Now they want to pull the drawbridge up and leave Asia and Africa on the other side of the moat
Ain't that the truth.
iht.com
Interior Ministry plans to reinforce Melilla border
Measures follow two recent assaults on fences staged by 1,000 immigrants
El Pais Spain | TOMÁS BÁRBULO
Madrid
The Interior Ministry will respond to the increasing number of Africans trying to scale the barriers separating Morocco from the Spanish enclave of Melilla with a range of measures, including more motion sensors and border patrols, the secretary of state for security, Antonio Camacho, told Congress on Wednesday.
While Camacho was called to parliament to explain the four recent deaths of immigrants attempting to climb the border fences, most of the session dealt with the two massive assaults that took place on Tuesday - one early in the morning and the other at night, each consisting of about 500 people.
As a result, Camacho said, motion sensors will be placed along the entire border, in addition to studying the possibility of placing other sensors that would warn police if a person approached the fences. Also, the ministry will deploy 716 border patrol officers, an increase of 40.
This year, Melilla has resisted 21 mass attempts to cross the border into Spain, a drastic surge compared to last year, when there were only seven, and in 2002 when there were only three.
In the past two months, four immigrants have been found dead after raids on the fences. According to Camacho, the government's investigation found no evidence that the Spanish police forces caused the deaths. Nevertheless, the Spanish branch of Doctors Without Borders filed a report earlier this month with Spain's Ombudsman that criticized the official report. The group had dispatched doctors to the scene, where they described many of the injured as suffering from wounds caused by rubber bullets, including one of the dead immigrants.
During the congressional session yesterday, several representatives cited the group, which also said that Moroccan police agents are responsible for 44 percent of the immigrants' injuries.
elpais.es
© 2005 El Pais |
