The citizen protests that have erupted in recent days in Ceuta have slowed down in the last few hours for fear that their marches and demands might be linked to violent acts or actions by ultra groups. The people of Ceuta have been taking to the streets for three days to demand the immediate expulsion of the thousands of immigrants who live in poor conditions in the city since the large influx on July 30 and 31, which has turned their lives upside down, making them feel unsafe and preventing them from leading a normal life, as they have settled in numerous public spaces in this city of 19 kilometers and 84,000 inhabitants, such as playgrounds or recreational areas, where they live, nap, or clean themselves.
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That fear of being used by people with radical ideas has led to the protests being postponed until September 2, the day of Ceuta’s autonomy. Then they will take to the streets again to demand their city back in a large march called by the Provincial Federation of Neighborhood Associations (FPAV) and the Ceuta 21st Century Forum.
The suspension of the protests has been adopted as a preventive measure, sources in contact with the organizers indicate. However, the Police have not detected a “significant presence” of these groups, although they continue to monitor all movements in the city, police sources add. A few days after the large influx, some incidents related to members of Desokupa, a firm dedicated to extrajudicial evictions, or the ultra agitator Vito Quiles were detected, but they were removed from the autonomous city, the consulted sources explain. The practice yielded good results, but similar situations cannot be ruled out from happening again.
The fact that the citizen marches have been suspended does not prevent some protest actions from occurring. The mobilizations arose spontaneously among the people of Ceuta and have been organized through WhatsApp groups, divided by city zones. These groups have no hierarchical structure, and some voices encouraged continuing to take to the streets this very Saturday. Police officers are on alert for the possibility of such events.
During Friday afternoon’s protest, the demonstrators worked hard to be perceived as a peaceful and united group, shouting for solutions to be given to the city. The people of Ceuta made the route from the Ceuta Government Delegation to Playa Benítez, and once there, they could not approach the migrants who watched them from a breakwater, while shouting for their immediate expulsion. “No settlement was razed yesterday, three umbrellas were burned,” said one of the demonstrators, about the fire in the tents in this same area. “We are outraged,” he added. “They should be put at the border. Don’t let them tell us on TV that we are vandalizing; the vandalism is committed by them, who invaded stores and invaded us,” added another demonstrator.
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On Wednesday night, the Police prevented hundreds of Ceutans from confronting the migrants who have settled on El Trampolín beach, where dozens of tents have been set up again after the city cleaned the area, and the distribution of food by the Red Cross was interrupted for security reasons.
During Saturday, the city is also receiving the arrival of numerous boats that have departed from different points in Andalusia in an initiative called The Armada of Solidarity. The event, of a civic nature, aims to send a message of support and solidarity to the people of Ceuta. “They are still suffering; the Government should take measures to expel (the migrants) as urgently as possible,” demands Pedro Rodríguez, a Marbella promoter and one of the organizers, along with businessman and former politician Marcos de Quinto, consultant Amalio de Marichalar, and physicist Francisco Mier del Castillo, former director of the Santa María de Garoña Nuclear Power Plant. The initiative was conceived about three weeks ago but was scheduled for this Saturday because a windless day was forecast. “There are also people who have taken the ferry to show their support for the city,” Rodríguez added in the morning as he crossed the Strait toward the city.
The boats arriving during the day will be able to dock at Marina de Ceuta, the main marina of the autonomous city, and at night they will participate in a dinner with local authorities. On Sunday, they plan another nautical tour alongside boats from Ceuta, all decorated with flags of Spain and the city. “It could be an event and an image that we can spread to the fullest to draw attention to the life and suffering of Ceuta,” Rodríguez emphasizes.
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