Will France grant the Aquarius Migrants Asylum?

Nearly half of the 630 migrants that arrived in Spain onboard the Aquarius ship, would like to seek asylum in France.

France has said that it will work with Spain to deal with the asylum applications, examining each asylum seeker on a case by case basis.

This comes as Spain’s new socialist government released a statement, outlining the migrants ‘willingness to seek asylum in France’. The French government has offered to welcome some of the people travelling on the ship.

Until such arrangements have been made however, those aboard have been granted special permission to stay in Spain for 45 days.

After being turned away from ports in Italy and Malta- the Spanish government permitted the humanitarian rescue ship to dock in Valencia.

Those aboard the Aquarius, a humanitarian ship run by the French charity SOS Mediterranean, are not considered regular migrants, as they have been given special rights to reside from Spain.

Rescued off the Libyan coastline on June the 9^th- The migrants arrived on three vessels, after an arduous 8 days at sea. According to Valencian authorities, on board were children and pregnant women.

Local leaders on the French island of Corsica had offered to welcome the Aquarius, but the move was criticized by the central French government, who condemned their offer as ‘unlawful’.

Under international law, the ship is required to dock at the nearest port.

According to an opinion poll released on Monday, fifty six percent of the public supported the central government’s decision. While, 42% of respondents argued that the ship should have been permitted to dock in France.

Macron is under steep pressure to close down migration routes form Africa, a midst a wave of strong anti-immigration sentiment in his country.

The conversation surrounding migrant influx has come back into full force, following the arrival of the ship, and its denied docking. The subject will spearhead talks at the EU summit at the close of June.

This comes as Italy and Malta’s blocking of the ship was met with an international outcry.

Tensions flared as Macron accused Rome of ‘irresponsibility’- though he later apologized for offending their southerly neighbor. 

Sources at the Spanish Interior Ministry have praised Spain’s decision to allow the boat to dock, calling it an ‘extraordinarily humanitarian and political decision’.

This, they hope, will come as a wakeup call to countries within the EU bloc- and prompt them to look for solutions rather than looking away.

But still the question remains, where will the migrants be permitted asylum? After the 45 day window Spain has granted those aboard the Aquarius, lawmakers will consider each individuals case.

All 630 of them are entitled to request asylum- but Spain’s decision to permit the Aquarius to dock, should not be considered a change in Spanish immigration policy.

Any refugees arriving to Spanish shores by dinghy are considered illegal immigrants. This is not the case with the Aquarius, which is considered a rescue of shipwrecked people, with authorization to enter.