Sixty-six German MPs are asking their colleagues in the Italian Parliament to “commit themselves to the unconditional observance of international law” and to intervene in parliament on the government’s decree dealing with NGOs, tomorrow in the final vote in the Chamber. “We are very concerned – reads the appeal, reported by Sea Watch – with the decree on the rescue of civilians at sea that was enacted by the Italian government on January 2, 2023 and which must now be converted into law. international law of the sea, international provisions on human rights and secondary European law”.
The German MPs who signed the appeal, including numerous Greens and many from the SPD, claim that “Italy, in the past, has often been left alone in terms of migration policy, even by the European Union. in favor of a common European responsibility towards people seeking protection in the European Union. Italy, with its position on the external borders of the EU, in the middle of the Mediterranean, must not be left alone to face this task. It is necessary to provide it with assistance and guarantee a joint distribution of refugees in the European Union”.
The new decree, however, gives “the order to arrive directly at the Italian port assigned to them immediately after a rescue, even if at the same time other people are in danger at sea”. “This provision – say Bundestag deputies, including the chairman of the Italian-German parliamentary group Axl Schafer – considerably reduces rescue capabilities in the Mediterranean. It follows that rescues can only take place with delay or can no longer be carried out for nothing Fewer lifeboats in the Sar area, however, does not mean fewer refugees, but only more deaths among the fugitives. the sea, establishes the obligation to rescue, but not even with the obligation to take rescued persons as quickly as possible to a safe place on land, as established in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea. disproportionately limits the work of marine atage rescue organizations and that Italy does not respect its obligations under humanitarian and international law”.
“On February 15, 2023 – the appeal concludes – the Italian Parliament will therefore vote in favor of converting or not the decree into law. We call on the Italian Parliament to remember during the vote the justified concerns about the consequences of the decree for human lives at sea”.
Source: IL Tempo
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
