CEUTA, Spain – One month after the mass entry of more than 80,000 migrants, residents of Ceuta say the situation has gone from bad to worse, with an estimated 10,000 immigrants still wandering the streets, including some 3,000 minors, according to local government and police union figures. Elderly people are carrying pepper spray in their handbags, fathers are accompanying their daughters everywhere, even to mass, shopkeepers are recording fights outside their businesses, nighttime noise prevents sleep, insanitary conditions plague parks and building entrances, and some hospitality businesses have closed permanently, with others putting their homes up for sale to move to the peninsula.
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The owner of a women’s and children’s clothing shop in central Ceuta, described the situation as horrifying, saying she feels surrounded and afraid to go out, and that her business is selling nothing. She said she doesn’t know how she will pay her rent this month, explaining that with the back-to-school season she should be selling 800 euros daily but is barely reaching 30 euros a day. Márquez said the situation has not improved at all and is getting worse, describing it as an odyssey, and that she recorded a video of a fight between migrants outside her shop that went viral, which she made public so people could see her daily reality. She demanded that migrants be returned immediately, expressing fear for her son going to school alone and for her daughter needing her boyfriend to accompany her everywhere.
Rafa García Ibáñez, the leading neighbourhood representative in Loma Colmenar, where the government has set up a temporary reception camp that has proven insufficient, said there are more people on the streets now than ever before, with no additional tents being provided, and that the situation is worse than on the first day. He accused the government of lying about the numbers of migrants expelled and those still in Ceuta, estimating that there are more than 3,000 unaccompanied minors on the streets. García described the heartbreak of seeing children sleeping on the streets and waiting to be fed, stating that while the community is very solidary, having their neighbourhood invaded in this way is another matter entirely.
A resident of Loma Colmenar with her husband and four children, said the neighbourhood is worse now than a month ago, with police chases, insecurity, and rubbish accumulating in building entrances and courtyards. She said her family has not been to the beach once in the past month, her daughters have not been able to play outside, and they have not been able to walk in the Benzú area where she loves to watch the sunset. She called for all migrants to be collected so they can recover normality, stating simply: “Get them off the streets, we can’t live like this.”
Manuel Díaz, treasurer of the Provincial Federation of Neighbourhood Associations of Ceuta, said residents are living with constant fear and intimidation, with women and their daughters finding it impossible to feel safe. He noted that some residents sent their children to the peninsula for safety, that the beaches have been taken over, and that hospitality businesses have seen a dramatic drop in customers, with some considering laying off staff or closing permanently. Díaz called for the government to issue expulsion orders and for long-term infrastructure improvements to prevent future mass entries, questioning why, if they entered over a 15-metre breakwater, a five-kilometre breakwater cannot be built.
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The tension in Ceuta has reached breaking point, with organised groups of residents attempting to dismantle migrant camps by force, forcing police to fire warning shots to disperse them. Residents continue to organise protests, with some demanding shelters and others directly calling for the expulsion of the invaders. All are closely following the evolution of measures taken by the government following the declaration of a unified command for Ceuta’s security. The situation has left the community feeling abandoned, with residents expressing deep distrust of their leaders over the ineffectiveness of measures implemented so far to restore the safety and peaceful coexistence they enjoyed before July 31.
