Image of the three men located at the helm of the oil tanker 'Alithini II' last Monday in Las Palmas. EFE / Maritime Salvage
The three sub-Saharan Africans who arrived last Monday on the rudder blade of an oil tanker have requested asylum from the Spanish authorities, as confirmed today by sources from the Government Delegation.
For this reason, the Executive has granted permission to the oil tanker
Alithini II,
on which they traveled, to leave the port and continue its route without them.
One of the migrants is still admitted to the Doctor Negrín University Hospital in the capital of Gran Canaria, out of danger, due to the dehydration he suffered during the 11-day journey.
The latter made the decision after receiving a visit from a member of the migration secretariat of the Diocese of the Canary Islands, who has offered him the help of the Church and the Caminando Fronteras collective, according to a source directly involved in the visit.
The other two migrants have requested asylum on board the ship after a visit by agents of the National Police to inquire about their situation.
The three immigrants, between the ages of 23 and 27, traveled hidden in a hole at the wheel of the tanker, which took 11 days to cover the distance between Lagos, the Nigerian capital, and the island.
Since then, sources from the Canarian associations point out, the Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid (CEAR), the Church, the African community in the Canary Islands or the NGO Caminando Fronteras had mobilized to try to prevent them from being expelled.
The oil tanker 'Alithini II' docked on Tuesday, November 29 in the port of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Elvira Urquijo A. (EFE)
The regulations to which stowaways are subjected are different from those applied to irregular immigrants who arrive by boat.
After the rescue, if necessary, and medical attention, the occupants are the responsibility of the ship's captain and he must notify each port to which he is heading that he is traveling with stowaways on board.
Legal assistance to immigrants, in any case, continues to be a fundamental right that can change the fate of the newcomer.
The return order can be appealed and revoked, given that the migrant may suffer persecution in his country and request asylum, may have relatives in Spain, may be a victim of trafficking or suffer from a disease that prevents his deportation, circumstances that a lawyer can identify. in a personal interview.
The NGO Caminando Fronteras had demanded this Wednesday that the Government stop the return, given that, in its opinion, "the fact of undergoing such a risky journey should be considered as an indication to individually analyze the personal circumstances of the three migrants ”.
In a letter, he asked the Government Sub-delegation in Las Palmas to refer these three people to the "humanitarian care for migrants" programs so that they can be received in one of the centers that the General Directorate for Humanitarian Care and Social Inclusion of Immigration manages and they can thus receive the necessary assistance, in order to recover mentally and psychologically after "such a dangerous journey".
Last Monday, Salvamento Marítimo rescued in the Puerto de La Luz in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria the three men who had achieved the feat of surviving the voyage outdoors in a small space located in the upper part of the rudder blade , under the stern, out in the open and at the mercy of any blow of the sea, barely half a meter from the sea.
The stowaways took turns sleeping, so that while two rested, the third watched to avoid falling into the water from the tiny space, according to what they reported upon their arrival and the regional head of the Red Cross immediate response team to immigrants, Jose Antonio Rodriguez.
During the trip, however, the young people ran out of water and food, which led to their admission to hospitals upon arrival.
But the ship was empty and that kept the water a little further away.
Maritime Rescue sources have explained that to date there have been six other cases and a total of 19 people in this port since 2018, with arrivals in this same place on the ship.
