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Unwelcome Responsibilities
Spain's Failure to Protect the Rights of Unaccompanied Migrant Children in the Canary Islands
Map of the
Canary Islands
Location of the Canary Islands
I. Summary
Key Recommendations
II. Methodology and Scope
1. Methodological Challenges
2. International Standards
3. Terminology
III. Context
1. The Phenomenon of Unaccompanied Migrant Children in
Spain and the Canary Islands
2. Types of Residential Centers
3. Statistics and Figures
4. Authority and Responsibility at the Spanish
National and Canary Islands levels
IV. Arrival
1. Detention upon Arrival
2. Age Determination..
3. Assumption of Guardianship..
4. Placements in Care..
V. Legal Status
1. Residency Rights
2. Work Permit
3. Access to Asylum...
VI. Situation at La
Esperanza and Arinaga Emergency Centers
1. La Esperanza Center
2. Arinaga Center
3. Violence in Other Centers
4. Undue Restriction of Freedom of Movement
5. International Legal Standards on Protection of Children
from Ill-treatment
VII. The Right to Education and the Right to Health
1. The Right to Education..
2. The Right to Health..
VIII. Absence of Effective Mechanisms to Guarantee
Rights
1. Absence of Effective Oversight
2. Flawed Guardianship Structure..
3. Lack of Access to Legal Representation..
4. Failure by the Central Government to Guarantee
Children's Rights
5. The Push for Repatriation..
IX. Detailed Recommendations104
To the Government of the Canary Islands104
To the Government of Spain.. 108
To the Ministry of Interior110
To the Ministry of Health.. 110
To the Office of the Prosecutor General110
To the Bar Association.. 111
To the Council of Europe.. 111
To the European Union.. 112
To the United Nations Treaty Bodies and Special
Procedures113
To the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR)113
To the National Ombudsperson.. 113
Acknowledgements115
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