Ceuta: Amnesty International accuses military members of “ cruel treatment”

O Spain's Ministry of Defense has already said that it will send Amnesty International's report to the Public Prosecutor's Office and to the court responsible for the judicial investigation in Ceuta, as well as asking the military command in the city to open an inquiry.

In a report published today, two months after the illegal entry of 80,000 people in Ceuta, an enclave of Spain in North Africa, Amnesty International denounces “torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment by members of the Spanish Armed Forces who seem to respond to a pattern (...) against migrant people”, especially those who are living in the streets of the city “in a situation of unprotected and abused”.

Amnesty International says that in 65 testimonies of migrants it has collected, there are 22 “directions ascribe to military personnel patrolling the city assaults, harassment, humiliations and the theft of money and confiscation or destruction of mobile phones,” including minors and women.

“In some cases, due to its severity”, the military’s behavior and aggression “can constitute torture, a crime of international law”, reads in a statement released today by the NGO, which also collected videos and photographs to document the alleged aggressions of the military.

“ Some military have come to act at night and hooded against migrants, to avoid being recognized ", highlights Amnesty International.

In parallel, the organisation warns of “the specific risks” to which hundreds of “girls, boys and women” are exposed, who are living on the streets of Ceuta, condemning the lack of humanitarian response and protection by the authorities after two months.

“The dimension of the problem is reflected in the institutional numbers,” says Amnesty International, which highlights the cases of sexual violence against migrants reported to the authorities in Ceuta in the last two months: 39 victims, 14 of whom were minors.

Amnesty International is also said to be “aware of the complicated situation in Ceuta” and of the impacts on the population living in the city, to whom it sends “a message of solidarity and support”.

As for the military and security forces, the NGO says that “it also recognizes the difficulty” of the work they have “to cope with a complex situation”, stressing that 30 migrants have been arrested so far for assaulting military personnel.

“ But remembers that the members of the state security forces are obliged to face these situations respecting the national and international legislation and the human rights of all people ", stresses.

The organization said that it wrote to the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, and to the president of the autonomous city government, Juan Vivas, to tell them of the conclusions of this report and “ask them for an urgent plan to provide adequate humanitarian aid and a dignified welcome” to migrants, “with special attention to women, girls and boys and people at risk”.

In the same document, Amnesty International also considers that “hate is spreading” in Ceuta because of misinformation and a “retoric that dehumanizes” migrants on social networks and that “it has settled in the public debate”.

In addition to migrants, journalists and NGOs are also being targeted in Ceuta “of stigmatization, attacks and harassment, both by authorities and individuals,” Amnesty International adds.