Controversy as Tossa de Mar expected to receive 200 migrants from Canary Islands
Mayor says number of asylum seekers in seaside town of 6,200 inhabitants is "excessive"
Controversy has arisen after it was learned that the seaside town of Tossa de Mar, north of Catalonia and in the Costa Brava, will receive 200 migrants from the Canary Islands on Monday.
The municipality has around 6,200 inhabitants, and the arrival of the asylum seekers has caused some outrage on social media.
They are all 18 years old or over. As radio station SER Catalunya first reported and later confirmed by the Catalan News Agency (ACN), they will stay at a hotel in the municipality.
The mayor of Tossa de Mar says the number of asylum seekers is "excessive" and has also criticized the decision as it coincides with "the peak of the tourism season."
"This same decision in October would not have caused the problems that will cause now," Martí Pujals, mayor of Tossa de Mar, told ACN.
Pujals remembered that Blanes, a nearby municipality, received around 200 asylum seekers last year, with "eight times more inhabitants than Tossa."
"If they brought 200 asylum seekers to Blanes, they should bring around 40 to Tossa to have some proportionality," he added.
One of the main complaints has also been the timing of the arrival. The Spanish government delegate in Catalonia, Carlos Prieto, called and told local authorities about the situation.
Officials expect asylum seekers to stay in Tossa de Mar for around one month while they complete the paperwork. Authorities will need to study the situation each individual faces and will decide if they are sent to families in other European countries, if they will be based in Spain, and what kind of asylum they receive.
'Depersonalization'
The arrival of asylum seekers at Tossa de Mar from rescues in the Spanish Canary Islands has prompted a division of opinions on social media and the streets of the municipality.
Some residents say asylum seekers "have their right to live as everyone else," Lola said.
However, Conxita believes it is an "anomaly," as the extra cost should not be paid by the Spanish government, and she believes the money should be used for other needs.
The mayor has already said that the arrival of these migrants will not result in extra expenses for the city council.
Online some users say the situation has already happened in other Costa Brava municipalities in the past, such as Sant Feliu de Guíxols, Lloret de Mar, or Palamós. Towns that have already "suffered from depersonalization and assimilation," Marçal, an X user, wrote.
Less opinionated is Guillem Pursals, who shares the same point of view as the town's mayor, as "it does not make any sense to see so many people, being migrants or not, staying in that small place," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Meanwhile, Andres García, another X user, said that they "are using Tossa de Mar resources so an entity can handle the humanitarian aid for migrants and, once again, a pro-independence Junts mayor brings in a far-right speech," he wrote.
"We have a racism problem," he added.
Political opposition
Catalan pro-independence party Junts accused the Spanish government of hiding the distribution criteria for migrants in Spain.
The party has sent a list of questions to the executive demanding an explanation of the protocols used and to detail which towns across the country have been designated to welcome migrants, month by month, since the beginning of the legislature.
According to Junts, Catalonia "is and has been in solidarity," but the Spanish government "abuses this solidarity" without providing "the tools and resources necessary to welcome and care for migrants."
The party also pointed out that "Catalonia was the only territory that did not vote in favor of this territorial distribution. They add that "coexistence in Catalonia cannot continue to be oversaturated," because "without the necessary resources the system does not work."
Meanwhile, the far-right Vox party has called for the "immediate" deportation of the 200 migrants.
In a statement, Vox explained that they will demand that the Spanish government's representative in Catalonia and the mayor of the town appear in the Catalan parliament to address the situation.
The party says that the arrival of the asylum seekers will have a "serious impact" on the population of 6,000 inhabitants.