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The Committee on the Rights of the Child, a body of experts that monitors and reports on the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, concluded that Spain had violated the right to education of a young Moroccan resident in Melilla.
The violation occurred by refusing to enroll her in school after considering that she had proven neither her residence nor her previous studies. Quoted on March 8 by the Extranjeristas en Red association, the UN body notes that Spain also ignored the guarantees of non-discrimination and the best interests of the child, as provided for in the international convention on the matter.
Of Moroccan origin and born in Melilla in 2005, the young woman was 16 years old at the time of filing this complaint, in November 2021. In its decision, the commission urged Spain to compensate the young woman and to take «positive measures to enable her to reach the same level of education as her peers as quickly as possible».
The institution also noted Spain's non-compliance with the provisional measures issued on this subject in December 2021, requiring the immediate school integration of the young woman. «Despite the formal recognition of national legislation, the facts show that the young woman, identified as S.J., like other children residing in Melilla in an irregular administrative situation, encounters practical difficulties that prevent her schooling», indicates the opinion, cited by the Spanish news agency EFE.
This decision follows a complaint filed by the mother of the young woman in November 2021, after two unsuccessful attempts to enroll her daughter in public education in Melilla. Initially, she tried to integrate her daughter during the 2020/2021 school year, but this request was refused due to a lack of admissible proof of residence in Melilla.
Later, at the age of 16, the young woman again tried to enroll in the first year of secondary school for the 2021/2022 school year but was unsuccessful, under the pretext that she would have exceeded the age limit for this level of education. In its opinion, the Committee called on the Spanish State to take adequate measures to «prevent similar violations from being committed in the future».
In a press release, the Extranjeristas en Red association indicated that this last recommendation was «of great importance», given the numerous problems with the education of children in Melilla. The NGO demands that practices be brought into compliance with this judgment, to put an end to the «endless obstacles and excuses» that minors face, «regardless of their administrative situation», in their schooling.
