On Thursday the 5th of august at 3am, a patera carrying 12 Algerian immigrants was on its way to the spanish coast. "Salvamento Maritimo" spotted the patera and informed the red cross who then called our IPP staff. Maria, Mayssam and Luis being the first 3 people on the Pateran list had to be the red cross volunteers for that night.
The immigrants arrived in a boat that belonged to the "Salvamento Maritimo" because their patera was completly destroeyd in the sea. A policeman was checking the immigrants as they left the boat and another escorted them to a big room where they would be checked and interrogated.
Most of the immigrants were shivering and they had torn, wet clothes.We gave them blankets and new clothes and they were asked to change.
Abdallah, An Algerian red cross volunteer was talking to the immigrants to obtain the necessary data about each one of them. The healthy immigrants were given a green bracelet and the sick ones red bracelets.
Once Abdallah was done with his examination, we were asked to give food to the persons with green bracelets. We gave them 2 cupcakes, juice, coffee and water.
After all the immigrants were preperly dressed and fed, the police took charge and we had to leave. It was an unforgettable experience to help people who have risked their lives and left everything behind to start over in another country not knowming wether or not they will make it.
Spain's IPP: Patera
Illegal immigrants from Africa cram into small boats - called patera in Spanish - to reach the coast of Spain. If successful, many are trapped in a system of low-wage day labour in the greenhouses of the Almeria region. This system is the topic of Spain's 2010 IPP.
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