Towards a way out of the crisis? Italy’s new far-right government on Sunday allowed minors and other migrants with medical conditions to disembark from the SOS Humanity ship, but refused to allow 35 adult men to disembark, the NGO said.
Three minor girls and a baby were the first to disembark from Humanity 1 at dawn, followed by minor children and adult men with medical problems, SOS Humanity press officer Petra Krischok told AFP.
“Thirty-five adult men are still on board. For now, we stay here and wait.” “The survivors are extremely depressed. One person collapsed,” she added.
A total of 144 people disembarked from Humanity 1, a German-flagged ship, in the port of Catania.
Other boats waiting
Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said on Saturday that the government will not back down on its humanitarian obligations, but that those who are not “qualified” must be taken care of by the ship’s flag state.
Three other ships, carrying a total of 900 migrants, have requested permission to dock: the Rise Above, from the NGO Mission Lifetime, also flying the German flag, as well as the Ocean Viking from SOS Méditerranée and the Geo Barents from Médecins sans Frontières, registered them in Norway.
Italy’s new far-right government, which was sworn in last month, has vowed to crack down on boat migrants heading from North Africa to Europe.
Opposition deputy Aboubakar Soumahoro, who was present during the disembarkation, criticized the “selection of shipwrecked migrants”, which he said violated international law.
For him, the government treats “the castaways, already exhausted by the cold, fatigue, injuries and torture as objects.” “If the remaining castaways are rejected, we will challenge this decision in all appropriate forums,” he said on Twitter.
Norway’s foreign ministry said Thursday that it “cannot be held responsible” for people rescued by Norwegian-flagged private vessels in the Mediterranean.
Germany insisted, in a diplomatic “note” addressed to Italy, on the fact that charitable organizations “made an important contribution to saving human lives” and asked Rome “to help them as soon as possible”.
Source: BFM TV
