Shipwreck in the Aegean: “There is a desperate need to guarantee legal and safe routes to Europe, it is the only way to avoid massacres”

ROME – At least 80 people trying to reach Europe have died following a shipwreck off the coast of Greece. Hundreds more people are missing. “We are facing a tragedy of unimaginable dimensions, which moreover was totally avoidable – says Adriana Tidona, researcher of Amnesty International on Migration – we call for an urgent, thorough, independent and impartial investigation into what caused this catastrophe and ask for assistance and support for those who survived. There are many questions that urgently need an answer – Tidona added – why wasn’t a search and rescue operation launched much earlier? What caused the boat to capsize? Those who have lost their lives, the people who survived and the families involved need transparency, truth and justice.

Waiting for the story of the survivors. “The world is waiting for the people who survived this tragedy to tell what happened – he continues Amnesty – meanwhile, we are deeply concerned about the lack of clarity in the version provided by the Greek authorities. The Greek coastguard said unspecified people on board the vessel ‘refused’ Greek assistance intending to continue on to Italy. There were hundreds of people on board and it is impossible that each of them was asked what she wanted to do. The government in Athens had specific responsibilities towards every person on the boat who were clearly in distress,” Tidona added.

It is the latest in a long line of tragedies. “The circumstances of the shipwreck need to be investigated immediately – Adriana Tidona said again – but this tragedy is only the latest in a long series of shipwrecks, in Greece and elsewhere in Europe, which were completely avoidable. Today there are families who mourn their loved ones and even more are looking for people they can no longer contact. European politicians could have prevented this from the outset by establishing legal and safe routes to Europe. This is the only way to avoid such frequent tragedies”.

The concrete actions taken by Amnesty. The Human Rights Organization has urged the Greek authorities to disclose more information about the circumstances that led to their decision not to rescue the boat sooner. He also asked Frontex to provide information and aerial images of the monitoring of what was happening. This information will be essential to reconstruct what happened, given that the aerial surveillance of Frontex he had spotted the vessel on Tuesday morning. In the end, Amnesty International calls for the survivors of this traumatic event and affected families to receive immediate psychological support, treatment and the means to communicate with their loved ones and to report missing persons. All survivors will need to be accommodated in a safe environment.