At least 1,865 people coming from 22 countries have died between January and May this year while trying to reach Spain's coasts at the southern border of the European Union, the NGO Caminando Fronteras reported on June 17, denouncing the death toll as an "endless massacre".

According to the latest data presented by the rights group, the Atlantic route connecting the coast of North Africa to the Canary Islands is the most lethal, registering the death of 1,482 migrants, including 112 women and 342 children.

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'Deaths represent a total failure for any democratic country'

Presenting the report, Helena Maleno, the director of the NGO that plays a crucial role in monitoring and denouncing human rights violations at the border, and which is in direct contact with the families of migrants reported missing during crossings as well as with migrant communities, described the deaths at sea, in particular of minors, as a "failure for any democratic country".

"Over 300 children have lost their lives during these journeys," and they are often stigmatized and criminalized, stressed Maleno. She also denounced "the lack" of search and rescue vehicles, in particular airplanes and helicopters.

Caminando Fronters, which examines figures provided by maritime and terrestrial rescue services and has a hotline active 24 hours a day, sounded the alarm over the disappearance of 38 boats and their passengers. Most of the vessels had departed from Mauritania to reach the Canary Islands and their passengers' disappearance has left "a terrible void in families and communities".

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January and February the deadliest months

In addition to the Atlantic route, the Algerian route recorded 328 deaths, while 52 people died in the Strait of Gibraltar, between the coasts of North Africa and Spain, and three people in the Alboran Sea.

January and February were the deadliest months, respectively with 767 and 618 victims, according to the dossier. Maleno said about half of these tragedies, exactly 47 percent, "could have been avoided" if adequate resources had been in place.

The NGO is demanding policies focusing on the protection of human rights, and not only on controlling migration, highlighting how climate change and an increasing number of conflicts are the main causes of forced migrations.

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