The UN called on Sunday to guarantee “safe and legal routes” in the Mediterranean Sea, following a shipwreck that killed at least 59 migrants off the coast of Calabria, Italy.
“Another horrible shipwreck claimed the lives of dozens of people, including children, this time off the coast of Italy. I repeat: all those who seek a better life deserve safety and dignity”, said the Secretary General of the United Nations, about the shipwreck that occurred on Sunday morning.
“We need safe and legal routes for migrants and refugees,” added António Guterres.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, was shocked by what happened and indicated that “it is time for States to stop arguing and reach an agreement on fair, effective and shared measures to avoid more tragedies.”
The United Nations Agency for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), headed by the Portuguese António Vitorino, reiterated that the rescue mechanisms of the European Union are necessary. Member states must “increase resources and capabilities to effectively fulfill their responsibilities,” they said.
An idea underlined in a statement by the UNHCR representative for Italy, the Holy See and San Marino, who noted that, “in a historical context characterized by people fleeing conflict and persecution, it is more necessary than ever to strengthen the rescue capacity, which is still insufficient to avoid tragedies like this”.
“It is unacceptable to witness such horrors, with families and children confined to wrecked and unseaworthy ships. This tragedy must prompt us to act and to act immediately,” said Chiara Cardoletti.
At least 59 people died when a boat with migrants sank near the Italian town of Crotone, according to the latest balance made by a mayor of that town in Calabria, in southern Italy.
“Until a few minutes ago, the number of confirmed victims was 59,” Vincenzo Voce told the Sky TG-24 news channel at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday (3:00 p.m. in Lisbon).
In the previous balance, the Italian rescue teams found 45 bodies of migrants and 80 survivors of the shipwreck, but they feared that there could be more fatalities.
Among the victims are many children, including a newborn baby, and women, according to rescuers.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed “deep regret” over the tragedy in a statement, saying it was “criminal to put a 20-meter ship with 200 people on board and forecast bad weather” at sea.
Uncertainty about the number of victims is due to differing reports from survivors about the people who were on the ship that sank.
The number of passengers carried forward by the survivors varies between 150 and 250, said members of the relief teams, who admitted that there were difficulties in communicating with the migrants due to language differences.
The Italian press reported that the migrants are from Iraq, Iran, Syria and Afghanistan, after initially mentioning the presence of Pakistanis.
According to the coast guard, the boat broke up on the rocks a few meters from the coast, at a time when the sea was very rough.
The Italian police images showed wooden remains scattered along a hundred meters of beach, where many rescuers and survivors waited to be transferred to a reception center.
The sinking came just days after Italy’s parliament approved controversial new rules on rescuing migrants by the far-right-dominated executive.
Meloni, leader of the far-right Fratelli d’Italia party, took office as head of a coalition government in October 2022 after vowing to reduce the number of migrants arriving in Italy.
The new law forces humanitarian ships to carry out only one rescue at a time, which critics say increases the risk of death in the central Mediterranean, considered the world’s most dangerous crossing for migrants.
Italy’s geographic location makes it a top destination for asylum seekers moving from North Africa to Europe, and Rome has long complained about the number of arrivals on its territory.
In reaction to the tragedy, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, called on member states to speed up an agreement on migration policy.
According to the Interior Ministry, almost 14,000 migrants have landed in Italy since the beginning of the year, up from about 5,200 during the same period last year and 4,200 in 2021.
Source: TSF
