ERC denounces the imposition of transit visas on asylum seekers from Sudan in Spain

Eduardo González The Republican Parliamentary Group has called on the Government to promote, within the European Union, a humanitarian truce and a ceasefire in Sudan, to halt arms sales to the United Arab Emirates to prevent their diversion to Darfur, to increase the €1.5 million in aid announced by the Executive in April for the civilian population of Sudan, and to establish legal and safe pathways to facilitate the reception of Sudanese asylum seekers in Spain, because the transit visa they face in our country makes it almost impossible for them to obtain international protection. In a non-binding resolution submitted on October 24 for debate in the Foreign Affairs Committee, the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) points out that the current war in Sudan has resulted in “the world’s most serious humanitarian displacement crisis” and has left 25 million people “in a state of emergency famine, 16 million of whom are children.” Furthermore, “during these years, massacres against innocent civilians have occurred, leaving hundreds of thousands dead,” it continues. “A tragic example is the city of El Fasher, in North Darfur, where the 260,000 remaining citizens, 130,000 of whom are children, have been subjected to a fierce siege for 500 days without access to humanitarian aid,” it adds. To all this is added “the return of ethnic violence to the daily routine.” “The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, warned that the violence in Darfur and Khartoum is reminiscent of the Darfur genocide, during which 300,000 people were killed between 2003 and 2005, an opinion shared by the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court,” ERC asserts. Furthermore, it continues, “atrocious crimes against women and girls have also become widespread.” According to the Republican Group, the situation combines “a high level of non-compliance with international humanitarian law and human rights, reminiscent of decades of civil war, with an alarming humanitarian emergency,” despite which, it denounces, “the conflict is not receiving the international attention that the emergency of the case requires.” “On the one hand, states are not contributing the $4.2 billion that the United Nations estimates is needed at least by 2025 to assist the more than 20 million people at risk of extreme hunger,” a situation exacerbated by “the violence faced by humanitarian workers, with incidents such as the murder, on June 3, of five members of a convoy delivering food to Darfur,” the text continues. “On the other hand, the conflict has been made chronic by the external interference of actors such as the Wagner Group, linked to the Putin regime,” ERC continues. “The United Arab Emirates has also been accused of re-exporting Chinese weapons to Sudan, which violates the United Nations arms embargo and fuels armed violence,” it asserts. “Amnesty International has repeatedly denounced this situation, which the Sudanese government has taken to the International Court of Justice for complicity in genocide,” it adds. Asylum seekers The motion also denounces that “Spain has imposed transit visas on asylum seekers from Sudan, making it almost impossible for them to obtain international protection and closing one of the few safe routes to reach Europe.” “In fact, only 145 people were able to apply for asylum in Spain in 2024,” it warns. Therefore, the non-binding resolution urges the Government to “promote, within the framework of the European Union, initiatives to support a humanitarian truce, first, and a ceasefire later, in Sudan, in line with the requests made by the United States, Saudi Arabia, and other regional actors,” placing “on the horizon a framework for democratic transition towards a civilian government chosen by the citizens.” It also urges the Executive to “halt arms sales to the United Arab Emirates until it is demonstrated that it is complying with the arms embargo on Darfur, as well as investigate illegal arms shipments by other states that continue to fuel the conflict.” The motion also calls for the United Nations to launch an urgent humanitarian aid package for Sudan, in response to requests from the World Food Programme and agencies on the ground, and, also within the United Nations framework, an international protection response for the civilian population of Sudan, with special attention to women and children, and offering comprehensive services to victims of sexual violence. Regarding Spain, ERC urges the Government to significantly increase the €1.5 million in aid announced by the Executive last April to assist the civilian population of Sudan and to facilitate international protection processes for civilians forced to leave the country, establishing legal and safe pathways to subsidiary protection in Spain.

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