa. Both of these enclaves have long been popular transit points for hundreds of sub- Saharan African migrants trying to cross the sea at the narrow point of south Spain. This woman’s plan was creative yet very dangerous. It is one of many different approaches to illegal smuggling that the Spanish Civil Guard faced in the past week on the border of Ceuta. Two migrants, a man and a woman from Guinea were rescued on Monday after authorities discovered them hidden into the dashboard and the backseat of a car according to the Civil Guard. The migrants were 20 and 24 years old. The Moroccan man driving a Volkswagen Golf, was arrested. The car had been stolen in Barcelona in 2015 and had fake Moroccan plates and registration documents. On New Year’s Day, at least 800 African migrants were prevented from entering Spanish territory. A handful of migrants scaled the six meter high barbed wire fence, but were eventually helped down by cranes. Several Moroccan security forces were injured in the incident as well as 5 Spanish police officers. Thousands of sub- Saharan African migrants living illegally in Morocco try to get to Europe each year by sea, often in small craft unfit for open waters. Hundreds also risk their lives by climbing the 20- feet- tall barbed wire fence surrounding Ceuta and Melilla. There are many organizations working together to help refugees all across the country. An organization near us is Worcester Refugee Assistance Project (WRAP). Worcester began inviting refugees from Burma in 2008. Over 1,500 refugees from Burma have resettled to Massachusetts and Worcester is home to nearly 200. These people mainly represent the Karen and Karenni ethnicities, but there are also Chin, Kachin, Burman, Shan, Muslim and Rohingya people. Most of the people who are resettled to Worcester escaped the civil wars in their home states in Burma, but were farmers prior to encampment in Thailand or urban settings in Malaysia and so have been forbidden by the hosting government to have jobs, attend public schools, or own businesses. In desperate need of a better life for themselves and children, these people moved to Worcester. The biggest barrier they face is language and culture shock in addition to searching for jobs before their government assistance runs out.