The number of users at the Ibiza juvenile center has increased sixfold in seven years

PalmThe overcrowding at the Ibiza children's center came to light on March 2nd, following a mass brawl involving 28 minors, some of whom were migrants, during which a monitor who tried to break up the fight suffered minor injuries. The Consell d'Eivissa (Island Council of Ibiza) reported the incident promptly and transparently, but this did not prevent social media and some political parties from exploiting the situation to incite hatred against immigrants. As of last Thursday, the Ibiza children's center housed 139 minors over the age of 12; this is more than six times the number seven years ago, in 2019, when the current PP (People's Party) government took office. A significant portion of those in the initial reception service are minors who arrived by boat from the Algerian coast. This number fluctuates, but is estimated to be around 70; their individual circumstances are unknown, except that they have crossed 160 nautical miles in a small boat in search of a better life. Obviously, minors from the Balearic Islands also face very difficult personal circumstances. A real ticking time bomb if the appropriate resources aren't available.

"We've been overwhelmed by the exponential growth of migrants," admits Carolina Escandell, the Social Welfare Councilor for Ibiza. "It's an unpredictable phenomenon. Since the Pitiusas Islands became the arrival point for migrant boats, one day two minors might arrive, and the next day fifteen." In 2009, when the facilities moved from Can Pep Xicu to the current ones in Sa Coma, the children's center housed a dozen children; in 2019, there were still 22. Since 2024, with the surge in migration routes between Algeria and the Balearic Islands, the number has consistently exceeded one hundred. "With the issue of minors, we can't say there's no space; we have to take them in, no matter what, as the law dictates," the councilor clarifies. "We are the competent authority, although it's a phenomenon we have absolutely no control over, neither in its origin nor in terms of immigration policy, which is the responsibility of the State."

The UGT union representative, Mario Riera, believes, however, that not enough is being done. "The overcrowding leads to many problems with coexistence, and the staff instability doesn't help," he explains. "This overcrowding will surely worsen. If boats are already arriving now during the winter, imagine what it will be like during the summer when the weather is good." In addition to being a union representative, Mario Riera is a psychologist and was the director of the Can Pep Xicu juvenile detention center. The situation was completely different then. "But now the Consell (Island Council) needs to get its act together; it needs to properly value the service, because a monitor at the juvenile detention center earns 1,500 euros a month in fourteen payments. In Ibiza, in the summer, there's no shortage of work, and the salary is lower than what's paid in hotels or restaurants."

The councilor denies that it's a salary problem. "We are prepared to provide all the necessary resources and personnel," assures Carolina Escandell. "The problem is that there aren't enough; we're facing a structural staff shortage across the island, especially in the social services sector. In Ibiza, we poach workers from each other." According to the councilor, the Consell's contracting department has prioritized the children's services. She also denies that immigration is a summer or winter phenomenon: "It doesn't stop anymore. When there's a lull, we know the boats will arrive. The mafias even prefer winter because there isn't as much maritime traffic."

Preventing xenophobia

Carolina Escandell asserts that her department demands "total transparency" when reporting on the management of the juvenile detention center and expresses "outrage and hurt" at the way some media outlets and social networks have covered the mass brawl of March 2nd, "as if it were Sarajevo." The councilor describes the events as a "typical fight among teenagers." However, on this occasion, the fight escalated into a large-scale brawl. The Council is exploring ways to relocate some of the minors to supervised apartments, so that smaller, more manageable groups can be formed.

The fight at the Ibiza juvenile detention center was not the only violent incident in recent months. On February 13th, a scuffle broke out at the Sant Francesc youth center in Formentera, involving migrant minors. Formentera is, in fact, the true port of arrival on the migration route between Algeria and the Balearic Islands, as it is the first island encountered when heading north. In this instance, a confrontation occurred between two groups of minors, stemming from a previous incident that required the intervention of security forces. Rumors circulated that a knife had even appeared in the fight, a claim denied by the Formentera Council. Subsequently, an act of vandalism was committed against the minors' center, in which stones were thrown at the facility. The president of the Formentera Council, Òscar Portas, called for "responsibility, prudence, and respect," urging people to avoid rhetoric that could generate "stigmatization or confrontation between groups." For the moment, it seems his message was heeded.