A spokesman for the left-wing political organisation said: “In the light of Libya’s bad human rights record – as vividly shown by human rights organisations such as Amnesty International – we believe that repatriating asylum seekers to this country could jeopardise their chance of obtaining a needed refugee status. Asylum seekers who are being persecuted for their political beliefs (such as those active for democracy in their country of origin) are unlikely to be granted political asylum in a country with a regime such as Libya’s which lacks basic political freedoms.”

“With regard to allegations that at times asylum seekers destroy their documents, Moviment Graffitti sait it wished to highlight that asylum seekers coming from regions lacking basic rights are unlikely to obtain the necessary travel documents from the authorities.”

“Moviment Graffitti believes that all asylum seekers arriving in Malta should have their case reviewed separately. This will ensure that bona fide asylum seekers will receive the protection to which they are entitled.”

“Genuine asylum seekers, it says, are the victims of oppression, poverty and injustice, and should not be seen as criminals. Rather than carrying out international agreements based on the ‘Fortress Europe’ concept, Malta should exert international pressure to ensure that asylum seekers are entitled to basic human rights. Rather than closing its doors, Europe should tackle such issues through policies that aim to do away with the North-South divide, which in the first instance is resulting in mass poverty in Southern regions.”