FAMILY members of a 19-year-old Colombian who was deported from Spain this week have protested in front of the parliament buildings in Alicante.

They carried banners declaring, ‘the government wrecks families’ and ‘I’m Spanish, so why have you taken my dad away?’

Manuel Mauricio – Mauro to his friends and family – has lived in Spain since the age of ten when he moved across the Atlantic with his parents and three brothers.

None of the family has ever been back to Colombia, even for a visit.

Mauro’s family of origin were granted permanent right of residence in Spain many years ago.

The young man’s wife, Cristina, is Spanish and their six-month-old baby has Spanish nationality.

But Mauro was deported when it was found his visa had run out.

The family say they are terrified for his welfare, since he has no friends, relatives or even acquaintances in Colombia and it is a country wracked by political turmoil.

MP for Alicante, Encarna Llinares, says Mauro was deported due to having a police record, not because he did not have a residence permit.

Although he has never served a custodial sentence nor been involved in a criminal gang, the family lawyer, Blas Giner, says the teen went off the rails for a few years whilst still underage.

But the birth of his son made him ‘grow up and become responsible’, reveals Giner.

He has since found a job and has re-started his education.

The solicitor says the welfare of the family unit should come first.

Llinares has agreed to meet with the family on Monday to discuss possible solutions.

Yet she warns that it is extremely difficult to revoke a deportation order, and that these carry a ban of between three and five years on returning to the country from which the deportee is exiled.