A cruise ship with 1,500 passengers is detained in Barcelona due to the presence of 69 Bolivians without visas

A group of 69 Bolivian citizens are unable to disembark from a cruise ship docked in the Spanish port of Barcelona (northeast of Spain) because they do not have valid visas to enter the European Schengen area, documents that the Spanish Police consider false.

Barcelona It is the final destination of the Bolivians affected by this circumstance, but not of all the passengers on the ship, with around 1,500 people, who had to continue their journey until Croatia.

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However, at the moment it remains docked in the Spanish port waiting to resolve the situation.

Relatives and friends of Bolivian passengers traveled to the Barcelona cruise terminalwho realized with anguish that they were unable to descend to earth.

Police sources informed EFE that The visas of these Bolivian citizens are fake and that it is being investigated whether those responsible for the cruise, the company MSCwere aware of this alleged violation.

In turn, sources of MSC Cruises They informed EFE that the company is working with the Spanish authorities to manage the situation affecting passengers coming from Bolivia, including families and children, and confirmed that they were traveling with “invalid documentation”.

They indicated that These passengers “appeared to have the appropriate documentation when boarding in Brazil.”

Relatives of the 69 Bolivian citizens who cannot disembark from a cruise ship docked in the port of Barcelona, ​​Spain. (EFE/Quique García). (Quique Garcia/)

Although, MSC Cruises was subsequently informed “by the (Spanish) authorities that the visas are not valid for their entry into the “Schengen Area”Therefore, they were unable to disembark in Barcelona, ​​which was their final destination, the company said.

According to MSC Cruises, the ship remains in Barcelona while the company works with the competent authorities to facilitate this process.

The cruise crossed the Atlantic from Brazil to Barcelonawhere the passage that had its final destination in this city got off with the required documentation in order.

At the same time, new travelers have been embarking on the second part of the route, in this case through the Mediterranean until Croatiaaccording to the carrier.

“Because nationals do not have entry documents into the Schengen Areahave difficulties disembarking at ports of Europe“, the Bolivian Government had already explained in a statement.

He added that its embassy in Spain and the South American country’s general consulate in Barcelona “are carrying out the relevant procedures to resolve this case” through “coordination with the Spanish authorities” and with MSC Cruises.

However, The Bolivian Executive considers that it is the company who must provide “an immediate solution”since “they had the obligation to prove entry or exit documents for any destination that offered their services” to avoid “this type of unforeseen event”.

Bolivians did not need a visa until 2007 to travel for up to 90 days to countries that are part of the Schengen area. the free movement of people; That year, European governments reversed the measure to respond to the increase in migratory flow from Bolivia.

In 2015, the Bolivian Government and the European Union began negotiations to eliminate the visa requirement to enter Schengen for short-term trips.

The issue was raised again in 2022 at a high-level dialogue in La Paz, although the visa requirement for Bolivians currently continues.

Source: Elcomercio