European Union interior ministers wrangled on Monday over who deserved most help in tackling a surge in numbers of illegal migrants by sea, with some saying the bloc was failing to address the problem.
"Can we as Europe look the other way when ... dead bodies are coming on our shores, as if they were dead fish in polluted water?" said Maltese Interior Minister Tonio Borg. "Let us be frank, in this matter few of us think as Europeans," said Borg, expressing scepticism at promises by the wealthy 25-nation bloc to work together to tackle the problem.
He said Malta could not cope alone, stressing the numbers of migrants were rising fast - 1,200 so far this year - putting the tiny Mediterranean island at second place in the world in terms of arrival of refugees per capita. But Malta was not alone in calling for help, with Greece saying its plight was also being overlooked.
"I ask you for your attention," Security Minister Byron Polydoras said, adding his country received 500 illegal migrants by sea every week. He said while Spain's Canary Islands were receiving strong attention as more than 10,000 illegal migrants reached their shores this year, Greece faced similarly dramatic situations.
Italy's Interior minister Giuliano Amato said he feared migrant routes were shifting to the Italian island of Lampedusa.
He said there were already rising number of Moroccans aiming for Lampedusa as other migration routes were blocked. Some 9,500 illegal migrants reached Lampedusa so far this year, including 3,500 from Morocco, Amato estimated.
Malta also faced criticism for refusing to take in a boatload of 50 migrants rescued off its coast by a Spanish boat last week, an event which has become a symbol of the EU's faltering approach to the dilemma. The migrants finally left on Friday on Spanish military planes, mostly heading for Spain, Malta, Italy and Andorra.
Spanish Secretary of State for Security Antonio Camacho said that taking seven days to resolve the stand-off was too long. "We cannot set a bad example," he said, adding that Europe should treat illegal migrants with great care for their rights.
The talks highlighted difficulties in setting up concrete co-operation. EU Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini told the meeting that while all political obstacles to EU patrols to protect the Canaries had been solved, operational details still needed to be worked out. Camacho told reporters he expected the Canaries patrol, first mooted two months ago, would finally start early next month after very difficult preparations.
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