“The pain and horror that we have felt at these tragic deaths must be channeled through the adoption of measures by European governments, which must guarantee the existence of safe and legal routes to reach the European Union (EU).
How many more lives have to be lost before European policy makers realize that blocking safe and legal routes and criminalizing rescuers does not deter people from taking that journey; it only serves to make it more dangerous.
Rather than progressively make Europe’s borders more hostile by carrying out summary expulsions and criminalizing NGO rescuers trying to save lives at sea, European governments should focus on ensuring safe passage for migrants.”
Additional information
Last week, more than 60 migrants drowned and dozens more went missing when the overloaded boat they were traveling in sank off the Libyan coast.
On February 23, the Italian legislative chamber finally approved legislation that includes measures aimed at hindering the work of rescue NGOs. Pursuant to this legislation, that same day the Geo Barents, a rescue ship run by Doctors Without Borders (MSF), was confiscated for 20 days and told that it would be fined 10,000 euros.