Boats carrying 179 Africans land in Canaries

MADRID, May 11 (Reuters) Boats packed with at least 179 Africans sailed into Spain's Canary Islands today, in a mass arrival reminiscent of last year when illegal immigration became one of the country's top political issues.

A boat carrying 80 Africans hoping for better lives in Europe was escorted into Tenerife, and three boats with 49 aboard landed in Gran Canaria. Police also arrested another 50 people after the discovery of four empty boats in Gran Canaria, an emergency services spokeswoman said.

Last year Spain's Socialist government scrambled to seek repatriation agreements with African countries after more than 30,000 illegal immigrants landed in the Canaries, which are located off the north-western coast of Africa.

The sight of boatloads of exhausted, thirsty migrants arriving in colourfully painted wooden boats driven by huge outboard motors became a regular feature of nightly news bulletins, pushing immigration to the top of voters' concerns.

Many of last year's arrivals were eventually flown to the Spanish mainland, given pieces of paper asking them to leave the country and released.

Now migrants arriving by boat often face a stay in a detention centre before being flown back home.

Thousands of people are believed to drown or die of thirst or exposure on the risky voyages of a 1,000 km (600 miles) or longer hugging the West African coast. The trips are too dangerous for open boats during winter but now the warmer waters of spring make survival easier.

REUTERS AK KP2255