On 5th August 2013 at around 1a.m, 46.6 nautical miles
from Libya and 140 nautical miles from Malta, the Liberian-flagged oil tanker
Salamis rescues 102 boat-people. This intervention follows Italy’s instructions
to assist their vessel in distress.
The Salamis continues towards Malta but the
army stops it 24 nautical miles from the island. Malta orders the shipping
company and the captain of the Salamis to return to Khoms, the vessel’s last port of call and the closest port to the
site of the rescue, to disembark the boat-people. The captain refuses and calls
for Malta and Italy to accept the migrants, four of whom are pregnant women
requiring medical assistance.
On August the 6th 2013, the European Commission (EC) orders Malta to allow the migrants to disembark
in response to the urgent humanitarian needs of the situation, irrespective of
the conflict over responsibility for the boat-people's search and rescue. The
EC recently reminded Malta its obligations with regard to the right to asylum,
and in particular the principle of non-refoulement, when the island expressed
its intention to push back migrants who had just arrived on its shores.
These events recall the announcement made by Australia
on July the 19th 2013 that it would no longer accept boat-people and would push
them back or return them to Papua New Guinea “where they will remain even if
their [asylum claim] is accepted”.
Are the Mediterranean states in search of a “European Papua New Guinea” where
they can offload the boat-people?
