After a gruelling three-year legal battle, a Catalan court has granted a young Gambian man residency papers, ruling he was a minor when wrongly expelled from state care. The case of Saynei Kanteh, now 20, casts a harsh spotlight on controversial and often inaccurate age-assessment procedures for unaccompanied minors arriving in Spain.
Your browser does not support the video tag.
In August 2023, the Public Prosecutor for Minors declared Mr Kanteh to be over 18, stripping him of his right to public protection. He was immediately removed from the guardianship of Catalonia’s child protection agency, the Direcció General d’Atenció a la Infància i l’Adolescència (DGAIA), and expelled from the centre where he lived. At the time, he was 17 years old.
“I knew I wasn’t lying, that I was seventeen, and I trusted that sooner or later I would get my papers,” Mr Kanteh recalled in an interview with Ara Cat.
A Flawed System
Mr Kanteh’s experience is far from unique, particularly for young arrivals from Gambia. Spanish authorities frequently refuse to recognise the validity of their passports, despite legal requirements unless forgery is proven. Instead, authorities subject youths to age-assessment tests, such as wrist bone and dental examinations. These tests have been widely discredited by scientific literature and criticised by human rights organisations.
In 2020, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child found that Spain’s age determination procedures violate migrant children’s rights. The committee noted that these forensic tests have a significant margin of error. This can lead to minors being incorrectly classified as adults, resulting in them losing vital protection.
Without residency papers or post-guardianship benefits designed to aid emancipation, Mr Kanteh was expelled from care and became homeless. For a year and a half, he lived on the streets of Barcelona and Premià de Mar.
“It’s very hard, very hard, nobody can imagine it,” he said, insisting that he never resorted to crime or had any trouble with the police.
The Road to Justice
Represented by Albert Parés, a lawyer from the non-profit organisation Noves Vies, Mr Kanteh appealed the decision. Mr Parés argued the DGAIA was guilty of “double negligence.” Not only did it rely on flawed age tests, but it also failed to legally notify Mr Kanteh of the results, leaving him defenceless.
Ultimately, the Administrative Contentious Chamber of the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) sided with Mr Kanteh. The judges annulled the DGAIA’s resolution, confirming he was a minor when applying for residency.
The ruling applied a doctrine established by the Supreme Court of Spain, which recognises that rights acquired during one’s minority should be projected into the future. The court therefore ordered the retroactive restoration of the rights wrongly taken from him, even though he has since turned 20.
A New Beginning
The two-year residency permit, allowing him to live and work in Spain, arrived just as Mr Kanteh celebrated his 20th birthday.
After years of uncertainty, he has found stability at the historic Monestir de Sant Jeroni de la Murtra in Badalona, where he is being housed by the Fundació Catalunya-Amèrica.
Journey and Aspirations
His journey to Europe began at 14, inspired by photos of success from friends who had made the trip before him. Without telling his parents, he travelled from Gambia through Senegal, Burkina Faso, Mali, Algeria, and Morocco, eventually crossing to the Canary Islands by boat in 2020. He was later transferred to Barcelona due to overcrowding in the Canary Islands’ reception centres.
Looking ahead, Mr Kanteh hopes to become a “cook or a garden designer” to support his parents and build a better future. This ordeal left a lasting mark.
Although his lawyer, Mr Parés, notes a remote possibility of an appeal from the Foreigners’ Office, this victory is significant. The process for issuing the documentation can still be lengthy, and he may opt to apply for Spain’s extraordinary regularisation process, expected to begin in April, which aims to streamline residency for thousands. For now, Mr Kanteh can finally look forward with hope and renewed purpose.
