Mr. Angel Acebes
Minister of Justice
C/ San Bernardo, 45
28015 Madrid
Spain

Fax: ++ 34913902268

Dear Minister,

I am writing to express my concern about abuses of children in Ceuta and Melilla described in the Human Rights Watch report, Nowhere to Turn: State Abuses of Unaccompanied Migrant Children by Spain and Morocco. The report documents cases of children who were beaten or ill-treated by Spanish police, abused by staff and other children in residential centers, denied health, education, and other benefits guaranteed them in Spanish law, or summarily expelled to Morocco. Unaccompanied children had no effective means to bring complaints of abuse to the courts, or to exercise their right to be heard in administrative or judicial proceedings affecting them. At least one well-documented case of police abuse brought before the court in Ceuta has languished there since 1998.

I urge you to ensure that unaccompanied migrant children have adequate access to free, effective legal counsel in all proceedings regarding their status and care. The Ministry should institute training of members of the judiciary on the special needs and rights of children, including unaccompanied migrant children, and work with the General Council of the Legal Profession to ensure that their members receive this training.

I look forward to receiving your reply, and thank you for your attention to this important human rights matter.

Sincerely,