The European Commission has reminded the new Italian government on Monday that European Union countries have a «moral duty» and a «legal obligation» to rescue migrants at sea, regardless of the circumstances in which they arrived there, while stressing the importance of finding a safe place to disembark those rescued as soon as possible.
«We reiterate once again that it is both a moral and legal duty to save lives on the high seas and also an obligation of international law that member states must comply with,» said the Community spokesperson for Migration, Anitta Hipper, after being asked at a press conference in Brussels about the reservations of the Executive of Giorgia Meloni to allow the disembarkation in Italian ports of rescued migrants.
The spokeswoman said that the European Commission welcomes the signal late on Sunday from the Italian government to allow «vulnerable people» to disembark, but recalled that there are several ships that have requested to take to their ports other people rescued at sea and are still waiting for a response.
The Community Executive «is not responsible for the coordination of the details» in maritime rescue operations «or to identify the place» in which the rescued should be disembarked, Hipper insisted, to explain that Brussels does not point to any Member State.
However, he added, European governments must comply with international law that obliges them to provide assistance to people adrift at sea and pointed out the importance of «every effort to minimize the time» that these people remain on ships without being able to reach land.
Brussels is aware that the place for disembarkation will depend on each case, depending on the specific circumstances of each situation, but also «encourages all relevant authorities to cooperate with each other» to offer vessels that have rescued migrants a «suitable» port.
«We call on all member states to save lives and to ensure that they assume their legal obligations and allow people at sea to be rescued,» he reiterated.
Italy’s government has vowed to tighten migration policies, with particular emphasis on NGO activity in the Mediterranean. The authorities have in recent days only allowed selective disembarkations, of those considered most vulnerable, keeping hundreds of migrants and refugees in political limbo.
Rome has appealed to European solidarity and the responsibility of the countries to which the NGO boats belong. It has also raised relocation mechanisms that would allow it to share the burden that, in its opinion, implies being a gateway for migrants who want to reach Europe from North Africa.
