Three illegal immigrants aboard the Spanish trawler Francisco Catalina, anchored off the Maltese coast since last Saturday have been allowed to land in Malta for medical treatment. A woman in advanced stages of pregnancy, a two-year-old girl and her mother were air-lifted to hospital on Tuesday.
The illegal immigrants will remain in hospital until they receive medical attention. Subsequently they will board the trawler once again.
On Wednesday Spanish Police arrived in Malta in a bid to solve the standoff between Malta, Spain and Libya regarding who should take responsibility for the illegal immigrants. They carried out an identification process on the illegal immigrants aboard, including finger printing and photograph taking. Speaking to BBC World Service Maltese Foreign Minister Michael Frendo said that “the vessel had picked up illegal immigrants in Libya’s Search and Rescue Area and that therefore Malta is under no obligation to take them in. This is the bone of contention. Malta has a high enough burden already.”
The trawler rescued the 51 illegal immigrants, among these 42 men, 8 women and an infant, on Friday. It was denied permission to dock in Malta. So far the vessel remains anchored off the Maltese coast. The illegal immigrants were found in what were described as ‘extreme conditions’ in Libyan territorial waters 100 miles off Malta.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) both underlined the urgent need to disembark the illegal immigrants as soon as possible.
In turn on Tuesday night at around 0930CEST 25 illegal immigrants, all men, were brought ashore at Haywharf by the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) members. The authorities were informed of the illegal immigrants’ location, 16 miles Northwest of Malta, by crew on a fishing boat who sighted the immigrants’ vessel.
In the past week 156 illegal immigrants reached Maltese shores. The total of illegal immigrants that arrived in Malta since January 2006 is not at 1,169.
Read more about this issue on MaltaMedia's special feature:
Lanċa Ġejja u Oħra Sejra: Malta and its migrations.
See also:
Spain offers police aid to identify immigrants
By MaltaMedia News
Jul 18, 2006, 13:17 CET
Illegal immigrants disembark in Marsaxlokk
By MaltaMedia News
Jul 16, 2006, 10:04 CET
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