The Prime Minister and the President of the Valencian Community were both in Alicante on Thursday where they were visiting the Ciudad de la Luz reception centre, the facility being used for displaced Ukranian refugees that are arriving into Spain from their war torn country on a daily basis.
The pair were at the centre for nearly two hours, where, currently, an average of 250 people are being dealt with daily, by volunteers and lawyers who advise refugees on legal matters.
After touring the initial reception area the entourage moved in to the temporary accommodation centre that has been built inside four buildings in Ciudad de la Luz, using the old Valencia field hospital.
The centre has the capacity to accommodate 500 people with a dining room, recreation areas, laundry, toilets, showers and an outdoor area where games and sports courts have been installed.
During his visit the Prime Minister spoke to many of the NGO’s and volunteers who are working in the centre thanking them for the assistance they are providing. He said that Spain had already received approximatey 30,000 Ukranian refugees since the conflict began but there were still many more who were en route, still in need of temporary accommodation. He said that he expected the number to increase in the coming days to as many as 70,000.
Both Prime Minister Sánchez and Community President Puig spent a lot of time talking with some of these families and even taking “selfies” with them. He has conveyed to the refugees “that we are willing to help with everything that is in our power so that they are able to find a present and a future here in Spain, something that they have not been able to achieve as a result of the brutal aggression of the autocrat Putin.”
Toward the end of his visit, in a statement without questions, to the dozens of journalists who were following him around, the Prime Minister said that this reception centre exemplifies the values of ” solidarity, humanity, and respect for human beings, and their future peace and security.” He added that he feels “excited” because “these are times when we have to give the best of ourselves and Spain is once again is doing that in an example of solidarity, welcome and brotherhood with these many people who are suffering”.
Meanwhile, the President of the Generalitat, Ximo Puig, highlighted that Friday marked the anniversary of hundreds of Spaniards fleeing the Spanish Civil War in 1939, leaving the port of Alicante for Algeria. “It is a day to show that we know that we understand those who suffer,” Puig said. Regarding the Ciudad de la Luz facilities, Puig he added that this centre “humanises us all, it once again gives us all hope in human nature”.
