Action before criticism

With summer fast approaching, the flow of illegal immigrants is once again on the rise. The human exodus from the African continent towards Europe and maybe a better life is once again very evident in the Mediterranean and affecting us and other southern European countries directly.

Our armed forces face a mammoth task in handling this flow and offer succours to the hundreds of people daring the trip. It is of no use to blame anyone in this tragic situation. Nevertheless, everybody must contribute to assist in the situation these people are facing.

Notwithstanding its limited resources, Malta is doing its best to assist these people in distress. I feel it is very unfair, to say the least, that there should be such a chorus of dissent against our country in the international media.

We need solidarity to be able to assist these people. The bureaucratic delays hindering decision-making are exacerbating the situation both for Malta and for these human beings in search of a better life.

The source of the problem is not Malta or the Maltese and no individual country can solve this phenomenon by itself. The problem must be tackled at its roots and collaboration with third countries, such as Libya, must be sought.

How can one blame our armed forces when both incidents highlighted in the world press occurred in Libya's search and rescue region, outside Malta's area of responsibility?

Libya failed to provide assistance to people in distress in its waters. The southern Mediterranean country needs to deal not only with search and rescue operations in its waters but also with the human traffickers operating from its shores.

It is unfair of European Commissioner Franco Frattini to accuse the Maltese authorities of letting people die and that we are hiding behind bureaucratic arguments. The delays for taking action in regard of the Dublin 2 reforms and implementation of the Medsea study surely cannot be blamed on us.

The solution is staring us in the face. We must introduce mechanisms whereby all responsibilities are shared among all member states. Nobody can blame our country if the assistance we have been promised has still to arrive.

We must work together to reach a solution; no Italy, France or Spain can compare its situation with that of Malta. All three countries have strong naval resources that can easily assist the people in distress.

The situation is critical and proper action must be taken without any further delays. A proper dialogue involving all key players, including the countries of origin, is a must if a lasting solution is to be sought.

It is useless for EU member states to blame each other. The problem is originating from outside European borders. I am not just referring to Libya but also to other African countries from where these long and dangerous journeys begin.

The problem is the result of post colonialism in the African continent. A situation that needs to be addressed immediately if we do not want to witness another Rwanda. The European Union must work with democratically-elected governments to ensure development in these countries.

The EU recognises the growing interdependence between north and south and the need to eliminate the present injustice in the distribution of wealth and resources on our planet.

The creation of more stable countries and regions would reduce the flow of irregular migration towards the EU.

As the saying goes, charity begins at home. If no real solidarity is shown within the European family how can the EU preach its values outside its borders?

In the year 2000, heads of state and and of government adopted a set of values considered to be essential to international relations in the 21st century. They are the Millennium Development Goals.

Have the countries of origin of the migrants travelling to Europe achieved, at least, the minimum standards of these values? Has action been taken to assist these countries to reach the preset goals?

We must address the question of why these people are leaving their countries and whether anything can be done so that these human beings continue to prosper in their homeland.

This is not an easy task, surely not a task that Malta can handle alone. Everybody must contribute. All countries all over the globe must come together to seek a solution. A commitment must be made by all nations, whether countries providing aid or those receiving it, in order to find a long-term solution.

Let us stop the political tug of war brought about by the incidents that occurred over the last days and act on a solution. Ideas have already been communicated to the responsible bodies and now action must be taken without further delay. The faster action is taken the more lives can be saved. Pointing fingers is not the solution!

Mr Casa is a Nationalist member of the European Parliament.

david.casa@europarl.europa.eu, www.davidcasa.eu