Forget the ‘war on smuggling’, we need to be helping refugees in need
The deaths in the Mediterranean have two main causes. First, the abolition in November 2014 of the successful #Mare_Nostrum search-and-rescue programme, which saved more than 100,000 lives last year, immediately led to a reduction in the number of rescues and an increase in the number of deaths.
Second, and most importantly, there is a global displacement crisis. We know that in last week’s tragedy – as with wider data on this year’s Mediterranean crossings – a growing proportion are coming from refugee-producing countries such as Syria, Eritrea and Somalia. These people are fleeing conflict and persecution. Of course, others are coming from relatively stable countries such as Senegal and Mali, but the majority now are almost certainly refugees.
▻http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/apr/25/war-on-trafficking-wrong-way-to-tackle-crisis-of-migrant-deaths
#smugglers #passeurs #migration #asile #réfugiés #mourir_en_mer #naufrage #Méditerranée #politique_migratoire