12 April 2019
Bilbao Campus
In mid-April (from 10 to 12), the students on the Master’s in International Humanitarian Action (NOHA) made a field trip to Melilla and Nador (Morocco) as part of their programme, accompanied by the Master’s director, Cristina Churruca Mugurza, the programme coordinator, Maite Sagasti Goicoechea, and the Deusto Campus Solidarity coordinator, Aitor Arbaiza Valero.
The aim was to know first-hand the current situation of the cross-border migration between Nador and Melilla through the work carried out by the organisations based in that part of the so-called Southern Border and the different situations of vulnerability arising there.
The term Southern Border refers to the border crossing points to Spanish territory of South-North migratory movements that cross the African continent. Melilla, as reported by the Jesuit Migrant Service and the Spanish Refugee Aid Commission (CEAR in Spanish), among other organisations, is an exception within the complex framework of the EU’s policy on the externalisation and control of European external borders. In this autonomous city, violence and the repressive elements of the migratory system lose the flimsy veil of humanitarian grounds that are somehow still present in the continent, and the erosion of the rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers becomes evident.
During their stay in Melilla, students were welcomed by the main NGOs for Development and Institutions working in the Southern Border: Jesuit Migration Service/Diocesan Migration Office, Melilla Acoge, SJR, CEAR Melilla, Red Cross Spain, ACCEM, Save the Children and ACNUR. The students had the opportunity to conduct interviews for the projects they are doing as part of their master's degree on the situation of asylum seekers, unaccompanied minors, women who may be victims of trafficking, border traffic and the work carried out by some organisations. The aim of these projects, which will be available on the Institute’s website, is to give visibility to the current situation in the border area and to the work performed by the organisations that were generous in sparing their precious time for us. As a result of their trip, a photographic exhibition will be held at the University of Deusto’s Auditorium cloister in Bilbao, starting on 10 June.
Students’ projects:
Faith-based Organizations in Melilla
Students:
- Daniela Márquez Estrada
- Farah Faisal
- Isabel Goirigolzarri
- Naomi Oude Lansink
Students:
- Ambar Atta
- Manon Andre
- Mariana Leyva Ponce de León
- Sarah Price
Melilla in Limbo. Restrictions on the Freedom of Movement of Migrants and Asylum Seekers
Students:
- Ahmad Massoud Ahmadi
- Chevy Morris
- Nina Schoonbeek
- Paula Álvarez Zuluaga
Students:
- Ilinca Costin
- Bilgesu Madenli
- Elisa Weisse
- Georgina Herzogenberg
