The United Nations calls on Libya and the European Union to reform their search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea, saying that current practices deprive migrants of their rights and dignity, when they do not take their lives.
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According to a report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on search and rescue operations and the protection of migrants in the Mediterranean, the policies and practices in place "fail to prioritize the life, security and human rights of people trying to cross from Africa to Europe ”.
The document, released on Wednesday, says the evidence suggests it is not a "tragic anomaly, but rather a consequence of political decisions and concrete practices by Libyan authorities, member states and institutions of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. European Union, and other actors ”. Entitled “Fatal Contempt: Search and Rescue and Protection of Migrants in the Central Mediterranean,” the 37-page report examines the period from January 2019 to December 2020. It concludes that Libya is not a safe place for disembarking migrants rescued at sea and that current policies and practices in the central Mediterranean allow violations and abuses against migrants more than they stop.
Reacting to the report, UN human rights official Michelle Bachelet called on Tripoli and Brussels to urgently reform their search and rescue policies. “The real tragedy is that so much of the suffering and death along the central Mediterranean route is preventable,” said the former Chilean president. “Every year, people drown because help arrives too late, or never arrives,” she said. "Those who are rescued are sometimes forced to wait days or weeks before being safely disembarked or, as is increasingly the case, are sent back to Libya which, as was pointed out in countless times, is not a safe port, ”she further argued.
More than 10,000 migrants intercepted by the Libyan coast guard
The report says EU member states have cut back on search and rescue operations, while aid organizations have been prevented from carrying out rescues.
He adds that private ships are increasingly avoiding coming to the aid of migrants in distress due to the quarrels surrounding the disembarkation.
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Europe has encouraged Tripoli to take on a greater share of search and rescue tasks. In 2020, at least 10,352 migrants were intercepted by the Libyan coast guard and returned to Libya, compared to at least 8,403 in 2019. However, when they arrive in Libya, they face a series of serious human rights violations and abuses. man, blames the report.
“No one should feel compelled to risk their life, or that of their family, on ships in disrepair in search of safety and dignity,” said Michelle Bachelet. "But the answer cannot be boiled down to preventing departures from Libya or making travel more desperate and dangerous." “Until there are enough safe, accessible and regular migration channels, people will continue to try to cross the central Mediterranean, regardless of the dangers or consequences,” she laments.
