Tens of thousands of migrants enter Ceuta

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0:07Welcome to NewsHour from the World Service of the BBC. This is Owen Bennett-Jones, live from London. The Spanish exclave of Ceuta is around 18km square, located on the North African coast, surrounded either by sea or Morocco. And on the face of it, it looks like a tiny colony, but the Spanish authorities insist that's not the case. According to Madrid, it is part of Spain. and has been since 1580. And Ceuta is governed under Spanish law. And that means the estimated 60 ,000 Moroccans, or some of them who broke into Ceuta this week, may have the right to go through a process that they hope will end in refugee status.

0:49Having said that, the Spanish government says the majority of those that came in, you know, something like 48 ,000, have already gone back home voluntarily to Morocco. More than 50 people have died in the process, either drowning or being crushed in crowds. And this is the sound of some of those thousands as they came off the beach and headed for the streets of Ceuta yesterday.

1:19And that really conveys the scale of this, I think. And Spain said it was sending troops to the exclave after the flow of migrants continued into Friday. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said this today when he visited Ceuta. Ceuta is a Spanish city, and the scenes we saw yesterday I condemn in the most energetic way. I reject them. I condemn them. I condemn them as deplorable. They were a violation of the territorial integrity of a Spanish city, the Spanish city of Ceuta. Well, it clearly was challenging having so many people come in. And this resident of Sayuta, Carmen, said local people are worried.

2:02People are afraid. And they are starting, these migrants, they are starting to feel hungry and thirsty. That is normal. They are human beings. They go in hundreds in stores. So people feel afraid. So they close their shops. We cannot buy anything. We went to buy bread this morning. There is no way you can get bread today in Ceuta, bread or anything else. If this takes longer, like two, three, four days, we will run out. And then what? Let's get some political reaction now from Juan Fernando López Aguilla, a member of the European Parliament from Spain and from the Socialist Party, as the prime minister is.

2:46Now, the government recently legalized the status of hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants in Spain. So that's been a big issue. But what now? What about the question of what to do in Sueto? What does he think the government should do? What it's actually doing? Yes, it's serious, but not unprecedented. To begin with, Spain happens to have the only terrestrial external border of the whole of the European Union with the African continent. It happens to be the bilateral external border between Spain and Morocco, both in Ceuta and Melilla. Second, the situation is not unprecedented. We've gone through this before, in 2006, in 2021, and the government is reacting properly.

3:32First, reinforcing the civil guard, which is like the Spanish gendarmerie and police forces with military mobilization. Second, of course, it's calling for the cooperation of Morocco and calling for the responsibility of Morocco. It's not acceptable that Morocco can simply do away with its responsibility in managing the side of the external border of the European Union. And third, it's calling for the national consensus, making clearly the point that we are ready to stand for Spanish sovereignty and protecting the rights and liberties of the Spanish population living both in Ceuta and Melilla.

4:15And of course, we are expecting that with cooperation with Morocco, the situation will be sorted out as it has been sorted out before. Having said this, of course, it takes a thorough analysis of the root causes of this massive wave of irregular immigration through the seas. Because, yes, there is a recent ruling of the Spanish Supreme Court stating that when it comes to swimming by the sea from beach to beach, So, circumveiling the external border between Morocco and Ceuta, there is no place for the so-called hot return, but the whole migration procedure and in case international protection and asylum seeking.

5:02and certainly that has been the case for the illicit trafficking of human beings, exploiting the expectations of so many that if they should give it a chance to make it swimming, they won't be rejected. Well, I mean, it makes no sense, does it, that if someone tries to scale the fence, they don't have rights and if they try to swim, they do have rights. It just seems extraordinary. Well, actually, I mean, every human being has human rights and of course in Spanish legal order every human being has also fundamental rights which are to be protected but the thing is that when you jump over the fence there is a procedure in which from police forces to police forces the person can be returned but this there was a ruling that if you do it by swimming then you are not subject to this speedy hot return that you You should be first rescued in the sea, and then you should follow the whole procedure as a person who has been rescued in the sea.

6:05So you have to be identified, you have to be certain of your legal rights. And then if there's place, then you also may call for international protection or asylum seeking. Yeah, well, you know, that is the Spanish position. That's the Spanish Supreme Court decision. But the rest of Europe is not impressed. I mean, Ursula von der Leyen is saying there must be swift returns. Italy has suspended Schengen. Many other European governments are criticising Spain for failing to protect the EU's external border. You're a member of the European Parliament. Are you feeling the pressure as a Spanish representative in Brussels?

