The President of Canarias, Fernando Clavijo, escalated his political rhetoric on Tuesday against the new European asylum and migration pact, set to take effect this Friday. He warned that its implementation "goes against" the message championed by Pope Leo XIV during his visit to Spain.
During a control session in Parliament, the head of the regional executive contrasted Brussels' position with Canarias' response to the Atlantic route in recent years: a "human and Christian welcome" valued by the pontiff, versus the "drift" he believes the European Union is taking.
Clavijo's underlying political warning is that Europe's southern border cannot become the sole responsibility of the Archipelago, nor can the new EU regulations be based on logic that contradicts the principles of humanity that Canarias has upheld even during periods of peak migratory pressure.
Clavijo responded to questions from ASG and Vox in a session dominated by the migration debate, just days before the entry into force of a community framework that the Canary Islands government views with concern.
The president stated his "concern" that under the new legal framework, the average stay for an adult migrant in the Archipelago could increase from one and a half months to six months. He therefore urged the central government to provide information and "better explain" how the pact will be applied in the Islands.
The president insisted on a "total absence of information" from the Spanish Government, noting that his administration's most significant achievement so far has been meeting with NGOs involved in the pact's implementation and the Immigration Brigade.
Canarias' concern is significant: the new system could lead to an "accumulation" of migrants in the Islands, in a context where "there are insufficient resources and places," potentially turning the Archipelago into "the southern prison of Europe," Clavijo stated.
The president also raised concerns about how control and human rights compliance will be managed in the EU's external detention centers, opening a new ethical and legal front in community migration policy.
The most heated exchange occurred with Vox, as he rejected immediate repatriation proposals made by spokesperson Nicasio Galván, asserting that his government would not abandon "unaccompanied children" arriving on boats.
At this point, Clavijo questioned Galván on "how to repatriate" a minor who arrives alone and without known parents. "You are engaging in cheap and cruel demagoguery with vulnerable minors," the president reproached the Vox deputy, after Galván advocated for the return of migrants entering Spain "illegally," as well as those who commit crimes or live on public assistance.
