Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
A ROW has broken out between expats after hundreds of migrants were moved into a quiet Costa del Sol town ‘overnight’.
The residents were shocked that neither the Junta nor the Benahavis city hall had been notified about the arrival of 360 migrants.
The group, who have been put up in the four star Hotel Oh Nice Caledonia, in Bel Air, are being put up ‘temporarily’ while they get assigned other places to live.
While stressing there have been no incidents – nor a rise in crime, as some local media have suggested – residents are angry nobody was consulted.
Jeroen Jeroen, 52, a Dutch national, said Olive Press He was worried about his stepmother and wife who were elderly, saying that this is not the place to dump almost 400 people.
“There will always be a few bad apples, so I do not want my family to walk alone at night.” He added, “I would not advise my wife walking through Puerto Banus after 4am.”
“It has nothing to do with race. It is pack mentality.” People behave differently in groups, regardless of race.
His views were backed up by community president Macarena Perez, who explained that residents are ‘not worried because they are racist’. “But because nobody told them anything.”
She continued: “When suddenly you see strangers walking in your quiet urbanisation this raises doubts and fears.”
“There isn’t much light here and the roads are bad…we’re just not ready to absorb that many people.”
However, former Bel Air resident Mary Page, 81, who now lives in nearby Estepona, disagreed, labelling complaints as ‘ignorant’.
She said, “If the migrants had been white there would have been no problems at all.”
They didn’t come on flimsy ships to attack wealthy white women. The white tourists who were there at the time were very annoying, they would get drunk, and create chaos.
The migrants arrived in the middle of the night, January 12, from Mali, Senegal, Gambia and other countries.
The Canary Islands were the destination of the dangerous journey that they had made to Spain.
“We don’t even know what NGO is in charge of them.” Perez said that if we knew who was responsible, we would be glad to assist.
Junta spokeswoman told Olive PressWe need the government to be transparent and coordinated. “We want to help, but it is impossible without communication.”
Migrant Amadou Dia, 30, confirmed local residents have been treating them ‘well’.
The conditions are excellent. I eat well and sleep well,” he said, explaining he had left his wife and two children in Senegal, after a neighbour tried to ‘kill him’ and steal his farm.
He ‘spent weeks’ travelling to Spain, adding he had studied English at college for two years.
He added, “I’m ready to do any kind of work.”
Resident Raquel Sanchez told Olive Press there have been ‘no problems’ and all the migrants do is ‘play basketball and wander around’. We found that most residents agreed.
Locals were told that the hotel was only a temporary stop, and they would be moving to another area of Spain in April.
Benahavis Town Hall has declined to comment.