6:42Well, let me assess the situation first. Spain has shown solidarity every time we have witnessed weaponisation of migrants wherever. It's happened in the external border between Finland and Russia. It's happened in the external border between Poland and Belarus. And every time we have been asked for, we have shown solidarity. Second, in the European Union, we have put in place a so-called migration and asylum pact, which consists nothing less of eight regulations building up a system based on the principles of shared responsibility and solidarity, binding solidarity. We have shown solidarity every time we have been requested for solidarity.

7:25Now it is time to expect solidarity from the rest. Third, it's absolutely out of the place that a certain member state can suspend Schengen unilaterally or ask for the suspension of unilaterally over another member state of the European Union. You know what you can do? You can actually reinstate the border control in your own country. But you cannot exclude a third country from free movement or exclude a third country from Schengen. So there is absolutely no place whatsoever for this Italy rhetoric that Spain should be excluded from Schengen. Because there is a Schengen Borders Code, which is also binding law for all the member states of the European Union, which prevents that from happening.

8:09When you want to reinstate your control of your own external borders, you have to ask for the authorization of the Commission, you have to state the nature of the security grounds for such a decision, and you have to time frame such reinstatement of external borders of the European Union in your own country, but never exclude a third country from Schengen. And that was Juan Fernando López Aguilar, member of the European Parliament. Well, let's get the latest from the ground now. Jason Horowitz is the New York Times bureau chief in Madrid, but currently he's got himself to Sayuta and he gave me the latest.

8:50The thing that I kept hearing over and over today as I talked to a lot of people on the beach and throughout the town was first that they were surprised about how easy it was for them to get here. And second, just they weren't exactly sure what they were supposed to do now. They had gotten here. There was no food. There was no water. Some people had a sense that, you know, Spain was going to be this sort of land of opportunity where they were going to find jobs. Other people maybe just went because that's what everyone was doing. But the sort of main feeling I had walking around with lots of these people today was that people just were sort of wandering.

9:31They didn't know what they were supposed to do now. And those who've gone back, I mean, did they go back to Morocco because literally they're hungry? Yeah, I think that that maybe was actually the strategy of Spain here, that there's no food available. There's no water available, really. people were constantly asking passers-by just for a little bit of water or food or if they had you know for some help and you just kept seeing that over and over you realize that you know people that you could get up whatever you know dreams or aspirations they want but at the end you know the stomach sort of dictates and um and where they knew that they could go back and you know it was morocco and so by 6 p.m more than 48 000 had left right there was this suggestion that the huge numbers coming in was partly because Moroccan authorities were encouraging them to do so.

10:23Did you back that up at all? Do you think that's right? So all I have is anecdotal, but I spoke to lots of people today and so did my colleagues, and that is something we did hear several times and unprompted, which raises questions that, again, we don't know, and that'll take more reporting to find out exactly what happened here. But that's something that the people who actually firsthand went through it said. Well, I mean, there is one possible explanation, which is that the Spanish prime minister did go to Algeria recently upsetting Morocco in the process. I mean, do you think this could be a sort of, you know, a way of sending a message to Spain?

11:06Well, so that's possible, right? It wouldn't be the first time. So, you know, back in 2021, I think it was, Morocco made it easier, shall we say, for migrants to come over to put more pressure on the Sanchez government to get something that they wanted in a sort of geopolitical fight. And they did. They got the support of Spain in West Sahara. And so, you know, the lesson from that was, you know, immigrant pressure and leverage works. Now, that was about 10 ,000 to 12 ,000 people, I think. This was upwards of 50 ,000, maybe 60 ,000 people. So maybe it crossed the threshold that changes everything.

11:49Prime Minister kept saying that Sueza, part of Spain, part of Spain, part of Spain. Many people in Africa see it as a colony. Would that be right? I don't know. I mean, I think that, I think, look, there's a long, complicated history here. uh spaniards you speak to um some feel extremely attached to serza and they feel like it is um you know it's in a way like gibraltar right it's like it's it's our rock you know you hear that a lot um and then you have people it's true like if you're talking to someone in barcelona they don't really care that much about it um or even in madrid and so um you know i don't think it's a uniform position.

12:29But, you know, it is Spain, right? And so I wouldn't call it a colony. I would call it Spanish territory, because that's what it is. And that was Jason Horowitz, Madrid bureau chief for the New York Times, but currently reporting from Ceuta itself.

13:03Coming up, we'll be hearing from a Burmese opposition supporter who has fled from Myanmar to neighbouring Thailand but not given up hope of freeing her country from military rule. I understood, you know, my muscle is not in my arms, it's in my brain. I can do it a different way for the long fight. Revolution is not a short time. We don't know how many years we have to keep going on. That's in about 30 minutes, just some headlines now. Spain says most of the 50 ,000 migrants who flooded its North African territory of Ceuta have returned to Morocco. The crisis has fueled anxiety about illegal migration across the EU.

