The group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats (EPP-ED) supports the idea of burden-sharing with regard to irregular migration, the group’s chairman Joseph Daul said yesterday, adding that the problem must be tackled at its source.

Mr Daul was delivering a speech at the opening of EPP-ED group’s study days, currently being held in Malta. Migration, together with maritime affairs and Euro-Mediterranean cooperation, are the main issues being discussed during the event, which will come to an end tomorrow.

Mr Daul said the group also supported the suggestion put forward by Justice and Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg that proposes the drafting of common rules that provide for the collective responsibility of all EU member states with regard to irregular migrants.

“We must work together to break the networks of mafia organisations in countries where migrants come from. In the coming months, the EPP-ED group’s efforts will be very much focused on combating terrorism,” he said.

Speaking about Euro-Mediterranean relations, Mr Daul stressed the importance of a policy based on the principle of solidarity that would be able to tackle the multiple challenges being faced by the whole EU.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi’s speech, which followed immediately after Mr Daul’s, strongly echoed the principle of solidarity that formed a central part of the EPP-ED chairman’s message.

Dr Gonzi encouraged the members of the EPP-ED group present at the opening of the study days to think ahead in the same spirit of solidarity as that adopted by the founders of the EU. He quoted Alcide de Gasperi, one of founders, as saying: “Noi siamo una civiltà in marcia” (“We are a civilisation that is moving forward”).

De Gasperi was certainly not speaking about a civilisation that was growing at the expense of others, said Dr Gonzi, adding that rather, the Italian statesman was speaking about a civilised life that was ready to bring together all human beings in a spirit of freedom and solidarity.

Referring to migration, the Prime Minister said that while it was tempting to be indifferent to the problem, “we should not succumb to it”.

“I’m saying this despite the fact that I am prime minister of a small country that has been taking in numerous migrants. The annual rate of migrants reaching our shores is now equal to half the country’s birth rate,” he said.

Due to the country’s size, every migrant reaching Malta’s shores means that it would be just as if 140 migrants arrived in Italy, 150 in France or 205 in Germany.

This means that in proportion to the country’s size, the 1,780 migrants that arrived last year should be considered as if 364,000 migrants had arrived in Germany, said Dr Gonzi.

The prime minister said it was important that irregular migrants were provided with all the humanitarian aid they may require.

These people are victims of a terrifying crime – human trafficking, he said. Last summer alone, more migrants died trying to reach Europe’s shores than were killed in the war in Lebanon, he said.

Stressing the importance to the Maltese search and rescue teams of saving human lives, Dr Gonzi said it was not enough to save people from drowning.

“We need to help these people to rebuild their lives, and Malta cannot do this alone. The EU’s current institutional and legal structures are not enough to respond to the problem,” he said, stressing the importance of effective surveillance at sea.

Saying that the situation has recently improved slightly, thanks to the efforts of Commissioner Frattini, as well as the Portuguese presidency’s commitment in this regard, Dr Gonzi said that much more needs to be done to address the problem at source.

The economic and political situation in countries from where migrants originate is very weak, and the EU must think ahead to find ways of strengthening the dialogue with Africa, said Dr Gonzi, before concluding on the need for an integrated approach with regard to a topic related to irregular migration – maritime affairs – and possibly even the need for regional institutions to coordinate and consolidate maritime policy.