Moroccan Expats in Canary Islands Protest Closure of Vital Maritime Link to Morocco

Faced with the many difficulties they experience on a daily basis, these Moroccans, gathered within the Moroccan community of the island of Fuerteventura, met last Thursday in front of the Spanish government delegation in Puerto del Rosario. The objective, reports canarias7.es, is to demand the reopening of the maritime line connecting Tarfaya to the Canary Islands to communicate with Morocco.

Rachid Belkhadir, president of the Moroccan-Spanish Cultural Center Mares, better describes the situation. According to him, going to Morocco or other African countries is an uphill battle. He says one must first travel by boat, from the Canary Islands to the south of the peninsula, and then continue the journey to their places of origin in the north of the African continent. "We are close to Africa, but we are isolated. A journey that could be done in three hours takes three days," he laments.

In reality, despite the willingness of the two countries to reopen this route, nothing seems to be materializing. Yet, according to Mr. Belkhadir, "Moroccans, but also Africans, need this maritime link to be able to take their families and cars with them," but also "for cultural, tourist and commercial exchanges".

It should be recalled that the suspension of the Tarfaya maritime line occurred after a maritime incident in May 2008, which forced Morocco to spend large sums to improve the operation of a port particularly affected by the sand banks off the coast, the same source points out.