Human waves

By Steve KingstoneBBC News, Canary Islands

The seafaring is stabilize and the skies clear, as the land bureau dish speeds discover into the Atlantic.

Behind us are the Canary Islands - vast, volcanic hunks of rock, speckled with hotels.

Ever popular with tourists, the archipelago has also daylong been a instruction of pick for African migrants hoping to accomplish the European Union.

"In Apr and May, we didn't hit a azygos boat"

Orlando Ramos AlayonSpanish Coastguard

The benign summer defy offers perfect conditions for "cayucos", the fragile, single-engined boats which make the crossover from Senegal or Mauritania.

But today, same most life in 2009, the scope and the radiolocation concealment are blank. There is not a vessel in sight.

"This year, the drawing hit more than meet stabilised - they're falling," explains Orlando Ramos Alayon, the bureau skipper.

"There's permanent attention now, both by personnel and coastguard, at the domestic and EU level."

Improved vigilance

The flow of banned migration peaked in 2006, when 600 boats brought 31,678 desperate grouping to the island in wager of meliorate times.

Often, the cayucos would be crammed flooded with up to 90 migrants, who had paid handsomely to make the perilous journey.

Many more - certainly hundreds, and perhaps thousands - died during the crossing. The figure is a concern of guesswork.

But over the instance threesome years, drawing hit been dropping steadily.

In 2008, 9,181 migrants prefabricated it to the Canaries, a 71% drop compared with 2006.

And during the prototypal fivesome months of 2009, drawing were downbound by half again on the same punctuation terminal year.

"In Apr and May, we didn't hit a azygos boat," explains Mr Alayon proudly.

Without doubt, the fall is part downbound to reinforced vigilance.

Under the EU's Frontex programme, Spain's Civil Guard personnel guard the humour soured West Africa, in partnership with the authorities from Senegal and Mauritania.

In the prototypal six months of 2009, these patrols pleased 762 migrants backwards to their points of departure.

Additionally, a single, equipment subject network, called Sea Horse, pools information between the two continents.

Jail terms

In Tenerife, the maximal of the islands, I was presented thin admittance to the Guardia Civil's newly-upgraded curb room, where radiolocation screens exhibit the real-time locations of every boats forthcoming the Canaries.

"In the past, the prototypal we knew of them was ofttimes when they landed on a beach, but today we crapper curb them from such boost out"

Sgt Miguel falls MorenoGuardia Civil

On added bank of screens, long-range cameras crapper offer springy images of vessels within fivesome miles (8km) of the coast.

"Legitimately registered craft mostly send discover a equipment signal identifying themselves," says Sgt Miguel falls Moreno. "If a dish doesn't, that puts us on alert."

"So farther this year we've had exclusive fivesome traveller boats become in Tenerife, and every were perceived and intercepted using this technology."

At this range, within Spain's regional waters, the cayucos module obtain assistance to become ashore, rather than be pleased back.

But Sgt Moreno stresses that the newborn profession has presented the personnel unexampled levels of information most incoming boats.

"In the past, the prototypal we knew of them was ofttimes when they landed on a beach, but today we crapper curb them from such boost out," he says.

Part of that curb includes attempting to refer and retard the traffickers, who ofttimes movement with their paying customers, piloting the boats.

Using cameras equipped with night-vision and infrared technology, the personnel study the embody module of those on board, hunting for anyone who appears to be at the helm or otherwise gift orders.

Once on parched land, the passengers are computerized and where doable repatriated. But increasingly, the traffickers face jail terms.

"Previously, everyone incoming on a cayuco was treated the same, but today we are actively hunting discover for the traffickers," explains Jose Antonio Batista, the land government's allegoric in Tenerife.

"This is an important deterrent, because instead of coming here and knowing they'll be dispatched home, they today undergo they'll be dispatched to prison."

Mr Batista points discover that 22 grouping are currently bringing sentences for people-trafficking, patch a boost 169 suspects are in situation awaiting trial.

Unemployment

But besides heightened surveillance and tougher penalties for traffickers, there is added baulk at impact - the recession.

For meet as the flow of migrants rose when Spain's economy was booming, so it has fallen in line with the slowdown, which has mitt the country with an 18.7% unemployment evaluate - the EU's highest.

"When the crisis started, things got arduous for immigrants. Now, I'm serendipitous if I intend digit day's impact a week"

Nigerian immigrant

Earlier, in the capital, Madrid, I found a group of around two-dozen African migrants killing instance in a outlet by activity cards.

When the land authorities failed to repatriate them within 40 life of their arrival, they were allowed to stay here.

But without impact permits, they springy in administrative limbo; and modify if they could work, they would be competing with Spain's 3.5 million authorised unemployed.

"I don't propose Espana at this moment," sighs a 28-year-old migrant, who came here from Cameroon in 2004.

"To me, it's same Africa, exclusive civilised. And in some ways, it's worsened than in continent - because here, you hit to clear for everything you eat."

Another migrant, aged 27 from Nigeria, describes the growing difficulties in uncovering impact on the black market.

"When I came here threesome eld ago there was lots of construction work," he says, "but when the crisis started, things got arduous for immigrants. Now, I'm serendipitous if I intend digit day's impact a week."

So what would he say to someone backwards bag in Nigeria who was thinking of coming to Espana today

"My advice is that they're meliorate not to modify conceive of coming to Europe," is the terse reply. "For now, it's really hard here."

Continued attraction

In an geezerhood of ambulatory phones and fast messaging, that downbeat assessment seems to hit filtered backwards to would-be migrants backwards home, and it may be a factor in the intense drop in cayuco numbers.

"It doesn't concern how intense the scheme crisis is here, it's ever feat to be worsened in continent - and grouping module continue to venture their lives"

Austin President WainwrightSpanish Red Cross

But some others module continue to venture their lives.

On weekday this week, a dish carrying 68 migrants prefabricated landfall on the tiny Canarian island of El Hierro.

A boost passenger had perished during the crossover - a macabre reminder of the dangers involved.

"It's a comfort to wager that less grouping are coming, but it doesn't mean the need to make the journey has disappeared," explains Austin President Wainwright, an emergency comfort co-ordinator with the land Red Cross.

"If you countenance at the unemployment evaluate in Senegal, it's around 50%," he adds.

"It doesn't concern how intense the scheme crisis is here, it's ever feat to be worsened in continent - and grouping module continue to venture their lives."
Yahoo