Pope to Meet Aid Groups in El Hierro to Address Atlantic Migration Crisis
Pope Francis is scheduled to meet with representatives from four social organizations on June 12 to highlight the humanitarian efforts supporting migrants arriving on the island of El Hierro.
On June 12, the ongoing migration crisis on the Atlantic route—one of Spain’s most significant humanitarian challenges—will take center stage during a notable event. Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to meet with representatives from four social organizations at the Plaza del Cristo: Cáritas, Don Bosco, Fundación Buen Samaritano, and Corazones Naranjas. The meeting aims to shine a light on the vital assistance provided on the island of El Hierro, which has become the primary arrival point for migrant boats.
Rather than visiting the docks at La Restinga directly, the Pope will focus on the civil and religious networks that have provided essential support to those arriving. Father Darwin Rivas, who has served as a parish priest on the island for six years, has become a central figure in understanding this crisis. Combining his religious duties with emergency volunteer work, Rivas notes that many of those arriving are educated individuals seeking family survival, challenging the common perception that they are entirely helpless.
El Hierro faces a unique situation: the island, home to only 7,000 residents, has managed the arrival of roughly 40,000 migrants in recent years. This massive disparity has forced local emergency services and volunteers to improvise, using sports halls and old convents to house arrivals before they are transferred to Tenerife after 72 hours.
Father Rivas’s work—which ranges from language assistance to providing psychological support after tragic events like the deaths of children at sea—highlights the strain on a reception system that is frequently overwhelmed. He emphasizes that for most migrants, the Canary Islands are merely a transit point on their way to support networks in other European countries.
Beyond its religious significance, the June 12 event highlights the importance of local integration. Cooperation between security forces and groups like the NGO Corazón Naranja has been crucial in maintaining social harmony and preventing the migration crisis from causing local division. While the papal visit is a formal event, it serves as a powerful platform to draw attention to a reality that continues to shape the social and political landscape of the Canary Islands, even as the number of arrivals has recently slowed.