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Tight security on Spain waters
06/02/2007 18:26 - (SA)
Heidi Vodt
Dakar - Off West Africa, a band of green-shorted Spanish military men peer down from their gleaming white patrol boat into a long wooden canoe - searching for illegal migrants.
But the 25 or so men in the canoe are stripped to their shorts and carrying little more than fishing nets. It's unlikely they're bound for Spain's Canary Islands, the closest entry to Europe.
"They don't have a lot of fuel, and they're not dressed for it - for the cold," says Amadou Diouf, one of three members of Senegal's military travelling with the Spanish crew.
He shouts back and forth with the fishermen in their native Wolof and the patrol moves on. No migrants here.
The unit of Spain's Guardia Civil has been doing these daily runs along Senegal's coast for months now, sometimes going north toward Mauritania, sometimes south toward Gambia.
It's one of many vessels Spain has sent to West Africa in an attempt to stem the tide of illegal migrants risking dangerous ocean voyages to the Canary Islands.
The effort - which also includes helicopter surveillance and foot patrols on the beaches - has caught thousands since the summer.
But many more have arrived on the shores of the Canary Islands, suggesting that the increased security has not deterred many desperate for a chance at a better life.
Monthly arrivals decreased dramatically
Senegal's captain Mohamadou Moustapha Sylla, spokesperson for the joint task force, said officials were confident the patrols have kept some from considering the trip.
The patrols last intercepted a boat in late December and since then "it's been calm," says Sylla. "No boats. ... They're definitely starting to get discouraged."
Frontex, the European Union (EU) border agency that has worked with the Spanish government on patrols, intercepted 3 887 people along the African coast between August and December, according to spokesperson Daniela Munzbergova. During the same period, about 14 572 migrants arrived in the Canary Islands.
Munzbergova said monthly arrivals decreased dramatically during the course of the operation, dropping from more than 6 000 in September to about 1 360 in November.
But Diouf says the decrease can't necessarily be attributed to the patrols. He explains that they'd be surprised to find many migrant boats this time of year - the chilly winter nights make it more dangerous to attempt a trip in which people die of hypothermia even in the hot season.
Diego Acosta, the ship's mechanic, says the day's calm sea also makes it less likely they'd intercept a migrant boat. He expects that on calm days boats trying to evade detection tend to go farther out. When the waters are rough they hug the coast.
Last year saw a surge in migrants taking the sea route from West Africa to the Canaries. About 31 000 people made it in 2006 - five times the figure from 2005.
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