More than 5,000 migrants in one day – Lampedusa declares a state of emergency
“Applying for asylum in Germany usually means permanent residence”
The Italian Mediterranean island of Lampedusa is once again faced with large numbers of migrant boat arrivals. Almost 2500 people live on the small island. WELT editor Marcel Leubecher talks about the tense situation regarding the reception and care of refugees.
The situation on Lampedusa is getting worse. On Tuesday alone, more than 5,000 arriving migrants were registered on the small Italian Mediterranean island. The city council declares a state of emergency – migrants try to break through barriers in the port.
DThe city council of the Italian Mediterranean island of Lampedusa has declared a state of emergency in view of thousands of newly arrived boat migrants. Mayor Filippo Mannino announced this on Wednesday evening, as reported by the Ansa news agency. He called for more support for the small island, which is under “great stress”. The citizens of Lampedusa are desperate. “Everyone helped in some way the migrants who needed help. But now it’s really time to look for a structural solution,” Mannino continued. It was initially unclear what specific effects the declaration of a state of emergency would have in the municipality.
Thousands of boat migrants have reached the island between Sicily and North Africa since Monday – more than 5,000 people arrived on Tuesday alone, according to figures from the Interior Ministry in Rome. The Italian government had already decided on a nationwide state of emergency in April due to the high number of migrants via the Mediterranean route.
On Wednesday night there was a tragic accident on Lampedusa: While trying to bring a five-month-old child to land, the infant fell into the water and drowned.
Unrest at the harbor
The island between Sicily and North Africa has been one of the hotspots of migration to Europe for years. The situation at the harbor came to a head on Wednesday afternoon. According to consistent media reports, hundreds of migrants tried to leave the port and break through barriers. As seen on videos, the police pushed people back. The responsible financial police did not want to comment on this when asked in the evening.
After Figures from the Ministry of the Interior in Rome Since the beginning of the year, more than 123,800 people have been registered as having reached Italy on boats – last year there were 65,500 from January to mid-September. If the trend continues, the record number from 2016 could even be exceeded by the end of the year. At that time 181,000 people came.
A group of migrants waits on the island of Lampedusa
Source: picture alliance/ZUMAPRESS.com/Elio Desiderio
Dealing with migrants is also causing new discussions between the federal government and the right-wing government in Italy. Berlin suspended a program to voluntarily accept migrants from Italy, as WELT first reported.
Germany had originally promised to take in 3,500 asylum seekers from particularly troubled countries at Europe’s external borders in the south. So far, 1,700 people seeking protection have been transferred via the so-called voluntary European solidarity mechanism so that they can complete their asylum procedure in Germany.
Further admissions are no longer planned, also because there are problems with the readmission of migrants according to the so-called Dublin rules, according to the ministry. These rules stipulate that asylum seekers must – with a few exceptional cases – submit their application in the first EU country in which they were registered. Anyone who tries to do so in another country can be sent back there.
“In view of the existing high migration pressure to Germany, the ongoing suspension of Dublin transfers by some member states, including Italy, reinforces the major challenges that Germany is currently facing in terms of its reception and accommodation capacities,” said a ministry spokesman. By the end of August, only ten Dublin transfers to Italy had taken place. Rome has been informed that the selection process for migrants will be postponed.
“Impossible to ensure adequate assistance for migrants”
“Immigration is a European problem,” wrote Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on the online platform X (formerly Twitter). It must be solved with the participation of all EU countries. EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola also emphasized that the solutions do not lie at the national level, but only at the European level.
Lampedusa is 190 kilometers from the Tunisian coastal city of Sfax, where many refugee boats depart for Europe. Accidents with fatalities occur again and again during the highly dangerous crossings. Mayor Mannino described the situation as no longer sustainable. “Against this background, it is impossible to guarantee adequate assistance for migrants, despite immense logistical efforts.”