Last week, it seemed we were proud of the government’s resoluteness not to give in to Italy’s demands to take in the Pinar migrants for being saved in our search and rescue area – indeed, we forgot what happens inside our detention centres when we applauded Lawrence Gonzi’s steadfastness.
Now Malta is hailing Italy’s forced deportation of asylum seekers and migrants back to Libya as a “positive” move, after a spat with Italy over its handling of rescued migrants.
Something does not make sense here: first the PM calls Italy’s actions disgusting, now the government says its latest move is positive. Is the government passing the buck to Italy to the dirty work?
The government is mistaken when it says Italy’s actions will stop human trafficking – it will not stop the economic and political roots of the human migration into Libya, and Gaddafi’s regime is not serious about controlling its porous borders and the trafficking networks that operate freely there.
Italy’s drastic action seeks to reverse 50 years of development in modern European human rights law. What’s worse, the European Commission is nowhere to be seen.
Its unilateral decision stems from a clumsy attempt to first arm-wrestle Malta into taking in migrants saved in our search and rescue region, and then by blockading a Maltese patrol boat from entering Lampedusa with rescued migrants. Clearly, the far-right credentials of the Lega Nord minister Roberto Maroni are in full view for the Italian electorate to see – but the Maltese government is equally misguided in hailing this development as positive.
What the Maltese public may not realise is that Italy has been in a position to ply Libya with generous financial aid in return for an unpublicised, repatriation agreement, which Malta is unable to offer.
Having said that, forced repatriation punishes asylum seekers with a justifiable claim for refugee protection: why send someone straight to hell just to avoid purgatory? For Libya is hell.
The greater risk for Malta is the ‘pull factor’ that could be generated with traffickers choosing to bypass Italian routes to disembark migrants closer to Malta.
International law is clear on the passage of sea by asylum seekers: every ship has the right to innocent passage in our territorial waters and the high seas, but flagless ships cannot. If the intention of the ship is to disembark passengers in contravention of immigration laws, it does not benefit from this right and the coastal nation has the right to escort such a ship to the high seas.
Arguably, this is what Italy might have done, but there is an all-important, universal and frankly unbendable principle to this: all rules must be applied without prejudice to international humanitarian law, namely, the prohibition of refoulement.
Non-refoulement means that asylum seekers cannot be sent back to a country like Libya, which is not a signatory of the Geneva Convention and therefore cannot offer protection to refugees. Italy’s action punishes asylum seekers and refugees with a justifiable claim to protection, who might have no other means but to enter a country without the expected legal means.
Secondly, the Maltese Cabinet’s debatable measure this week to allow free passage onwards to Italy – taken in the face of Italian affront – proves how this government is not even sure of what course of action to take on migration.
First it took a brawny stand against Italy in the Pinar standoff, then it caved in to the Lampedusa blockade, and now it decides to allow migrants free passage to Italy. Surely this cannot be a long-term solution. Indeed, we only open ourselves to accusations of aiding and abetting human trafficking.
In fact, international law is clear on this too: it could be regarded as an obligation for Malta to intervene if a ship is passing through our territorial waters and the high seas, with the intention of disembarking irregular migrants in Italy. While this is not explicitly established, it flows from Community policies on the crossing of external borders and the establishment of an area without internal frontiers.
But here lies the crux: the EU must take control of the Mediterranean migration scenario, not just through effective policing against traffickers, but also by allowing asylum seekers to pursue their right to seek protection. And it needs to take a serious look at Libya, its refusal to adhere to international conventions, and its neglect of its borders. This central node of trafficking and migration must be brought under control sooner rather than later. We hope the EU is listening.
Italy’s action carries security risks as well as political risks for Malta. The right-wing minister Maroni proves how even the fabled friendship of Malta and Italy can be compromised when international solidarity is sacrificed to electoral expedience and restrictive immigration policies.
Any comments?
If you wish your comments to be published in our Letters pages please click button below. Please write a contact number and a postal address where you may be contacted.
Search:
MALTATODAY
BUSINESSTODAY
Download MaltaToday Sunday issue front page in pdf file format
All the interviews from Reporter on MaltaToday's YouTube channel.
