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How Mediterranean migrants have increased since Italy began search-and-rescue

By Nick Squires, Rome

The Telegraph, 29 Oct 2014

The European Union is to deploy ships and aircraft to the Mediterranean from Saturday to rescue migrants trying to cross from the coasts of North Africa, amid a dramatic increase in the number of people trying to reach Italy in the past year.

Italy launched a search and rescue operation, Mare Nostrum ("Our Sea" in Latin), last November after more than 400 migrants died when two boats capsized in October off Lampedusa, its southernmost island, which is just a few days' sailing from Tunisia or Libya.

Since then, the Italian navy and coast guard have saved more than 150,000 men, women and children attempting the crossing from North Africa – a dramatic increase compared to previous years.

From Saturday, the Italian operation will be bolstered by ships, planes and helicopters provided by Frontex, the EU's border control agency.

Frontex's Operation Triton will involve vessels, aircraft and personnel from France, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and other EU nations, but not Britain.

The British government said this week that the EU operation will create "an unintended pull factor, encouraging more migrants to attempt the dangerous sea crossing and thereby leading to more tragic and unnecessary deaths."

As the below graph shows, there has been a rapid rise in the number of migrants attempting to reach Italy by sea since 2012. The previous year, 2011, also saw a large number attempting the Mediterranean crossing due in large part to the Libyan Revolution and the downfall of Muammar Gaddafi's regime.

There is confusion over whether Triton will supplant, or simply back up, the Italian operation, a massive effort which has involved a total of more than 30 warships, patrol vessels and even submarines.

Italy's interior ministry, Angelino Alfano, has repeatedly said that Operation Mare Nostrum will end on Saturday, but the Italian navy said it had received no such orders, and it is expected that Italy will have to continue its search and rescue efforts in some capacity.

While the Italians spent nine million euros a month on Mare Nostrum, Frontex will have a budget of just three million euros a month.

The UNHCR and Save the Children have insisted that Italy cannot simply shut down its operation overnight.

If it did, people crammed into rickety fishing vessels and purpose-made open-sided boats would be left to drown in the Mediterranean, humanitarian groups have warned.

Critics say that Operation Mare Nostrum inadvertently encouraged migration because people smugglers could guarantee that their human cargo would be rescued in the middle of the Mediterranean.

The navy and coast guard unwittingly acted as a "taxi service" for tens of thousands of desperate refugees and economic migrants trying to reach Europe, critics said.

The International Organisation for Migration rejects that argument, saying the big increase in migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean has been created by "people fleeing war, persecution and totalitarian regimes." The IoM points in particular to the civil war and terrorist insurgencies in Syria as well as the fighting and political instability in Libya.



In Libya, the "uncontrolled situation has also created a fluid environment which is facilitating the passage and departure of migrants," the IOM said.

The wars in Iraq and Syria, poverty and unrest in the Horn of Africa and West Africa and chaos in Libya and Egypt has spurred a massive exodus of refugees towards Europe.

In the last 25 years, more than 20,000 adults and children have lost their lives trying to reach Europe by sea, according to the IOM and Fortress Europe, a website that tracks the fatalities.

 

 

Listen and fill the gaps.

Listening 1

Immigration _______________________ a problem a long time ago. Many countries welcomed immigrants because they _______________________. The USA, Australia and Canada encouraged millions of people to _______________________ in their countries. Today, however, immigration is becoming a problem. Many countries _______________________ control immigration. At election time, it is _______________________. Immigration today is big business. More and more people from poor countries want _______________________ rich countries. It is _______________________ nowadays because of cheap transport and more _______________________ . People risk their lives to get the chance of starting _______________________ in a rich country. This can cause anger in the countries immigrants go to. It is an issue that _______________________ forever, I think.

Listening 2

The problem of refugees is ________________ bigger. In fact, it is such a problem that there are now many ________________ refugees. There are refugees, political refugees, displaced persons, ________________ persons, migrants, and more. A long time ago, it was ________________ a refugee was. Someone who had to escape their country because they ________________. It was usually ___________________. There were many refugees during the Vietnam War. ________________ of Palestinian refugees following wars in the Middle East. Today’s refugees escape their country ________________ because their leader is crazy. There are also refugees because of ___________________ famine or earthquakes.

Write an essay on the topic of immigration.

Look through the ideas for and against it. Discuss them in the group.


Date: 2015-12-17; view: 1031


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