19 February 2020

IOM calls for safe disembarkation ports for sea rescued migrants fleeing Libya

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) made a claim to find alternative safe disembarkation mechanisms for migrants and refugees rescued at sea fleeing Libya. This call follows the arrival of 3,000 migrants to Italy and Malta since the beginning of 2020, most of them rescued at sea by NGO-operated ships. In many cases, the delay in the designation of a safe port and in the authorisation to disembark the migrants add an unjustified waiting period to an emergency situation on board. The IOM calls for “a predictable and quick disembarkation mechanism, whereby Mediterranean states take equal responsibility in providing a port of safety to people rescued at sea”. The emergency is particularly challenging since the situation in Libya is still far from safe for refugees and migrants. According to UNHCR, as of 21 February, 1,737 rescued or intercepted migrants by the Libyan Coast Guard were returned to Libya and transferred to detention centres under the custody of the Libyan authorities. Referred to the conditions in these detention centres, the IOM informed that “over 2,000 migrants remain detained in deplorable conditions” and Médecins Sans Frontières reported of arbitrary detention of migrants and the need for stopping pushbacks into Libya.

 

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