EU watchdog calls on bloc to prevent losses of migrant lives at sea

EU watchdog calls on bloc to prevent losses of migrant lives at sea

The EU human rights watchdog on Thursday urged the bloc to stop extra lack of life at sea following final month’s sinking of a ship off Greece, with tons of or irregular migrants seemingly drowned.

In its report following the June 14 sinking of an “unseaworthy and overcrowded fishing boat” within the Mediterranean, Michael O’Flaherty, director of the EU’s Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA), referred to as the “drownings of so many migrants” a “cause of deep shame for Europe.”

The company additionally stated that final 12 months on common eight migrants misplaced their lives per day at sea on their approach to Europe and that within the first quarter of 2023, the variety of fatalities at sea was the very best since 2017.

The report suggested EU member states “to improve search and rescue efforts and provide legal pathways to safety to prevent deaths at sea.”

Among different steps, the company stated EU international locations ought to “ensure prompt and independent investigation of all shipwrecks” and apply “transparency and accountability rules.”

It additionally urged bettering search and rescue operations and offering higher safety for survivors.

The rights watchdog additionally instructed the EU arrange an “independent border monitoring mechanism.”

After the sinking, 104 individuals had been rescued and 82 our bodies had been discovered however, based on the survivors’ testimonies, the vessel was carrying over 750 migrants, primarily from Pakistan, Egypt and Syria.

According to human rights watchdogs, the Greek Coast Guard might need ignored SOS alerts from the boat, whereas some survivors accused Greek authorities of triggering the accident by attempting to tow the boat into Italian territorial waters.

Source: www.anews.com.tr