Portuguese Family’s Humanitarian Journey to Ethiopia Stalled at Morocco-Ceuta Border

Suzete Lucas, Daniel Pancadas and their daughter Ashanti have been blocked in Ceuta for three weeks due to the closure of the Moroccan borders. They left Portugal and want to pass through Morocco to go to Ethiopia, but they find themselves living in their caravan parked on the Benítez beach, behind the desalination plant. "We started our journey in Portugal with the aim of reaching Ethiopia, first passing through Angola. We arrived in Ceuta three weeks ago to access Morocco through the border, but we are blocked in the city," explains Suzete Lucas to El Faro de Ceuta.

Despite all their initiatives and explanations at the border, they have not been able to cross it. "The only response we received was to contact the Delegation of the Government in Ceuta," she says, deploring the fact that their humanitarian trip to Ethiopia has been cut short. The family considers that "their rights are being violated" and reserves the right to bring the matter before the competent international authorities so that measures are taken to facilitate their entry into Morocco and that they reach their destination.

In the meantime, "they are getting by as best they can" in Ceuta where they sleep in their caravan and feed themselves thanks to the charity of the city’s inhabitants. "The people are behaving exemplarily with us. They share what little they have with us and we are very grateful to them," said Daniel Pancadas. The family uses water from a nearby source for their needs and takes baths in the mosque showers and in the public showers set up on the Benítez beach where they intend to stay until they are allowed to continue their journey. "We have no intention of returning to Portugal, because we have the right to go to Ethiopia... So we’re not going to move from here," Pancadas concluded.