A total of 4,404 people died or disappeared at sea trying to reach the Spanish coast in 2021, with 4,016 of them on the infamous ‘Canarias Route’ heading for the Canary Islands. This figure represents an increase of 102% over the 2020 numbers, according to a report by the NGO, Caminando Fronteras, yesterday.
The data also highlights that among the dead or disappeared there are 628 women and 205 minors, with people of 21 nationalities have been counted among all of them.
The deadliest route is by far the one to the Canary Islands due to "the militarization of the Mediterranean" says Caminando Fronteras. 4,016 of the 4,404 registered (99.3%) have died or disappeared on this route, with 124 shipwrecks.
They are followed by the Algerian route, with 191 people killed or missing in 19 shipwrecks; and 95 victims in 10 shipwrecks on the Alboran route.
Regarding the time of year, the document shows that August is the most tragic month, with more than 660 victims at sea, as well as the weeks at the end of May and the beginning of June when the death or disappearance of 482 people was registered.
The founder of Caminando Fronteras, Helena Maleno, has pointed out that this study not only highlights the situation that migrants experience at sea, but also aims to give "visibility to what is happening to these people as the authorities continue to focus on the number of people that make the journey, not those that have perished.”
Maleno has indicated that, according to the figures published by the Ministry of the Interior, the irregular arrival to Spain by sea in 2021 (as of December 16th) was 37,387 people, compared to 38,014 in 2020.
She denounces that, while the Government highlights a reduction of 600 people in arrivals, "death and disappearance at sea has doubled, and there are factors behind these deaths," Maleno says.
ALMOST 95% ARE MISSING WITH NO BODIES FOUND:
The report indicates that in 94.8% of the 4,404 cases recorded in 2021, people's bodies have not been recovered. According to Maleno, Spain focuses on the fact that the boats "do not arrive" and does not report other figures that, in her opinion, are important, such as "how many boats or people try". In this way, she explained, the number of deaths and disappearances would also be known. "That should be official information and not the work of NGOs," she criticized.
Maleno has also highlighted the treatment that is granted to the bodies that are recovered is inhumane. She explained that there are cases in which the migrant is not buried how their family, who cannot travel to Spain, wants; or that there are cases in which these people are buried ‘in mass graves’ in less than 24 hours from their rescue.
