The situation at Madrid's main airport is worsening as more asylum seekers arrive. Little has been done to improve conditions, despite calls from the UN and refugee groups.
The Spanish Commission for Refugees, known by the abbreviation CEAR, has described the situation at the Barajas airport in the Spanish capital as "unsustainable," while a journalist described how a woman slept on the floor with her two children for 16 days without a toothbrush and with only two pads when she got her period.
Bed bugs and cockroaches
The problem at Barajas has been getting worse since the middle of last year, when the number of people requesting international protection at the airport started to rise. By December, according to CEAR spokesperson Elena Muñoz, some people were having to share mattresses on the floor among bed bugs and cockroaches.
The number of people stuck at the airport under these conditions had reached 400 last week, Reuters reported on Monday (January 29). "More and more arrive every day," the news agency quoted Muñoz as saying.
Contacted by InfoMigrants, CEAR said it was unable to provide a precise number as of this week.
A Spanish interior ministry spokesperson told Reuters that the number of migrants "fluctuates" with flight arrivals, and would not estimate how many people are currently staying at the airport.
There are three rooms equipped with bathrooms set aside for migrants seeking asylum, with a fourth opening on Tuesday (January 30), the ministry said.
The UNHCR urged the government to take urgent measures last November, following a visit by two UN officials to the airport on November 6, the Spanish newspaper El Diario reported. In a letter, the UN agency had requested that authorities "replace broken beds and mattresses, ensure the availability of hot water in the bathrooms, review and updat(e) the facilities and ensure the general maintenance of basic services," reported El Diario, adding that none of the requests has been satisfied to date.
Surveillance, transit visas
Spanish authorities say surveillance has been increased and more police, border officers and cleaning staff have been deployed to the airport.
The foreign ministry has also announced the introduction of a requirement for nationals of some countries, such as Kenya and Senegal, to have transit visas in order to stop over at Madrid airport.
CEAR told Reuters that most of the migrants are from African countries such as Senegal, Mali, Equatorial Guinea and Morocco, but some are also from Colombia and Venezuela.
Police unions have reportedly complained of Senegalese passport holders, who were on their way to Brazil, requesting asylum while on a layover in Madrid.
The overcrowding and other problems at the airport are due to the fact that those arriving without a visa or the necessary documents to enter Spain have to wait for their entry to be granted or refused, which takes 10-20 days, according to CEAR. A shortage of interpreters is slowing the process down even further.
'We cannot take care of these people as they deserve'
After raising concerns about the situation, the Red Cross stopped providing services at the airport. One of these now seemingly unavailable services was a single phone call per asylum applicant upon arrival, El Diario reported.
"There comes a time when there is no point in continuing to do a job if we cannot take care of these people as they deserve," Jose Sanchez of the Red Cross told Onda Cero radio.
"All these people are fleeing from very difficult situations."
In 2023 a record number of people applied for international protection in Spain. Most made irregular and dangerous journeys by sea to reach Spanish territory because of the lack of authorized ways to enter the country without a visa.
On Monday, Spain’s interior ministry reached an agreement with the EU border agency, Frontex, to continue ‘numerous operations’ at Spain’s external borders in the western Mediterranean and the Canary Islands.
The operations are aimed at securing the European Union borders, targeting migrant smugglers and rescuing migrants at risk, according to the EU.