Police unions warn of "collapse" in Ceuta: 200 daily calls and agents crammed without air conditioning

The Independent and Civil Servants Trade Union (CSIF) and the police union Jupol have this Thursday increased pressure on the Government over the conditions in which agents deployed in Ceuta work and rest. Both organizations speak of an "organizational and security collapse" and demand urgent measures from the Ministry of Interior and the Government Delegation.

The unions met urgently to analyze the situation of security forces and public services after the massive entry of migrants from Morocco. In their statement, they assure that the pressure endured during recent weeks has exceeded "all limits of human capacity".

One of the main areas of concern is the 091 call center. According to data provided by Jupol, the service receives about 200 calls daily, while available units must attend to ordinary activity, street surveillance, and actions related to the migratory crisis.

The organizations maintain that staffing levels are "at a minimum" and that this lack of personnel prevents providing the service with sufficient guarantees for citizens and the agents themselves. They also estimate the deployment of riot police at about 180 officers, divided into three shifts of approximately 60 personnel.

CSIF and Jupol have also focused on the conditions of national police officers sent as reinforcement. According to their complaint, several agents remain housed in military modules with seven or eight police officers per room, up to eight bunk beds, only one fan, and no air conditioning system.

To this, they add insufficient toilets and showers, ventilation problems, and especially high temperatures during August nights. Jupol considers the offered accommodation "unacceptable and degrading" for civil servants who are required to be permanently available.

More agents, better accommodations, and a single command

The unions demand an immediate reinforcement of staff and the transfer of displaced police officers to adequate accommodations. They also ask to update the allowances for public employees temporarily assigned to Ceuta, which they consider far from the real cost of staying in the autonomous city.

Another of their demands affects legal certainty. CSIF and Jupol assure that agents face complex interventions without sufficiently clear operational guidelines and demand institutional support for the decisions they must adopt during service.

CSIF has once again requested the activation of Law 36/2015, of September 28, on National Security and the creation of a single command with a technical profile. The declaration of a situation of interest for National Security corresponds to the President of the Government, as established in article 15 of the norm.

The organization maintains that this mechanism would allow coordinating the administrations and services involved, in addition to ordering the available resources. The unions also request that migrants be transferred to controlled spaces where healthcare and adequate reception conditions can be guaranteed.

CSIF and Jupol have directed their claims to the Ministry of Interior and the Government Delegation. "One cannot continue to demand absolute availability and performance to the limit without offering minimum conditions of dignity," they warned.