Fernando Clavijo: « The Government is delaying the transfer of minors intentionally » | Spain

The president of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo (La Laguna, 53 years old), is angry. It has been trying to carry out an agreement for more than a year so that the 5,800 minors who host the islands can be transferred to other territories, but the agreement does not arrive. « There is no precedent in the history in which a territory as abandoned has been left as the Canary Islands are being left, » he says.

Clavijo criticizes the lack of responses from his interlocutors in Madrid during the last weeks, while they continue to come to the islands. Expects the Ministry of Youth to inform you of How would the distribution of children be according to the agreed criteria A month ago. The Canarian leader also hopes that Minister Torres will communicate what the State Advocacy Opinion is to find the best legislative form to address as soon as possible an extraordinary distribution, regardless of the change of the law. On Monday he will meet with the Vice President and Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, to treat the financing of the communities in case these transfers occur. Clavijo waits and waits and, meanwhile, gets angry: “The right is acting in an inappropriate way, but does not govern. If the left of this country is able to maintain that neglect to minors, turn off and let's go. ”

Ask. No It seems that he liked a lot in Canarian coalition The agreement to delegate immigration powers to Catalonia. His spokesman in Congress, Cristina Valido, has criticized the « rush » to negotiate with Junts, while with migrants are « all problems. »

Answer. It generates a certain perplexity that a month after having agreed with the government the criteria of the distribution of minors we still do not have the numbers that would result from applying them, or that we have not known anything for weeks of a report of the State Advocacy that, theoretically, takes three days. It is always me who has the initiative, who calls the ministers, so this absolute silence generates perplexity. The government does not want to distribute the minors, he has not wanted before and does not want now. Things do not go out and I still have 5,800 children and every month you have to pay and their rights are violated every month.

P. Will Canarian coalition support that delegation of competencies to Catalonia?

R. We will see, we have to see the closed text.

P. The Government He has been optimistic after the agreement with Junts Because it is easier to resume the modification of the Foreigner Law and not limit yourself to a specific agreement of transfers.

R. We still do not have the text to negotiate with the groups, which every day that happens is as if we had not started. It is in a dead man and there is a lot. But they are two complementary things. The extraordinary transfer is essential to solve the emergency situation of the Canary Islands. A very graphic example: the mountain is burning and it is as if they were saying 'hey, I have to buy two fire trucks and I will not go turn off the fire until I buy the trucks'. Look, no, the trucks will be bought, there will be credit or not, it will take long to supply it, but in the meantime, the mountain continues to be burned. I am talking about turning off the fire and that must be done with what you have, with a hose, with a cube or with a broom. We agree that we must change the foreigner law because it is not planned for a phenomenon like the one we are living, but we turn off the fire as soon as possible, because then the distribution will come, which will not be easy either. They are people, not four boxes of oranges that I am going to send to Galicia, another six to Madrid and another seven to Andalusia.

We agree that we must change the foreigner law, but we turn off the fire as soon as possible

P. When has it been the last time he has spoken With a minister of the Government of Spain about the transfer of minors from the Canary Islands?

R. On February 27 with Ángel Víctor Torres. I have asked them to organize a meeting with me, with Junts, with the Minister and the Minister of Children, Sira Rego, because when they meet with them, no distribution is proposed. Because to negotiate with the groups you have to submit a proposal. Well, I'm still waiting.

P. Do you think the government is hiding information?

R. Not only is it hiding it, the government is delaying this matter intentionally. Because? We do not know if they do not want to have problems with the communities or that they believe that they wear out the government pact in the Canary Islands. What I know is that he cares very little. I remind you that this same Government of Spain, this same government, this same government, kept thousands of people overcrowded in absolutely indecent conditions And a judge had to go there to report it publicly. And it gives me this will end like this, having to decide a court on this situation.

P. This Monday meets the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, to address the financing of a future cast, what will you ask for?

R. We will check the Canarian agenda. The Government knows perfectly that there are some issues that were not liquidated at the end of the year, such as the reconstruction of La Palma and, of course, the issue of minors, for which we have spent 180 million euros last year. If you really want to have our vote for other issues, they will have to negotiate.

P. Does negotiation with the PP lost?

R. It is clear that I give it for loss. They are in a kind of closeness to Vox in this area, they are in their thesis, they have their strategy and they do not tell me directly, but they will never approve it. But with the PP of the Canary Islands I do not have any kind of complaint because here we have moved away from the noise, the tense and the nonsense of Madrid's policy. We all are clear that this situation, to which the Government of Spain is taking us, is absolutely Dantesque and absolute abandonment.

P. As president of the Canary Islands, his political capital and his national projection are played with this agreement.

R. But I have never thought about projection or political capital. I have seen those children who have lost their father and have seen how they have thrown him overboard, I have seen fear. Perhaps they are (the Government) who are in that tacticism operation, because it makes no sense that it is received in Torrejón de Ardoz with a ristra of ministers to the Afghans or that a fantastic paraphernalia is mounted by the war of Ukraine and they hit chest with the Ukrainian refugees and, however, they are so miserable to leave us lying here with 6,000 minors.

It makes no sense that there are chest blows with Ukrainian refugees and, nevertheless, be so miserable to leave us thrown here with 6,000 minors.

P. Being fair with the comparison, minors are a more complex issue for competitions …

R. Ah, yes? But Ukrainic minors, where are they? Are everyone in Madrid where they arrived? We welcomed them in the Canary Islands.

P. How has the situation of minors deteriorated in these months?

R. The situation is that I have minors that I cannot attend, that they are not schooling, that they are likely to be asylum and are not being treated as they should because the government says that it has no places for them. I have absolutely collapsed services that I am handling with an emergency statement. The situation is chronic.