Survivor of the Tarajal case denounces Spain before the Committee Against Torture

The claimant, who lost vision in one eye due to the use of riot control equipment, takes his case to the UN over the lack of investigation by the State

A survivor has filed a new complaint with the Committee Against Torture over the lack of investigation into the use of riot control equipment during the border operation on February 6, 2014, at El Tarajal beach (Ceuta), which caused him to lose vision in one eye. With the support of the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) and Irídia – Center for the Defense of Human Rights, Brice O. accuses Spain of failing to fulfill its obligation to prevent and investigate mistreatment and to compensate the victims.

This complaint is part of the ongoing human rights monitoring work carried out jointly by Irídia and NOVACT.

Brice O. was in the water in the dark when he was hit in the eye by riot control equipment that was launched that morning. Despite the absence of a protocol regulating the use of such equipment in aquatic environments and the fact that Civil Guard officers have not been trained for this purpose, officers used at least 145 rubber bullets, 355 blank cartridges, and 5 smoke canisters on February 6, 2014, within just 21 minutes.

The Spanish State has acknowledged at least 14 deaths, and autopsies of the five bodies found in Spain confirmed death by drowning. Despite forensic evidence confirming injuries from rubber bullets, the authorities never attempted to contact the survivors, who were only a few kilometers away, systematically excluding them from the judicial process.

After 11 years of impunity and in light of the case’s final dismissal, it is currently awaiting a ruling on the appeal for constitutional protection filed by CEAR, APDHE, and Coordinadora de Barrios before the Constitutional Court. To this day, some victims and their families are still awaiting a resolution.

Rubber bullets are an uncontrollable, potentially lethal, and torturous type of ammunition, making it impossible to predict their trajectory and, therefore, to ensure they do not hit sensitive areas of the body. The United Nations clearly states that kinetic energy projectiles should not be fired above the waist, nor used for crowd dispersal, let alone against people who are swimming and pose no threat to the lives of officers or third parties. Due to their indiscriminate nature and lack of traceability, the use of rubber bullets endangers the exercise of fundamental rights and the physical integrity of individuals.

For years, affected groups such as the Stop Rubber Bullets platform have been demanding their ban in the National Police and Civil Guard, as has already been done in Catalonia, the Basque Country, and Navarra.