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Frontexit asks for measures to stop the maritime operations of Frontex
Mariana Andrei - Communication Coordinator
20 March 2015
The Frontexit campaign organisations demand immediate measures to interrupt Frontex's maritime operations, which they consider partly responsible for the repeated tragedies in the Mediterranean.
In February the European Union announced that more than 12 million Euro had been granted to the Maltese armed forces in order to finance the purchase of equipment to be used for operations coordinated by Frontex (the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders). According to a press release from Migreurop, this grant comes from the EU Internal Security Fund, and comes in addition to the 114 million Euros allocated to Frontex in 2015.
Despite the infusion of capital in the maritime border control operations in Malta, the number of deaths in the Mediterranean is increasing. Following a macabre record of more than 3,500 deaths in 2014, victims continue to appear, with several hundred deaths since the beginning of the year, in particular off the coast of Lampedusa.
Frontexit members believe that the EU’s reactions focus on strengthening mechanisms which, contrary to claims, do not aim to save human lives but to intercept and control. Frontex is a border surveillance agency, not a maritime rescue body. Triton is a border control operation to prevent migrants reaching Europe’s shores, although, under international maritime law, the boats participating in Frontex’s activities have the same obligations as any other vessel, to provide assistance to persons in distress.
Although the EU and its member states claim to be powerless in the face of these human tragedies, these are the consequence of security-based migration policies which make immigrants' legal access to EU territory almost impossible.
Frontexit members advocate for the dissolution of Frontex and believe that measures should be taken to enable international mobility, access to the EU territory and to guarantee international protection obligations.
Source: http://www.migreurop.org/article2570.html?lang=en
In February the European Union announced that more than 12 million Euro had been granted to the Maltese armed forces in order to finance the purchase of equipment to be used for operations coordinated by Frontex (the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders). According to a press release from Migreurop, this grant comes from the EU Internal Security Fund, and comes in addition to the 114 million Euros allocated to Frontex in 2015.
Despite the infusion of capital in the maritime border control operations in Malta, the number of deaths in the Mediterranean is increasing. Following a macabre record of more than 3,500 deaths in 2014, victims continue to appear, with several hundred deaths since the beginning of the year, in particular off the coast of Lampedusa.
Frontexit members believe that the EU’s reactions focus on strengthening mechanisms which, contrary to claims, do not aim to save human lives but to intercept and control. Frontex is a border surveillance agency, not a maritime rescue body. Triton is a border control operation to prevent migrants reaching Europe’s shores, although, under international maritime law, the boats participating in Frontex’s activities have the same obligations as any other vessel, to provide assistance to persons in distress.
Although the EU and its member states claim to be powerless in the face of these human tragedies, these are the consequence of security-based migration policies which make immigrants' legal access to EU territory almost impossible.
Frontexit members advocate for the dissolution of Frontex and believe that measures should be taken to enable international mobility, access to the EU territory and to guarantee international protection obligations.
Source: http://www.migreurop.org/article2570.html?lang=en
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