EU Commissioner vows to help

EU Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini yesterday acknowledged that the problem of illegal migration in Malta had become "extremely dangerous" but took exception to claims that the EU was failing to take concrete action.

Mr Frattini admitted that the number of boat people landing in Malta - the biggest proportion per capita in any European country - was of concern, as Nationalist and Labour politicians united in calling on the EU for assistance.

Speaking during a joint news conference with Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg, Mr Frattini vowed to provide maximum help to an island facing an immigration crisis.

He called on Malta to tap supplementary sources of funding which could be available in the coming months, citing in particular the €6.6 million Argo and the €15 million Return Programmes.

A few weeks ago, the Commission decided to allocate an extra €1 million in emergency funds to be used by Malta, Italy and Libya, a figure Mr Frattini admitted was just a starting point.

He also recalled that Malta would receive four times as much money from the EU's Refugee Fund in 2005, when compared to last year.

The EU has presented a framework programme specifically designed to react to illegal immigration. The Union is holding talks with Libya on the possibility of establishing a long-term action plan.

Mr Frattini said he had given specific instructions to the Frontex agency to carry out a threat assessment of immigration originating from Libya.

It was no mean feat, he stressed, that all EU states were now recognising the need to focus on migration in the Mediterranean.

Reiterating his support for Malta's proposal to have a refugee resettlement programme, Mr Frattini admitted however that there was increasing reluctance for countries to accept immigrants because of the "mistaken" public link between terrorism and refugees.

"Let's help people avoid such misconceptions. Suicide bombers are normally well educated and well integrated. They are not desperate people."

Mr Frattini said he feared that the no votes in the European Constitution referendums in France and the Netherlands were influenced to a great extent by xenophobic fears.

"These are dangerous perceptions because they affect the values of solidarity," he said.

He underlined the need for an inter-faith dialogue and urged Malta to adopt a pivotal role in strengthening the relations between Christianity and the Muslim world in order to combat prejudice.

Mr Frattini said he had recommended to the government that journalists should be allowed on "general visits" to detention centres, provided that the privacy and safety of asylum seekers is respected. As things stand at the moment, the press is barred from entering detention centres.

Still, the commissioner said it was encouraging to see that the government has embarked on a drive to build appropriate compounds for immigrants.

During a meeting of the House European and Foreign Affairs Committee, MEP Simon Busuttil said it was ironic that while the EU had a Solidarity Fund for natural disasters there seemed to be no funding for human disasters.

Dr Busuttil challenged Mr Frattini to use Malta as a test case to prove that the EU could be instrumental in combating the problem of illegal migration.

Committee chairman Jason Azzopardi said it would be truly tragic if Europe turned a blind eye to the problem of immigration.

Opposition MPs Leo Brincat and George Vella aired similar concerns.

Mr Frattini also held meetings with President Eddie Fenech Adami, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and Foreign Affairs Minister Michael Frendo.

During his meeting with Mr Frattini, Dr Frendo renewed an appeal to the European Union to act on illegal immigration urgently with a concerted and holistic approach.

Dr Frendo presented a letter to Mr Frattini on behalf of the 5+5 countries which met in Malta last month and entrusted Malta to communicate the conclusions of the discussions on illegal immigration to the EU.

"The meeting entrusted me with this communication to your good self to emphasise the urgency of concertedly and holistically addressing this phenomenon and to seek through you the support of the Commission for the approach suggested by the Western Mediterranean Dialogue countries" Dr Frendo said.

The letter presented to Dr Frattini explains that the subject of illegal immigration was a main discussion during the 5+5 Meeting in Malta and in particular the urgency of vigorously addressing the problem holistically and the need to engage the countries of destination, transit and origin.

In his letter Dr Frendo said that illegal immigration was also the subject of a joint non-paper presented by Malta and Libya at the Malta Meeting of the Western Mediterranean Dialogue. A copy of this joint non-paper between Malta and Libya was presented to Commissioner Frattini.