Am vergangenen Wochenende sind wahrscheinlich mehr als 200 Boat-people im zentralen Mittelmeer ertrunken, wenn man die geschätzte Zahl der Boat-people zugrunde legt, die in vier Tagen rund um das letzte Wochenende aus Libyen abgelegt sind. Alarm Phone geht von maximal 100 Ertrunkenen aus, deren Spur sich auf See verfolgen lässt. Dabei ist es Alarm Phone gelungen, Original-Töne der Schiffsbrüchigen kontextgenau zu registrieren. Sie gaben sowohl die genauen Daten eines Frachters an, der sich in der Nähe aufhielt, wie auch von Aufklärungsflügen von Frontex und vermutlich von Malta wie von Italien, und: Genaue Daten von mörderischen Sabotage-Aktionen maltesischer Marines. Diese eilten auf dem „AFM Patrol Boat P52“ herbei, aber anstatt zu retten, durchschnitten sie Kabel des Bootsmotors. Malta und/oder EU-Instanzen organisierten zudem am Wochenende den Push-Back eines Flüchtlingsboots nach Libyen aus der maltesischen maritimen SaR-Zione mithilfe eines Fischerboots.
Fast vier Tage hielten manche Flüchtlingsboote in Seenot aus. 12 Tote konnte Alarm Phone auf die direkten Aktionen des maltesischen Staats und der Europäischen Union zurückführen und dokumentieren. Die weiteren Boat-people sind auf hoher See, zumeist in maltesischen Gewässern, verschollen. Erstmals gelang es Alarm Phone, die globalen Medien mit O-Ton wie mit Dokumentationen zu versorgen, so dass diese berichteten. Die maltesischen Rechtsanwälte Jason Azzopardi, Andrew Borg Cardona, Joe Ellis und Paul Borg Olivier haben im Namen der Vereinigung „Repubblika“ eine Klage wegen Mordes / Todschlags gegen den maltesischen Premierminister Robert Abela und involvierte 11 maltesische Marines sowie den AFM Commander Brigadier Jeffrey Curmi eingereicht. Maltesische Palamentarier und zivilgesellschaftliche Gruppen schlossen sich dem anwaltlichen Vorhaben an.
In Malta spitzt sich deswegen eine staatspolitische wie gesellschaftliche Auseinandersetzung zu. Die unabhängige maltesische Internet-Plattform „The Shift“, die sich auf die investigative Recherche zum Mord an Daphne Anne Caruana Galizia und zur staatlich-maltesischen Kriminalität spezialisiert hat, hat den Fall aufgegriffen. Anhänger des Premiers haben sofort reagiert und eine „Show of Force“ gefordert. Möglicherweise tangiert die Anklage frühere staatsterroristische Affären des maltesischen Staats.Neben Gruppen, die die demokratischen Grundrechte verteidigen, melden sich maltesische katholische Vereinigungen mit der Message zu Wort: „Jesus ist auf den Booten“. Sie finden, wie auch die NGO-Rettungsschiffe, Rückhalt und Zuspruch beim Papst.
AFM Patrol Boat P52
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[…] Repubblika has insisted that the government should now order an inquiry to establish the facts. “The silence of the government and the army command combined with today’s statement by the P52 crewmen raises the suspicion that there may indeed have been wrongdoing but investigating the crewmen alone would not uncover it.” […]
“It was not Repubblika who put undue pressure on the P52 crewmen. It is the unbearable silence of the government and the army command that has refused to protect them and the entire army from the horrific implications of international media reports that Malta’s army sabotages boats carrying migrants.
“At this point, however, we see no reason to consider revising our position about our complaint against the prime minister and the army chief for their decision not to save people in distress at sea… Only a criminal investigation can help us reach justice in this case.”
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[…] Dem Regierungschef und mehreren Armeevertretern wird vorgeworfen, für den Tod von mindestens fünf Menschen verantwortlich zu sein, die mit einem Flüchtlingsboot auf dem Weg von Libyen nach Italien vor der maltesischen Küste in Seenot geraten waren. Die Menschen ertranken. Sieben weitere Insassen des Bootes gelten weiterhin als vermisst. An Bord sollen etwa 55 Menschen gewesen sein. Die maltesische Bürgerrechtsorganisation Repubblika hatte neben Ministerpräsident Abela und dem Armeechef auch die Besatzung eines Patrouillenbootes der maltesischen Küstenwache angezeigt. Die Einsatzkräfte sollen den Motor des Flüchtlingsbootes funktionsuntüchtig gemacht und das Boot dazu genötigt haben, wieder nach Libyen zurückzukehren. […]
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Civil society group Repubblika said its members have received an unprecedented amount of insults and attacks online following the press conference by Prime Minister Robert Abela on Friday.
