Staff Reporter
By Nickacia Forrester
A YOUNG Red Cross volunteer who became a social media sensation when a photo of her hugging a frightened and distraught immigrant has been subjected to a campaign of far-right abuse.
Luna Reyes, a 20-year-old student has turned her Instagram account private after suffering extreme cyber harassment from more than 800 users, mostly members of far-right political party Vox.
A video of her giving migrants water and comforting the crying man who crossed the border from Morocco to Ceuta, a Spanish enclave on the North African coast made worldwide news.
Many people, including government ministers and ordinary people saw this as an act which showed hope for humanity.
But for many it was not. According to Vox, the incident was an ‘invasion’ and demanded a ‘permanent militarisation of the border’ and the construction of a wall to keep migrants out, in a statement that echoed former US president Trump’s call for a wall with Mexico.
Vox also threatened to withdraw its parliamentary support for the PP-led regional government of Andalucia if any asylum was given to any of those arrivals.
That would lead to a collapse of the region’s government and a likely boost for the xenophobic Vox.
Santiago Abascal their leader a 43-year-old native of Bilbao in the Basque Country who’s a grandson of a pro-Franco leader had been calling on citizens of Ceuta to demonstrate against migration after thousands of people crossed the border from Morocco.
But the demonstration was postponed by the local government. Abascal was left holed up in a hotel where he planned to hold a press conference instead.
But several groups held ‘counter demonstrations’ outside the hotel. Violence flared when police moved in to disperse the crowds, with several people injured, including seven law officers. Two people were arrested.
