Once again, we read reports that dozens of asylum seekers were reported to have drowned in the Mediterranean in a new, though not unanticipated, influx from Libya to Europe. Before we know it, we could well see a repeat of the 2015/2016 migrant crisis in our region.
Except this time, the stage is set for a worse crisis.
Not only is the uncontrolled civil war in Libya threatening to unleash thousands of migrants across the Mediterranean, but the coronavirus has added another, more cruel dimension.
Malta is caught between the Scylla of being overwhelmed by thousands of desperate people trying to leave hell to a land of hope, and the Charybdis of losing control of the COVID-19 epidemic just at the point when the peak of infection is being reached in Malta.
It is against this dire background that Malta has made a desperate plea to the European Union for the delivery of €100 million worth of food and supplies to Libya in an urgent humanitarian mission to save lives and to try to stabilise the capital of Tripoli and its port.
The object of the aid would be to fight a humanitarian catastrophe in Tripoli, to discourage human trafficking and to stabilise the city sufficiently to discourage asylum seekers from risking their lives in the Mediterranean.
In reality, that is only a part of the solution. The EU is already pumping millions into a country decimated by war.
But there is one major problem: forcing asylum seekers to stay in a country of transit that has no respect for human rights will only mean further exploitation and suffering. Many are cooped up in the most horrific detention camps.
Reputable organisations, such as the UNHCR, speak of torture and extortion suffered by refugees in official and unofficial detention centres across Libya. The same refugees are unable to apply for any form of asylum in Libya.
Italy and Malta announced last week that they could no longer be considered “places of safety” for rescued migrants because of the pandemic.
Italy’s civil protection chief argued that allowing migrants to disembark from a ship operated by a humanitarian group in Lampedusa would put intense pressure on resources. The Armed Forces of Malta have clearly adopted a strategy of delaying rescues.
While the strategy by the two countries is somewhat understandable, it is clearly a convenient move to turn a blind eye to the tragedy around us while trying to force other EU leaders from understanding this crisis cannot be handled by two countries alone.
It is a source of great concern to Malta, which is Europe’s frontline state, that Europe appears to be lacking the plans, mechanisms or, indeed, political will to act. Clearly, EU leaders need to come to the aid of Libya before the sea around us turns into a watery grave.
Pope Francis said on Easter Sunday that the future of Europe is hanging in the balance. He warned in his Easter address that coronavirus poses a risk so great that it could mark the end of the EU if mishandled.
Europe was facing “an epochal challenge, on which will depend not only its future but that of the whole world”. He urged political leaders to show solidarity and concern for the common good, with a particular focus on the needs of the poor, the homeless and refugees.
In 2015, EU leaders only came together when it was too late, when hundreds of asylum seekers had drowned.
We simply can’t afford history to repeat itself.