Hopes were shattered yesterday evening when a call from local authorities informed the press that they were denied access to the fulfilment of an agreement which would have enabled 51 irregular immigrants to finally stand on solid ground after 10 days stranded at sea.

Yesterday at noon, the media, including several from foreign agencies, were informed that they would be granted access to assist to the arrival of the Spanish trawler Francesco Catalina and were kept updated on its expected arrival time. It was decided that some of the immigrants onboard will be dispatched to four different countries, namely Spain, Andorra, Italy and Libya.

While members of the media waited outside AFM’s Hay Wharf base at around 8.30pm, they were informed by Parliamentary Secretary Tony Abela that press was denied access and would not be allowed to come anywhere near the immigrants upon their eventual arrival. Although excuses of security reasons were given, it was unclear why the press was denied access at the last minute. At this point, the exact time of arrival was also a mystery, since there were “still some diplomatic clearances to be solved”, the press was told.

There was an apparent blockage in signage of the final diplomatic agreement, and rumours circulated that red tape in Libya had held up the process. This was a huge shock for two UNHCR inspectors who arrived on the spot and were also told that they would not be granted access. They explained that it is highly unusual for UNHCR officials to be denied access to such an occurrence and they said that they were extremely frustrated at this decision.

All present at Hay Wharf gates waited for some hours in disillusionment. Although there were slight hopes that a solution was within reach, these were dispelled when army sources started to filter through the news that they had stood down for the night. The issue is expected to unfold today.