13:43And the UN says the El Nino weather pattern is expected to intensify over the next three months, boosting the heat waves that have caused devastating wildfires in Europe and elsewhere.

14:03This is NewsHour. FIFA's president, Gianni Infantino, is used to getting his way. His changes to the World Cup format, more teams, for example, hydration breaks, all happened. And his re-election as president for another term seemed assured as well. But his plans to allow American companies to profit from football seem to have hit something of a brick wall. He's offered football associations around the world$20 million, some say more, for going along with this. But even so, quite a few are opposing it. European football's governing body, UEFA, has come out against. So has the North and Central America and Caribbean.

14:44And Asia, too, thought to be more supportive, has been critical of this. while one of Infantino's senior advisors has also resigned. Well, Miguel Delaney is chief football writer at The Independent. Can Infantino still get this done? He needs it to go to a vote. Look, this is what this was all predicated on, the idea that because member associations, 211 of them, the majority would be so blinded, I suppose, by the money that would be coming to them that they would take a short-term decision and push it through. But even then, I think if it got to a vote, it would probably get through, just about.

15:24But even then, that's open to question. And secondly, really, I have to say, primarily maybe, I don't think it'll get that far just because of the extent of the opposition. And obviously, this major issue, which is that, as it stands, I mean, this plan can actually go ahead in tangible terms because the most powerful federation, its major countries are not going to play in FIFA competitions, which fairly scuttles the whole commercial value of Infantino's plan. Well, yeah, I mean, if everyone remains united, I mean, if they do remain united, UEFA, I just added it up, UEFA, Asia and the Americans, they're 1-4-3 of the 211 votes.

16:01So, I mean, if they're all solid as blocs, they'll vote it down, right? Yeah, and again, as you say, I mean, there is the potential for some fracturing of that. But I think the process aggravated so many countries, and especially the way it was almost just presented to them. I mean, that's been a core theme of so many of the statements so far, that there is widespread anger. And also, as someone said to me today, beyond the moral principle of the World Cup being privatized, beyond the many potential consequences, I mean, there's two elements really that really aggravated the people. Yesterday when the deck by JP Morgan was put out, people saw that as the last straw.

16:43They didn't see the value in it. I mean, they were aghast the idea of selling off parts of the World Cup in perpetuity for this. They felt it was actually undervaluing what the World Cup is. And really, most importantly, it's the Trump connection. The fact it's Josh Kushner, the brother of Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner. You know, as multiple people said to me today, that was just never going to fly. And especially the way it was just presented, all the fine details already sorted. And this is the laughable thing as well. I mean, FIFA issued another statement overnight with quote-unquote clarifications, and they're blaming the media or incorrect reports, as they put it, for kind of disrupting this process.

17:21But had the reports not come out, what was actually going to happen? I mean, the deadline is the 19th of September. It could have been pulled back. And they're talking about how, you know, it just kicks off a consultation process. Yet, what is it to consult on, given that they're presenting so many details secured right down to, it seems, the major investors. It's always the media's fault. We all know that. But just one thing, they made 11 billion estimated out of the World Cup. There's so much money around. I mean, they could give millions to every football association. Well, this is another side to the kind of moral principle as well.

17:55It's the idea, like, why would you need to sell? And obviously, Carlos Cordero, Infantino's primary advisor, who resigned today, his statement, I mean, look, Cordero is a bit of a divisive figure himself. He has been. But his statement was spot on. He kind of, there was a clarity to it. And he pointed out, like, why is this happening now? I mean, usually when private equity or when sports competitions and clubs do these private equity deals, it's because of some position of financial strain. Like, look at Barcelona or Real Madrid with a mountain of death and sold off parts of their kind of commercial aspects of private equity.

18:31FIFA, as you say, they're sitting on mountains of cash. And that was Miguel Delaney there, chief football writer at The Independent. The UK's only all-female chess team has been promoted to the game's top tier, only to be told they will have to add a man to their squad. The She Plays to Win team have fallen foul of a rule designed to boost female participation in the sport. The league requires all of its first division teams to have at least one player of each gender on its roster. That means she plays to win, face dropping one of their eight top level female players to make way for a man. They play to win then at that point.

19:12Sean Lay has been speaking to Emily Matton from the team and asked how they began. It started out with 15 of us in lockdown. That's when I first joined the team. And since then, we've now expanded to over 1 ,800 young female players who are all sort of improving their chess. and we formed this team for the Four Nations Chess League, which we've now reached the top division of. So the Four Nations League, you've got a big competition coming up. At what point did you realise there might be a problem? We've known ever since we started this team that the rule was there and that it was something we might have to deal with one day.

