The Nationalist Party has expressed relief that 356 people stranded aboard a charity vessel at sea have been brought to Malta, saying that “human lives are priceless and people are not pawns in the hands of wrong political agendas”. 

People rescued by the Norwegian-flagged Ocean Viking were brought to Malta aboard an Armed Forces of Malta patrol vessel late on Friday. They will remain in Malta until they are redistributed across six different EU member states, as part of a relocation deal brokered by the EU, France and Germany. 

The men, women and children aboard the ship had spent almost two weeks stuck between Malta and Lampedusa after they were rescued by the ship’s crew. 

In a statement on Saturday, the PN said that Europe had to reach some sort of collective solution applicable in all such cases. One-off, ad hoc solutions would just not cut it, the party said. 

The PN’s relief was echoed by a group of NGOs and academic institutions, which in a joint statement on Saturday chastised European politicians for having dragged their feet before reaching a solution. 

“For two long weeks, the rescued men, women and children were abandoned on a rescue vessel, forced to endure the scorching heat, uncertainty and ongoing precarity,” the NGOs said. 

“The principles of solidarity, considered to be a cornerstone of the Union, must take front and centre. We remind the Member States of their legal, political and moral responsibilities and call on them to do much better”.

Which organisations backed the civil society statement?

1. aditus foundation
2. African Media Association
3. Catholic Voices Malta
4. Department of Gender Studies, University of Malta
5. Department of Youth & Community Studies, University of Malta
6. Drachma LGBTI
7. Drachma Parents Group
8. Integra Foundation
9. Jesuit Refugee Service (Malta)
10. Kopin
11. Malta Emigrants Commission
12. Moviment Graffitti
13. Office of the Dean Faculty of Education, University of Malta
14. Office of the Dean, Faculty for Social Wellbeing, University of Malta
15. Richmond Foundation
16. SOS Malta
17. Spark 15
18. St. Jeanne Antide Foundation (SJAF)
19. The Critical Institute
20. Women’s Rights Foundation

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