The arrival of unaccompanied migrant minors to Catalonia in 2018 reached a record number of 3,709 people compared to 1,438 the previous year, the majority of Moroccan nationality, which prompted the Casal dels Infants to open the Rassif project in the Maghreb country. aimed at protecting the rights of children on their route to the peninsula. “It is necessary to work with a transnational vision to provide a collective response, with other actors specialized in childhood and with the administration. Between March and November we have attended to 307 new cases, of which 38 have reconnected with their families,” explains Claire Trichot, director of the Casal dels Infants in Morocco, during her recent visit to Barcelona.
Just because they regain their bond with their parents does not mean that they return home permanently. Their objective is to undertake a journey or cross the strait as best they can to set foot in Europe. Between January and last November 30, the DGAIA has registered the arrival in Catalonia of 2,013 migrant minors, of which 826 Moroccans and 851 from sub-Saharan countries.
The Rassif project is developed in Tangier, Casablanca and Nador, cities where children who wait for an opportunity to continue on their way to Spain live rough. It is estimated that more than 25,000 remain on the streets, a number that continues to grow. “During the migratory process they deteriorate, they are victims of violence and the majority fall into addictions, mainly to glue and rivotril (psychotropic),” says Trichot.
Of the aforementioned 307 minors identified, 25 are girls and 17 come from different African countries. Trichot says that it is important that the first contact is made when they have been on the street for a short time to try to get them to return home as soon as possible and not enter a destructive cycle. A total of 59 were referred to territorial child protection devices and 38 were reconnected with their family. They are all provided with health care, the issue of addictions is worked on, they are monitored and solutions are sought through other local organizations. Some offer Vocational Training, other activities such as caring for animals to keep them off the streets and different pedagogical alternatives.
“The majority are between 14 and 15 years old, although we have also seen them as young as eight or nine. They come from all over the world, from Morocco itself and sub-Saharan Africa. Since 2019, we have identified more than 700. What we want is to prevent the risks related to migration as much as possible and shed light so that the authorities can protect them, although in Morocco it is very complicated because there are few resources for children," explains Tricot.
When life on the street becomes chronic they can fall into crime, in addition to being abused. In 2018, 13,203 cases of physical violence against minors were reported and, in 2019, 2,423 of a sexual nature, although the number of victims is suspected to be much higher.
The Pompeu Fabra University has become involved in this initiative with the upcoming launch of a space to train social workers and educators with the participation of the Moroccan Social Action Institute.
