Committees to consider Mallorca child sexual exploitation cases

Spokespeople for Podemos, Més and PSOE on Thursday.

Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterPalma28/02/2020 11:32

Following the failure to constitute a committee of experts to look into cases of child sexual exploitation because of the decision of Professor Jorge Carlos Fernández del Valle not to head it, the Council of Majorca will have another go.

On Thursday, the spokespeople for the three parties governing the Council - PSOE, Mes, Podemos - were unanimous in stating that there will be no reconsideration of there being a parliamentary commission of enquiry into the cases, which affect minors under the supervision of the IMAS, the Council's social affairs institute. Opposition parties have once more been demanding that there should be such a commission.

The committee of experts will analyse the circumstances surrounding the sexual exploitation of minors and will propose improvements to "the network for protection of children in care in Majorca". A new coordinator of this committee will be named, with the committee's deliberations scheduled to take three months once it formally convenes.

There is to be a separate committee which will address political responsibility. This committee will be able to request appearances by the current president of the IMAS, Javier de Juan, and the previous three presidents. This means that Jaume Garau, who was head of the IMAS when Francina Armengol was president of the Council of Majorca from 2007 to 2011, will be invited to give evidence, as will be Catalina Cirer (2011-2015, Partido Popular) and Margalida Puigserver (2015-2019, Més).