“The delay between rescue and disembarkation is impossible”, denounces SOS Méditerranée

The most important thing in the rescue of shipwrecked migrants at sea is to “be able to disembark as soon as possible”Fabienne Lassalle, deputy director of the NGO SOS Méditerranée, said on franceinfo on Saturday 25 December, while one of the association’s boats, the Ocean Viking, was able to dock in Sicily in the morning, after having rescued 114 migrants off Libya eight days earlier. Christmas week was also marked by three deadly shipwrecks off the coast of Greece.

According to Fabienne Lassalle, to reduce delays “that the European states agree to establish a disembarkation system”. This supposes for these authorities to “to organize themselves”. For now, the rule that applies is the so-called “nearest port”. “We are addressing the competent authorities, the closest coastal countries, and that is Italy”, she explains. However, this sometimes takes time. “This delay between rescue and disembarkation is impossible”, she denounced, asking that the rules be “reformed”.

However Fabienne Lassalle adds that all European countries must “show solidarity” because, in any case, these exiles will not give up on leaving. “What happens at the political level does not affect them. As soon as an opportunity presents itself, they will take it, rather die than stay in Libya.” She acknowledges that recent events in the Channel, and in particular the shipwreck that claimed the lives of 27 migrants in November, have caused “awareness”. “France is faced with the same problems and will have to put in place the means to go and rescue and prevent the tragedies”, she estimated.

The French presidency of the European Union in 2022 and the end of the presidential election also appear, according to her, as opportunities for “challenge the government and Europe so that the States finally take charge of the problem” and for “remind our governments of its needs for solidarity and humanity”.