Only 10 per cent of illegal immigrants were deported in 2020

DEPORTATIONS of illegal immigrants in 2020 accounted for less than 10 per cent of the arrivals.

Between January 1 and December 3, 2020, 37,213 immigrants entered Spain illegally.
Meanwhile, according to the Interior Ministry, 3,190 were deported, just 8.5 per cent.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, in charge of executing deportations, would not reveal the identity of those deported or which country they have been sent back to.
By the end of the year, 41,861 people had illegally entered Spain and fewer than 3,500 people were deported, as the coronavirus pandemic, with its border controls, has had a decisive impact on the figures, as for several months, it has been impossible to deport people.
The Interior Ministry will not reveal details about the deportations as this could harm their position and make Spain appear weak to other countries.
According to national Spanish daily ABC since November deportations have been resumed to Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and Senegal. Morocco and Mauritania are reportedly the only countries which routinely accept returned citizens.
At the moment, the newspaper reports, only 100 people are deported per week, but it is a long process which requires identification, files, acceptance from the country or origin and organisation of return trips.
Algeria, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Morocco, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal all have agreements in place for repatriation of illegal immigrants according to the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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