The Bishops called on the European Union yesterday to express in a tangible way its solidarity with Malta over illegal migration.

Malta, they said, was facing huge problems and this made it incumbent on the international community, and especially the EU, to enhance their efforts and policy to help development in the countries from which the migrants were coming.

Archbishop Pawl Cremona OP and Bishop of Gozo Mgr Mario Grech said they were sending their message to the European bishops’ conference to invite them to influence the government of their countries to improve coordination and effective assistance aimed at saving human life. They said recent events in the Mediterranean had greatly saddened all those who valued life. This was a human and a political problem, that was linked together but which could not be mixed together.

They pointed out that the Maltese bishops had already expressed themselves on the migration phenomenon, when in May last year they said that Malta should do its best to promote coherence between the human and Christian principles it embraced.

The civil authorities were facing huge problems, said the bishops. Malta was responsible for a very large search and rescue area. When a small country such as Malta was already carrying a heavy burden, it expected that other countries, which were so much larger, would carry out their duties in such operations.

Malta expected that fellow member states of the EU would not only understand the problems Malta faced, but would also help the Maltese authorities in a concrete manner and a spirit of solidarity.

They added that even in cases where the search and rescue responsibilities lay with

others, Malta should do its best to prevent loss of life.

The international community, and especially the European Union, the bishops said, should express their solidarity in a concrete manner, firstly with the migrants who found themselves in danger while crossing the Mediterranean in search of a new life, and secondly with the Maltese in the enormous problems they face because of this phenomenon.

The situation placed on the international community, and especially the EU, a duty to enhance their efforts and policy to help development in the countries from which these migrants originated, so that these countries would have economic systems and politicians who created wealth which could be enjoyed by their peoples.