The Mediterranean migrant situation hardly affects Malta anymore, with the country having become an indifferent spectator to the daily tragedies that occur off our southern shore. But despite the fact that we have, in the last two or three years, barely participated in the humanitarian missions at sea, it seems that our political stance has remained unchanged.
Earlier this week a vessel called the Golfo Azzurro, which is operated by Spanish NGO Open Arms, picked up three migrants near Lampedusa. The crew requested to disembark the rescued people in Italy and Malta, but neither of the two countries welcomed the migrants with open arms.
Both governments refused to allow the ship to enter their respective ports.
Information was at first very scarce. Our newsroom was told, when we tried to make out what was happening, that the ship had only anchored off Malta because some crew members had bought flight tickets from Malta. When we contacted a spokesperson for Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia, we were told that there was no information about the case.
But government sources, speaking to other, more ‘friendly’ sections of the media, confirmed that Malta had refused the ship entry. And the Italian government was doing the same. This was confirmed to The Malta Independent by the Open Arms’ Head of Operations.
After spending more than 24 hours waiting outside Maltese waters, the vessel sailed towards Pozzallo in Sicily, where it was also turned back. The Italians, it seems, had a change of heart and the vessel was yesterday evening steaming towards Sicily for a second time.
This is not the first time that Malta has refused to take in rescued migrants. Many have correctly pointed out that the migrants were saved near Lampedusa, which is an Italian territory, and that, according to international law, we had no obligation to take them in. Some argued that, had Malta allowed the vessel to disembark the migrants here, we would have created an ‘ugly’ precedent.
International law states that people rescued at sea should be taken to the nearest safe port – in this case Lampedusa. To further strengthen the point that Italy should have taken them in, the operation was being coordinated by Rome.
But once again politicians, lost in their bickering over fine legal points, seem to have forgotten that on this boat, bobbing up and down on choppy waters, are three human beings who have escaped persecution and threats.
There were cases in the past where delays caused by political bickering cost the lives of men, women and children. One such instance was the 11 October 2013 tragedy, where a sinking boat capsized, taking over 300 people down with it, while Italy and Malta argued over who should go to the rescue.
In this case it seems that the migrants were not in imminent danger, but blocking them on a boat in international waters with no one offering to give them shelter is not a very humane thing to do.
Where is the solidarity?