Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1068299
2 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 6 JANUARY 2019 NEWS YANNICK PACE ARCHBISHOP Charles J. Sci- cluna on Saturday called on Eu- ropean Union member states to allow the disembarkation of a group rescued migrants current- ly stranded off the coast of Malta. Scicluna stressed that any ne- gotiations on relocation should only take place after the migrants have been brought to shore. The Archbishop was speaking during a visit to the MV Lifeline, an NGO-operated vessel which was impounded last summer after finding itself at the centre of an international dispute over the fate of a group of migrants rescued within Libyan territo- rial waters. The ship's captain is currently facing proceedings in court over the incident. The visit came as the Euro- pean Commission, along with a number of member states, work to coordinate the reloca- tion of some 300 migrants some of whom were rescued by the Armed Forces of Malta earlier this week. Another 49 migrants remain stranded on board the NGO rescue vessels Sea-Watch 3 and Professor Albrecht Penck. The migrants on board the Sea- Watch 3 have been left stranded at sea for over two weeks. Both ships have requested permission to disembark their passengers at a safe port, requests which have as yet not been acceded to. On Wednesday, both ships were granted permission to enter Maltese territorial waters to seek shelter, as weather conditions continued to deteriorate. "Human life is priceless and negotiations should never take place at the expense of people who are suffering," Scicluna said as he called on Europe to act quickly to resolve the situation. He acknowledged that the mi- gration phenomenon required a European solution but insisted that it was a grave injustice for people to fall victim to negotia- tions between European leaders. Earlier in the week Malta's bish- ops also wrote to the Commis- sion of Bishops' Conferences in the EU expressing their concern at the current situation and ask- ing their European counterparts for solidarity. Mission Lifeline, the NGO that operates the vessel, said it knew too well the dire humanitarian consequences that result from governments playing "port rou- lette" with the lives of others. Before being allowed to disem- bark its passengers in Malta back in June the vessel had also been left stranded for six days as Euro- pean member states negotiated a migrant-sharing agreement. "We stand in fierce, unshake- able solidarity with our co-de- fenders of Human Rights at Sea," the NGO said. "Just one month ago, we all met at the European Parliament seat in Strasbourg as nominees to The Sakharov Prize for Free- dom of Thought. In the blink of eye, we now stand vilified and re- jected by the same political insti- tutions who chose to praise our commitment to basic humane and European values." The NGO said that while it recognised the challenges of mi- gration policy, it would not allow this "legitimate conversation" to be conflated with a desire to de- value human life". "Our rescue operations haven't changed. Only the political sys- tem awaiting us back home," the NGO said. Malta tells Italian deputy PM to get his facts straight Meanwhile, tensions between Malta and Italy over migration continued to flare as Italy's dep- uty prime minister Luigi Di Maio accused Malta of turning its back on the migrants rescued in the Mediterranean. Both the Sea-Watch 3 and the Professor Albrecht Penck remain stranded off the coast of Malta carrying a combined 49 rescued migrants. Writing on Facebook, Di Maio claimed that "yet again, only Italy had been called upon to act" with Malta having refused to accept the two ships despite them being in Maltese territorial waters. "All of Europe doesn't care. We can't continue giving in to this blackmail. But for me, no child and mother can continue to be held hostage by the self- ishness of European states," Di Maio wrote. He added that Italy was pre- pared to take in the women and children on board the vessel. However, responding to the Italian deputy PM, the Maltese government emphasised that the migrants had been rescued in an area that was outside Malta's search and rescue region. "The rescue was made closer to Italy than to Malta and while the NGO did request Italy to provide a safe port at which to disem- bark the rescued migrants, Italy refused to allocate a safe port, which is why the NGO vessel was forced to sail away from the point of rescue and to seek refuge with- in Maltese territorial waters," the government said. It stressed that Italy had closed its ports to all NGOs as well as to other rescues where it was "bound to disembark in accord- ance with international law". "The government of Malta rec- ommends that the Italian deputy prime minister check his facts before drafting such public state- ments, and refrain from making such statements in the future." It added that Di Maio was well aware that the European Com- mission was currently coordinat- ing a voluntary reallocation pro- gramme for around 300 rescued migrants. "Rather than make such state- ments against Malta and Eu- ropean solidarity, Italy should participate in the reallocation currently being coordinated." "As long as people continue to flee in search of freedom and safety, we will continue to extend our hand to them, in strict adher- ence to international maritime and human rights obligations." Archbishop visits impounded NGO rescue vessel, calls for solidarity on migration ALMOST half of the year's public holidays will be fall- ing on a weekend in 2019, but workers will also be receiving an additional day of leave as announced in last October's budget speech. In 2019, full-time employees will be entitled to a total of 26 days of paid leave, follow- ing the publication of a legal notice, which for the second year running has seen work- ers given an extra day of leave. The Labour Party had pledged before the last gen- eral election give the coun- try's workers back all public holidays falling on a weekend, which in 2019 will amount to six. St Paul's Shipwreck, Free- dom Day, the feast of St Peter and St Paul, Our Lady of Vic- tories, Independence Day and the Immaculate Conception will all be falling on a Satur- day or Sunday, meaning Mal- tese workers will essentially be missing out on six days off- days. Workers will be getting two long weekends as both the feast of Sette Giugno and Re- public Day will be falling on a Friday. Six public holidays will fall on a weekend in 2019 Archbishop Cahrles J. Scicluna called for European solidarity on migration during a visit on board the impounded MV Lifeline The feast of St Peter and St Paul - the 'Imnarja' - is one of six feasts to fall on the weekend in 2019