The Spanish Government is negotiating with Libya the landing of 12 migrants rescued in international waters by a Spanish fishing the past day 22. The Spanish Executive, as reported by a spokesman of the vice president, is serving on the international law and understood as a safe harbor, the nearest port, in this case, it would be one libyan. The ports of Libya, however, have been considered by NGOS of rescue in the Mediterranean and by the own agency of the United Nations for refugees (UNHCR) platforms are not safe for the disembarkation of migrants.
Four days after the rescue of the 12 migrants on the high seas, Pascual Durá, captain of the fishing boat Our Mother Loreto, based in Santa Pola (Alicante), acknowledged Monday that he and his crew “you’re fucked”. The situation is lengthened too much, the “weather forecast indicates that it comes temporary” and the persons that carry on-board “does not want nor to hear speak of return to Libya”. The stories of those rescued in the Central Mediterranean, agree on the atrocities suffered by the migrants in the north african country appears, and it is common to hear them say that they prefer to die rather than return.
In this case, the Spanish Government, reaffirms that their decision is supported by the international law defines as a safe harbor that which you can arrive, stay and leave without the ship in danger. The Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees determines, however, that a refugee should not be returned to the country where fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.
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In other bailouts, such as those made by the Aquarius or the Open Arms, which also clashed with the policy of closed ports of Italy and Malta, Libya was never on the negotiating table because humanitarian organisations are denied systematically to desembarcarlos there.
The rescue took place on Thursday, about 20 hours. The raft on which were the 12 rescued, and another boat similar to they approached the boat from alicante to apply for amparo, since they were being “stalked” by a patrol libya to 80 miles to the north of this country, declared to Efe the owner José Durá. Three of the migrants climbed to the gunwale of the fishing boat, while the rest jumped into the water. The patrol picked up the majority of the shipwrecked, but was eventually left 12 in charge of the boat from Santa Pola.
The migrants come from Libya, Mali, and Senegal, are all male and there are two young people 16 years of age, has informed the skipper of the fishing boat. The situation is delicate because they have food and gas for about a week.
Durá, that when treats by phone to THE COUNTRY navigate over 100 miles of Tripoli [libyan capital] and 120 of Malta, acknowledges that the crew is “a little scared”.
In an English filled with mimicry and gestures, which is the language they use to communicate, the twelve castaways, ensure “that life gives them equal, but don’t want to go back” to the country from which they ventured to cross the Mediterranean. “The ports of Italy and Malta are closed for us”, continues Durá, “and it is the only way out that they contemplate”.
“so Much that we are very proud of brotherhood among europeans,” says the skipper of the fishing boat, “both Italy and Malta have shown very little understanding.” “Spain does what it can,” granted. The Government maintains that in the event of a rescue in international waters, “what governs in these cases” is “to go to the port nearest safe, that is Libya”. But in Our Mother Loreto, this country is untold. “We’re going with a lot of caution not to mention words such as Libya, for example,” says Durá.
Fear of a revolt on board
The High Commissioner of United Nations for Refugees (UNHCR) has repeated on several occasions that he considers this country to be “a safe harbor for the disembarkation” of migrants, and discourages the returns to Libya, “after rescues at sea”. “The refugees are facing there to a landscape of nightmare,” said Roberto Mignone, the head of the detachment of the UNHCR in the african country. “They leave their homes in search of safety and protection and end up in prison, to languish indefinitely in squalid conditions.”
however, the orders that have Durá talk about “wait for a patrol libya who comes to pick them up.” At the time of talking to THE COUNTRY, take six or seven hours,” waiting for you. Something that increases the fear of the crew. “Imagine that comes the patrol. You must first perform the maneuvers, then the patrol have to come up to the boat and take them away. That takes time,” explains the skipper of the fishing boat. “Imagine that [the rescued] see the flag. How do we control them? Our greatest fear is that we are mounting a revolution.” And in a boat intended for thirteen crew members, there is no freedom of movement or stovepipe. “It’s a small boat, tackle occupy 80% of the space and they are there, in the little space we have,” alert Durá.
this is Not the first time that the boat santapolero rescue migrants adrift in the Mediterranean. In 2007, he boarded at 25 people and a corpse in June and four other castaways in November of the same year. I also had their home port in the town of alicante Francisco and Catalina, another fishing faenaba to a hundred miles from Malta and rescued 51 people in 2006.
