The non-governmental organization international Amnesty described yesterday Tuesday (13/12) the deaths of dozens immigrants and refugees who tried to cross at the end of June to European territory, in the Spanish enclave Melia, “mass slaughter” and blamed its governments Spain and his Morocco how they try to hide the truth.
“We are here to talk about a mass slaughter, about enforced disappearances, about torture, about discrimination, about racism, about the violation of the principle of non-refoulement. All this on European soil”summarized the General Secretary of Amnesty, h Anies Kalamarpresenting the organization’s report on the tragedy in Madrid.
It’s about “violations of international law”he continued, accusing the Spanish and Moroccan authorities of how have been made to “cover up” the “murders”, to “conceal” the truth, almost six months after the events.
According to the report of the NGO, which collected testimonies of migrants and refugees who were present on June 24 at the Moroccan border with Melilla, analyzed videos and satellite images, “the methods used by the Moroccan and Spanish authorities contributed to the deaths of at least 37 people”.
The official count of the Moroccan authorities spoke of 23 dead. Furthermore, Amnesty underlined that 77 migrants still remain “missing”, even today.
“Certain actions of Spanish and Moroccan police officers, such as beating immobilized, downed, unconscious people, refusing to provide emergency medical treatment to the injured, repeatedly using tear gas against people in places from which they could not escape, may constitute violation of the right not to be subjected to torture and other forms of ill-treatmentAmnesty complains.
In a press release issued by Spain’s interior ministry has “categorically rejected” the “unproven accusations” of torture, which it called “absolutely false”.
On June 24, nearly 2,000 irregular migrants and refugees, mostly Sudanese nationalsan impoverished country undermined by conflict and political crisis, tried to cross into the Spanish enclave of Melilla, on the northern coast of Morocco.
It is estimated that the death toll of this episode is the heaviest ever recorded in the attempts of immigrants and refugees to enter this enclave, as well as in Ceuta, another Spanish enclave. In these two regions are the EU’s only external borders on the African continent.
The tragedy sparked an international outcry, with the UN condemning the use of “excessive force” by the Moroccan and Spanish authorities.
Like Amnesty, independent experts investigating on behalf of the UN Human Rights Council reported in late October at least 37 dead, denouncing a complete lack of accountability in both Spain and Morocco.
Two investigations that saw the light of day in November, the first by the BBC, the second by the European consortium Lighthouse Reports, with the participation of the Spanish newspaper El País and the French Le Monde, spoke of “barbaric” practices by Moroccan forces, while raising many questions about how Spanish forces acted.
They also claimed at least one migrant death on Spanish soil — something the Spanish Interior Ministry, at the heart of the case, has repeatedly denied.
In a letter last Friday to NGOs, obtained by AFP, Spain’s independent human rights watchdog called the Interior Ministry’s explanations “inadequate” at this stage.
The Moroccan government after the tragedy blamed the migrants themselves for it, claiming that they used “extreme violence” against the security forces. According to the authorities, they took at least one police officer “hostage”.
Rabat has not yet reacted to the report released yesterday by Amnesty.
Source: News Beast
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