Valletta, Malta - A pact with Italy has led Libya to curb
the use of its shores as a springboard for migrants trying to reach
Europe illegally but humanitarian groups have expressed concerned for
those still wanting to make the sea crossing.
Malta, which in recent years has been at the forefront of would-be
immigrant arrivals, is now reporting a dramatic fall in the number of
such landings.
Between April and May, just two vessels carrying a total of 99
migrants arrived on the tiny Mediterranean island-state. No landings
occurred in June.
In contrast, over the same period in 2008, some 872 African
migrants landed on Malta, many of them in June when human traffickers
often exploit clement weather to organize the clandestine journeys.
The reduction has eased off pressure on Malta's packed detention
centres, which have often drawn heavy criticism from humanitarian
organisations for the unsanitary conditions under which migrants are
kept.
Similarly, at another arrival point for stranded or intercepted
migrants, the Italian islet of Lampedusa, arrivals have declined 33
per cent and 95 per cent in April and May respectively, compared to
the same period in 2008, according to United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The current situation is 'so calm it's almost unnatural,' UNHCR
spokeswoman Laura Boldrini told the German Press Agency dpa.
'For the last four or five summers we were continuously dealing
with distress calls. Last summer we were having around 12 to 13
arrivals a day in Lampedusa,' she said.
In 2008, Malta was receiving an average of one boat of immigrants
every two days.
Libya ordered a crackdown on human trafficking following the
recent coming into effect of a deal struck in August 2008 by its
leader, Moamer Gaddafi, and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Through the agreement, Italy has committed investments of some 5
billion dollars in Libya as compensation for three decades of Italian
colonial rule over the North African nation.
In return, Libya has agreed to monitor its shores through joint
naval patrols with Italy and to accept would-be immigrants
intercepted by Italian authorities in international waters.
Rights activists, United Nations officials and the Vatican have
all condemned what they say are deportations by Italy done without
determining whether the migrants qualify for political asylum.
It is not clear how Libya has managed to reduce the number of
departures from its shores.
Several Maltese officials, speaking on condition of anonymity,
suspect that many traffickers have been arrested, and that an alleged
factory manufacturing boats used to make the crossings has been shut
down.
Though the decline in crossings has been welcomed in Italy and
Malta, Boldrini says it should be a matter of concern.
'It would be okay if I knew that everything was okay with Libya.
And not everything is okay with Libya,' she said, pointing out that
Tripoli does not have any legislation covering the granting of
asylum.
Tripoli has no signed Geneva Convention for Refugees which means
the UNHCR is not allowed access to many immigrant detention camps and
holding centres situated in the North African country.
Rights groups and agencies say they fear the crackdown poses an
added danger to genuine asylum seekers who might now be forced to
choose even more treacherous routes to reach Europe from Africa.
This comes at a time when the number of people fleeing political
and religious persecution appears to be on the rise.
Some 36,000 would-be immigrants reached Italy by sea in 2008, with
70 per cent applying for asylum and almost half then receiving
refugee status, according to UNHCR figures.
Nearly 2,800 immigrants landed in Malta in 2008, a 60 per cent
increase over the previous ear. The vast majority applied for asylum
and 52 per cent were given protection, almost twice as many as the EU
average.
'Sadly, Europe is becoming more inaccessible and there are
governments that are increasingly considering externalising the right
of asylum,' Boldrini said.
USA
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