Spain urged to stem migrant flow

Many would-be migrants drown in their attempts to reach Spain

Lawmakers in Spain's Canary Islands have urged the central government in Madrid to do more to stem what they say is an "avalanche" of illegal migrants.

Regional MPs want Madrid to boost security along the coastline, and the EU to set up an emergency humanitarian aid fund for the migrants.

Some 7,000 migrants, mostly from Africa, have reached the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean this year alone.

Madrid wants African nations to take back illegal migrants already in Spain.

Last week, Spain launched a three-year diplomatic offensive to try to persuade six nations in West Africa to bring the crisis under control.

Perilous voyages

Lawmakers in the Canaries regional parliament called on the central government to make the issue "an absolute priority".

During a debate, they also said Spain must further step up air and sea patrols.

And in a separate motion, MPs urged the EU to set up an emergency fund to deal with the "humanitarian crises resulting from the immigration avalanche".

In May alone, about 2,000 would-be migrants reached the Canary Islands, mostly from Central and Sub-Saharan Africa.

But many also drown in their attempts to reach Spanish territory, which they see as a stepping-stone to a better life in Europe.

The European Parliament is sending a delegation to the Canary Islands early in June to examine the conditions in which the immigrants are being kept and the problems caused by illegal immigration.