NGOs, ready to take self-defense legal actions to defend the reputation of the sector and from the low blows of the media system

ROME – “From now on we will take legal action against those who attack us unjustifiably and using irresponsible accusatory terminology”. He explains it – in an article that appeared du Info-Cooperationthe point of reference on the net for Italian aid workers – the spokesperson for theAssociation of Italian Organizations for International Cooperation and Solidarity (AOI) Silvia Stilli, in the aftermath of the approval of the new decree which establishes a specific code of conduct with fines and confiscations for those who do not respect the new rules on rescues at sea. This is the decision made in the last assembly of AOI which provides that NGOs undertake any legal actions of self-defense aimed at newspapers (from printed paper to online, radio and television diffusion) which in this period have attacked the world of NGOs or have publicly expressed harsh judgments on their work, moreover not supported from testimonial evidence and reliable sources.

Accusations and low blows. “Although our solitude today makes us more vulnerable subjects – explains Stilli – I am convinced of the authority of unity in the action we have chosen and in which I place hopes of growth in cohesion and mutual reinforcement. Public opinion is made up of citizens who are able to understand the reasons for doing good well: it is necessary to know how to communicate them, always act in total transparency, but also defend these reasons to guarantee a future for humanity”. On the other hand, there is no shortage of accusations and cheap blows coming mainly from the press which, even after the approval of the decree, continue the smear campaign against NGOs, instrumentally mixing the question of rescues in the Mediterranean with the case of Qatar-Gate.

The new code of conduct. A rule, the one approved by the Council of Ministers, which according to the organizations endangers humanitarian action. In particular, the new code of conduct contains a measure relating to the temporal regulation of the rescue rules which would oblige humanitarian vessels to immediately bring the shipwrecked ashore, effectively reducing the possibilities of making further rescues after first aid and making it impossible to intervene promptly in case of reports of other vessels in danger up to the indication to apply for asylum in the country whose flag the vessel flies.

The recognition of President Mattarella. Yet the guidelines of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) go in the opposite direction, any activity other than search and rescue must in fact be managed on land by the competent authorities and not by the staff of the humanitarian vessels. If the NGOs violate the rules of the code, the ship will be subjected to an administrative sanction of the payment of a fine of up to 50 thousand euros, the joint liability will extend to the shipowner and the owner of the ship. “The President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella has recognized the social value of NGOs, recalling it in various public speeches, even recently – concludes the AOI spokesperson – so I hope that in reading the SAR code of conduct he will be able to point out the contradictions and dangers for the ‘humanitarian action’.