The migrant crisis in Europe has been a burden on the countries within the continent for years. It is not easy to let thousands upon thousands of migrants into a country with the scarce resources that the same countries possess. I think this is something everyone can agree upon.
Malta has been carrying this burden as well. The events that unfolded in the past week have proved this once again.
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the shutting down of Malta’s ports and airport. This was a great step toward ensuring that the virus does not enter the islands. Yet last week, the Government faced a challenge related to this shutdown – the migrant crisis.
A boat of migrants was stranded in Maltese waters yet the Government decided not to take them in, stating that the ports are closed for everyone. This decision was made due to the pressure that would have been created on the health institution, which is currently focusing on the COVID-19 outbreak.
Just yesterday, according to Alarm Phone, twelve of these migrants lost their lives in Maltese waters due to thirst and drowning. The survivors were illegally sent back to Libya, where they will suffer from torture, war and rape.
Yes, Malta is overpopulated.
Yes, Malta’s resources are limited.
Yes, Malta should be putting the nation’s health first at the moment.
But don’t you see there is a contradiction here? We are trying our outmost to save lives from this virus yet we have done nothing to save the lives of these migrants.
Doesn’t each and every life count? Why did a pandemic make us give up on them now?
On land, lives are being saved from a virus. Simultaneously, lives are being lost out at sea because of war, poverty, a lack of compassion and illegalities committed by smugglers.
These migrants are not culprits – they are merely victims.
Men, women, children – dying in our seas because they hoped to live a better life; dying because of the political games being played by politicians; dying because of smugglers and human traffickers who abuse of their desperate situation to make a profit. Does this not disturb you at all?
Imagine seeing your child, drowning. Imagine being alongside a mother who starved to death to feed her child. Imagine being a father who had to watch all of this unfold. These stories are real and they are happening just outside our shores.
“Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. The islanders showed us unusual kindness.”
– Acts of the Apostles, Chapter 28: 1-2 (St. Paul’s Shipwreck, c. 60 A.D.)
Malta, once famously known as “The Nurse of the Mediterranean”, has been a saviour to many migrants outside its shores. Yet it has also been the doom of many others. This is the result of the political turmoil which is always present among countries, no matter how united they might be.
In September 2015, this photo made headlines all over the globe. The photo shows a lifeless child named Alan Kurdi, who came ashore in Turkey after the boat he was on capsized.
Alan Kurdi will forever remain a symbol of the thousands of people who have lost their lives crossing the Mediterranean. This sea has become a cemetery for the citizens of war-thorn and/or poor countries who just wanted to get a better chance in life.
My aim with this post is not to cause controversy. There is enough of that already. It is not to provide solutions either. Various organisations and individuals have already done that too.
The aim is to try and give perspective to these desperate migrants’ situation. Try to imagine yourself in their position.
Keeping these migrants may be an encumbrance on many institutions. But we shall never abandon our humanity because, once that is lost, all else becomes worthless.
Remember: the problem goes beyond illegal migration. These events are a reflection of the sorry state our world is in as they are the result of war, poverty and hatred. That’s the bigger picture.
Bradley Cachia 