In a televised speech aired by the State broadcaster, Abela, with his Cabinet sitting behind him, lashed out at Repubblika and one of the organisations lawyers, Opposition MP Jason Azzopardi, for filing two criminal complaints following migrant deaths. No journalist could ask questions at the ‘press conference’.
Repubblika said during an online press conference this morning that it was receiving attacks “on a level (they) hadn’t reached before”. Abela’s speech was a “coordinated attack” that had “grave consequences,” the organisation said, stressing that the prime minister was using the pandemic to attack democracy.
Abela accused Repubblika and Azzopardi of jeopardising the country’s efforts to curb the coronavirus pandemic especially in light of the work that the army was doing after Repubblika filed two criminal complaints stating that Abela, the Army commander and 11 soldiers were responsible for the death of 12 migrants at sea.
“In a moment of a public health emergency, the work of 12 officials to successfully fight coronavirus will be hindered,” Abela said, adding that it was a strike at a government that was protecting the interests of its citizens. His speech was immediately followed by a flood of supporters on social media calling for “a show of force”.
They included members of former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat’s propagandists who have a history of inciting hate, including Labour MP Glenn Bedingfield, who ran a blog from Castille targeting dissidents, and who re-emerged to voice his point of view using war terminology and images of WW11 equating those defending human rights with fascist sentiment.
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‘Jesus is on those boats’, Catholics make appeal over Malta hard-line migration stance
31 Catholic groups express shock at government decision to deny support to migrants in distress in Malta’s search and rescue area18 April 2020, 4:39pm by Matthew Agius
Over 30 Catholic groups have expressed sorrow at the government’s decision to leave a boatload of migrants in distress adrift at sea in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.“These are not the values that guided our nation and made us who we are. As Christians we need to be reminded that Jesus is on those boats,” Catholic Voices Malta said, in a statement representing 31 Christian groups.
The 31 groups commended the work done by the government, front-line healthcare professionals and workers and other professionals and workers in combating the spread of COVID-19, together with the efforts of volunteers who are supporting the front-liners, as well as those who were marginalized as a result of the pandemic.
Acknowledging the risks associated with an uncontrolled influx of migrants, and that Malta’s small size limited its capacity to assist, the groups said that “we cannot allow these concerns to be a justification for leaving our brothers and sisters in hardship and mortal peril, even more so when these fall within the search and rescue responsibilities of our country.”
The organizations said they were shocked at the decision taken by the government to deny support to migrants in distress in Malta’s search and rescue area, on the pretext that the ports are closed to everyone due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whilst the protection of public health from the potential of further spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, Malta also had to fulfil its legal and moral obligation to save lives in distress, said the groups. “How can we call ourselves Christians and then leave people drowning at sea?” […]
The organisations also appealed to the EU and its member states, asking them to be “more forthcoming” and not offer to share the burden “only after an unaided member state suffering a disproportionate burden resorts to brinkmanship.”
Opposition leader Adrian Delia accused the Prime Minister of a „dictatorial“ attack against a Nationalist MP over a criminal complaint filed against the Armed Forces. In a televised address on Saturday evening, Delia staunchly denied that the Opposition was behind two criminal complaints filed by the NGO Repubblika over the government’s refusal to rescue migrants stranded at sea and over the alleged intentional sabotage by army personnel of a vessel carrying asylum seekers. However, he supported the investigation into what he described as „very serious accusations“. The criminal complaints were filed on the NGO’s behalf by four lawyers including Opposition MP Jason Azzopardi. […]
„It is unacceptable in a democratic society for these sort of attacks to be made against lawyers, whoever they may be, acting in the name of their clients,“ Delia said. „These things happen only in dictatorial countries and the Prime Minister fell far short of carrying out his duties when he behaved in the manner he did yesterday.“
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Malta’s Prime Minister Robert Abela says he is under investigation for his role in the death of at least five migrants who tried to sail from Libya to Italy. Monitors of Mediterranean crossings said five people died and seven others went missing while their boat was in distress off Malta’s coast this week. The boat was reportedly carrying around 55 people. It eventually returned to Libya under disputed circumstances after being spotted by a fishing boat. On Thursday, Malta’s Repubblika civil rights organisation filed two police reports alleging criminal inaction on the part of Abela and Maltese armed forces commander Jeffrey Curmi. Its second report was filed against 11 crew members of a Maltese patrol boat who allegedly cut the cables of the migrant dinghy’s motor. […]
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