The migration phenomenon and Europe’s response to it keeps on getting more complicated as more twists and turns unfold each day.
The most ‘welcoming’ country – Sweden - announced that it would be repatriating some 80,000 failed asylum seekers, while the UK, which has been a lot more strict and unmoving in its stance suddenly announced that it would be taking in unaccompanied minors.
Denmark on the other hand, has announced that it will be implementing an new law which would allow the authorities to sequester valuables up to a certain amount to finance the care and housing of migrants in their country.
The last point seems to be a rather harsh one. When you have fled your country isn’t everything that you are carrying sentimental and essential? Are we going to go back to the dark, dark days of the previous century when people were stripped of their jewellery and watches and other heirlooms? Denmark says this is not the case, but many are interpreting it to be exactly that.
Germany has also cooled in its stance, both on a political level, and on a personal level as people are still reeling from the sexual assaults which took place on New Year’s Eve. Hundreds of Middle Eastern men targeted women in mass assaults which made it very difficult for the perpetrators to be caught.
Since then, Europe has been on edge. Germans are angry that their hospitality has been abused of, while the vast majority of migrants that now call the country their home are absolutely terrified at reprisals by vigilante gangs who are seeking out asylum seekers.
Equally, in the North of England, cases have been heard whereby migrants realised that their homes/accommodation were being targeted because their doors are painted red by companies that are sourced by the government to house migrants.
Another case which drew outrage was in Wales where migrants were forced to wear red wristbands. The backlash was so severe that the order was rescinded.
What is becoming increasingly more clear is that in Europe, as well as Malta, it is becoming a case of religion, as well as culture. It may sounds completely barbaric, but many conversations among Maltese are starting to go something along the lines of: “Give me an African over a Muslim any day of the week.” Before the influx of Libyans and Syrians, sub Saharan Africans were given a wide berth by our society, but now that they have begun to integrate, it seems that they have risen a rung or two on the social standing ladder.
This was very evident by the protest of the so-called Maltese Patriots who served up ham and assaulted journalists proved that point. But on the other hand, it must also be said that the Muslim community in Malta did stoke the fires by gathering for Friday prayers just opposite the Msida Church. The truth is that this problem is not going to go away. The number of boat people has dropped drastically, but there is a lot of silent migration, and much of it is not from the Maghreb or the Middle East, but the silent influx of Eastern Europeans. The issue is not going to go away. Europe must get to grips with it, or the passport free travel which we all hold so dear will soon be a thing of the past.