Central Mediterranean Sea Rescue Sparks Heated Debate in European Union

By Sophia Rottman, Section Editor

Although various member countries tried to strengthen their borders, the number of migrants to the European Union increased by 68 percent in 2022 — the largest yearly increase since 2016. The major migration paths to Europe are through the Eastern Land Border, the Western Balkans, the Eastern Mediterranean, the Central Mediterranean, the Western Mediterranean and the Western African route. While the Western Balkans route records the highest number of entries to the European Union, the Central Mediterranean passage continues to take the most lives. The journey was fatal for 2,000 people in 2022, not including any unrecorded deaths.

At the beginning of November 2022, France and Italy were at odds over an NGO-operated rescue ship, the Ocean Viking. Closest to the Italian shoreline, the Ocean Viking originally asked for a safe port in Ita- ly. The Italian government would not relent, and the vessel, NGO staff and 234 ly to help, France allowed the boat to dock in Toulon. French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin called Italy’s behavior “incomprehensible” and that it “lacked humanity.” migrants spent weeks at sea in the Mediterranean. The French government argued that Italy was responsible for offering a safe port according to international maritime law. Realizing Italy was unlike-

For Italy, the Ocean Viking was just one part of what the government sees as a much larger problem: increasing migration at a rate disproportionate to other Central Mediterranean countries. From January to mid-December 2022, Italy received 102,000 migrants through the Central Mediterranean, a drastic increase from 67,000 in 2021. Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the country wants “an agreement to establish on the basis of population, how migrants with a right to asylum are relocated to various countries.” However, Italy is not the only European Mediterranean country turning away migrants rescued at sea.

In September 2022, Malta’s Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC) sent a merchant vessel that had rescued 23 migrants in the country’s search and rescue zone to Egypt. The Shimanami Queen was 159 nautical miles from Malta and 146 from Italy. Egypt was 760 nautical miles away. The RCC of Malta ordered merchant vessels near the endangered migrants at sea to stick to their planned route or await further instruction — a practice that Sea-Watch, Alarm Phone, Mediterranea Saving Humans and Doctors

Without Borders argue the country frequently uses to prevent migrant arrivals.

On June 22, 2022, eighteen European Union countries and three others announced their agreement upon the Voluntary Soli- darity Mechanism, a provisional response to migration in the Mediterranean member states. Based on GDP and population, the mechanism would reallocate asylum seekers to a new member state after registration in the country of initial arrival. Countries that would not accept reallocation would provide financial or border control support. France and Italy signed while non-signatories include Poland, Denmark and Sweden. Within five months, the new agreement would be threatened.

Following the diplomatic stand-off over the Ocean Viking, in mid-November, France increased its border control with Italy. The country announced it would send 500 more of- lished an Action Plan on the Central Mediterranean, proposing 20 reforms to mediate the troublesome Central Mediterranean migration route. Various NGOs have criticized the plan for merely repeating past mistakes.

Catherine Woollard, the director of the European Council on Refugees and Exiles, said that the plan “focus[es] on the responsibilities of the non-European states on the other side of the Med[iterranean]” and that the “first priority for Europe should be agreements within Europe.” lating their duty to rescue in international law.

“The Union border agency Frontex informs Libya’s coast guard of migrant boats using GPS data, enabling their return of 23,000 migrants to Libya in 2022.” ficers to ten Franco-Italian border crossing points and was withdrawing from the solidarity mechanism, reneging on its offer to take in 3,000 migrants from Italy. Around the same time, a joint statement from Greece, Malta, Cyprus and Italy called for the solidarity mechanism to transition from voluntary to mandatory status.

On Nov. 21, 2022, the European Commission pub-

At the end of 2022, the Italian government issued a new decree addressing civil sea rescue. Under the decree, if rescue ships do not immediately leave the search and rescue zone after their first rescue and move to their assigned safe port without delay, they will suffer harsh consequences, including fines of up to 50,000 Euros and vessel confiscation. Additionally, the Italian government had already begun assigning farther locations as safe ports to decrease rescue ships’ time in the rescue zone. Sea-Watch argues that if a captain does not try to rescue other people in danger, they are vio-

The Union border agency Frontex informs Libya’s coast guard of migrant boats using GPS data, enabling their return of 23,000 migrants to Libya in 2022. Human Rights Watch warns that Europe is “complicit in the abuse” of people in Libyan camps and Doctors Without Borders asserts that Libya does not meet the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ guidelines of a safe port. Doctors Without Borders has publicly requested a European state Mediterranean search and rescue system and a better migrant distribution mechanism in the European Union.

Largescale migration to Europe through the Central Mediterranean is unlikely to stop anytime soon. Without reform to Mediterranean rescue systems and a united stance in the European Union on how to alleviate member states unequally pressured by increasing migrant arrivals, prolonged and unnecessary suffering at sea is likely to continue.