19:46And we have been sort of talking to them since the start and saying, if we did end up getting promoted to this top division, then what would they do? They've always been like, wait until you get there. It's not a problem. And so it's only really since we won the division back in May that it's become a proper debate that they've had to deal with. What did you say to the league? Have there been sort of negotiations? Have there been discussions with the league? The rule was introduced because female chess players are so underrepresented. I think it's only 11 % at that top level of chess that are female.

20:11And so that rule... Even today? Even today, yeah. And that rule's been in place for what, more than 30 years? It's 1994, I believe, that it was introduced. And the rule was, of course, introduced to put more women into chess or our argument is why are you now using that same rule to exclude women from the team and make us bring a male player on? What do you now have to do? Unless anything changes with the rule, we'll have to find a male player and bring them into the team and they'll have to play for us. The female players that are already there will get less game time. It might be that the girls don't get to play all of the weekends.

20:39It might be that some go and find other teams where they can play all the weekends. Our youngest player, Botana, she's, I think, 10 at the moment and then the oldest are probably about mid-20s. I mean, this is quite a big thing for somebody, particularly at that young age, to be told that something you've been competing in and dreaming about and you put all your effort into, you might not be able to play even though your team is good enough to play. Exactly. We've proven that we can compete at that level, that we're just as good as all of these male players. We hope that we can be sort of an inspiration for younger players because I know when I was growing up, I had very few older female players that I look up to.

21:16You don't speak for the team. You can only speak for yourself individually, Emily. Let me put you, just to hear what your thoughts are on this. This is what Mike Truren from 4NCL, the league, said. Since its inception in 1994, the top division has always been a mixed team competition, each team requiring a mix of male and female. We remain the only league in the UK that we are aware of that encourages female participation in chess by requiring mixed teams. Yeah, and of course, back in 1994, it was a huge step for them to introduce these mixed teams and to have that female player on the team. But when you've got this all-female team, which they probably never expected to happen back in 1994, they need to think about why the rules are in the first place.

21:58And if they are trying to encourage female participation, which I think is important given how underrepresented we are, it should be the case that the rule is changed. I just wonder what your experience has been playing chess as you've grown up and as you've become more involved with the game. What sort of things that players and teachers and things said to you over the years? This was at the European Schools Championship back in, I think, 2022. This coach made, I think it was a tweet or something, saying, congratulations, Emily Mayton, you're competing to win this event, which is obviously great.

22:28But he then went on to say, it takes a village to create a strong female chess player. So in other words, it's because of us that you're here. Exactly. And it's just those sorts of comments that make you feel, you know, am I meant to be here? Is this world built for me? That was Emily Matton there speaking with Sean Lay.

23:07Hello, Greg Jenner here. I'm the host of You're Dead to Me, the BBC comedy show that takes history seriously. Every episode, I pair up a top historian with a fantastic comedian, and we have a lovely, funny, fascinating chat about a different subject from world history. And in this new series, we're beginning with an epic voyage through the story of Homer, the Iliad and the Odyssey. And that's with Kyle Smith-Bino joining us. And then we'll be learning about Francis Galton and the racist, discredited pseudoscience of eugenics with Desiree Birch. We'll meet many medieval saints in their bone boxes with Rachel Parrott.

23:40So if that sounds like your sort of thing, listen to You're Dead to Me wherever you get your podcasts. Thank you. Bye.

23:51And welcome back to NewsHour. Now, they say the key to success in wildlife photography is patience and then luck and timing. And 22-year-old Alexander Forrest certainly had the last of those two when he managed to capture what's thought to be the first ever drone footage of a humpback whale giving birth. he lives and works in New South Wales, Australia where every year tens of thousands of whales pass by as they migrate north it's a great spectacle and Alexander has been speaking to James Menendez So day to day I'm actually an exhibition filmmaker and photographer when I'm not interstate or international I am at home I'm checking out what we call the humpback highway that's where all our huge humpback whales fifth largest whale travel along the coast We're so lucky to see them every year.

24:42And it's currently peak season. I was just going out for a routine flight, trying to make the most of this part of the season. And I could see from my aircraft and from the coast, every humpback whale just going up and down the coast at extremely fast speeds, really, really migrating. But there was this one whale, solemn, right behind our beautiful crystal clear waters, right just there next to the surf break, going unusually slow. and this is a behaviour I'd never seen in my thousands of hours filming whales, thousands of whales seen. I've never seen this. I just knew I had to hit record. My first instinct was that perhaps this whale was sleeping.