ADPD calls on government to rescue 500 people in distress

4th April 2023

ADPD calls on the government to rescue the circa 500 people currently in distress in Malta’s search and rescue zone, and on EU to support member states on the borders.

Carmel Cacopardo, ADPD Chairperson says, “we have an obligation to help people in distress at sea. Responsibility is on us to avoid another tragedy, like the ones that keep happening week after week. Ten years after the Lampedusa tragedy, we should avoid another of the same magnitude.”

Mina Jack Tolu, ADPD EP Candidate and International Secretary comments, “this is an emergency, and emergencies require urgent response. Malta must not let people die at sea.”

They added, “we know the excuses, the messages from Italy’s government, the EPP and others. They treat people in distress as pawns in a broader political game, dehumanising them. Yes it is far time for a European response to support the member states, like Malta, that are located as the first point of entry of migration routes into Europe. That is the kind of politics that unfortunately is taking years, and discussions on safe and legal pathways into Europe are mainly avoided and stalled by the conservative majorities across Europe.”