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The Santa Cruz juvenile centre, a reception facility for unaccompanied minors in Murcia, has been at the centre of controversy for several years now. The facility first opened in 2019 and provides care for hundreds of migrant children who have arrived in Spain alone, often fleeing conflict or persecution in their home countries.

 

But the centre now appears to be on its last legs. On Wednesday April 9, the regional government openly admitted that Santa Cruz needs to be closed, since it “has no place in our foster care model.” And while many human rights groups might agree that the building isn’t fit to house the 72 minors currently living there, the government is facing criticism for bowing to Vox’s pressure to shut it, a non-negotiable for the extreme right-wing party in return for supporting the 2025 regional budget.

 

Almost since its inception, the centre has made waves for its poor living conditions, lack of resources and inadequate care for the children. In 2020, several children even escaped from the facility. However, despite these challenges, Santa Cruz has continued to provide a vital service to vulnerable children.

 

This week, the government argued that the centre was only ever designed for temporary initial placement, but over the years it has become a long-term solution for many of the children, which is not in their best interests. It would be far better, they believe, for the minors to be placed with foster families.

 

The controversy surrounding the closure of the Santa Cruz juvenile centre is not just about the fate of the facility, but also about the broader debate over how to provide care and support to unaccompanied minors in Spain.

 

Just last month, the Spanish government came up with a plan to ‘redistribute’ more than 4,000 migrant minors to new facilities across mainland Spain and the Balearic Islands. The children are currently being housed in the Canary Islands at a facility that is desperately overcrowded and the Region of Murcia has been earmarked as one of the destinations.

 

As the regional government is at pains to stress, facilities like Santa Cruz don’t fit any of the modern models for looking after unaccompanied minors, with Spain and the likes of UNICEF emphasising that these children need to be cared for in safe, nurturing and age-appropriate environments.

 

“Centres like this are not the best place for a child to grow up,” Socialist Lola Jara added, pointing out that Murcia does not stand alone, as several other organisations have completely transformed their facilities to better serve migrant minors.

 

According to a report by the Spanish NGO Save the Children, the majority of the children who are housed at the Santa Cruz centre are from North Africa, particularly from Morocco and Algeria. Moreover, many of the minors currently housed here have experienced trauma and violence in their home countries, meaning they require specialised care and support to help them recover from their experiences.

 

 

Image: CARM