From Marseille, Pope Francis calls for help to those crossing the sea to Europe as a “duty of humanity”

Pope Francis called this Friday to “help” migrants risking their lives at sea and called on countries to overcome the “paralysis of fear” and welcome them, during a symbolic ceremony in Marseille (southeast France).

“People who, if left on the waves, are at risk of drowning need to be helped. It is a duty of humanity, it is a duty of civilization,” the Argentine pope shouted at a memorial for people missing at sea.

With the Mediterranean Sea in the background, he also urged not to accept “people being treated as commodities in return” and denounced “the dramas of shipwrecks, caused by abhorrent smuggling and the fanaticism of indifference. ”

“No [son cifras]. They are names and surnames, they are faces and stories, they are broken lives and shattered dreams (…) In the face of such a tragedy, words do not serve, but actions,” he added.

In a context of debates in Europe on the reception of migrants, the head of the Catholic Church thus asked to “overcome the paralysis of fear and disinterest that condemns death with kid gloves”, in order to “care for the weakest”.

The 86-year-old Pope started a two-day visit to Marseille this Friday, dedicated to the Mediterranean Sea and the drama experienced by migrants.

The most symbolic moment was the ceremony in honor of those lost at sea, at the foot of the imposing basilica Notre Dame de la Garde (Our Lady of the Guard), crowned by a statue of the Virgin with baby Jesus.

Since the start of 2023, around 1,300 people have died or disappeared trying to reach Europe, the highest number in the past six years, according to World Organization for Migration (IOM) figures, and almost 26,000 in the past decade.

Update immigration asylum rules

Regarding the visit of the Pope of the Catholic Church, the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, asked this Friday that the countries of the European Union make a “joint effort” to tackle the migration phenomenon and described the current rules as “ prehistoric”. asylum together with his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

“The rules of the Dublin Convention are prehistoric, it was a different world, there was no mass migration. It’s like jumping into another historical era,” Mattarella said in a rare political statement, distancing himself from his usual neutrality.

The Italian and German heads of state spoke about immigration during a press conference after the visit of the German President to the island of Sicily, the region of Italy most exposed to the migration phenomenon and days after the visit of the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to the enclave of Lampedusa.

For his part, Steinmeier asked to focus on countries of origin and not on the distribution of migrants between community states.

“We talk about migration and strengthening cooperation with countries of origin. We must ensure that the number of arrivals decreases and we need European solutions,” the German emphasized.

Von der Leyen and Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni traveled to Lampedusa on Sunday to hear firsthand about the migratory pressures underpinning the Italian enclave closest to Europe.

The program that Von der Leyen announced consists of ten commitments, including a solidarity mechanism for other European countries to transfer migrants arriving in Lampedusa from Italy, updating European legislation against human trafficking and defining new legal and safe humanitarian corridors.

He also promised to increase aerial surveillance of the Mediterranean.

So far this year, 132,279 people have disembarked in Italy, double the same period in 2022 (68,420) and triple the 2021 figure (43,372), according to Interior Ministry data updated on September 20.

Aid against illegal migration

The European Union (EU) will begin making payments to Tunisia “in the coming days” as part of a deal aimed at curbing irregular migration from that country, the European Commission announced on Friday.

This concerns an initial payment of 127 million euros ($135 million), said Commission spokesperson Ana Pisonero.

EU lawmakers, the bloc’s ombudsman and humanitarian organizations have questioned whether the Tunisia deal meets European rights standards.

Under this agreement, Tunisia will receive €105 million to stop irregular migration, €150 million in budget support and €900 million in long-term aid.

Tunisia is one of the main departure points for migrant boats trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe, most of which sail to Italy, especially the island of Lampedusa.

The EU deal, strongly backed by Italy’s far-right government, aims to strengthen Tunisia’s coast guard to prevent ships from leaving the coast.

Some of the money also goes to UN agencies that help migrants. (JO)