After international protests, Malta allows more than 400 refugees to enter the port. Most of the people had been stuck on small quarantine ships off the Mediterranean for weeks.
Government laments lack of solidarity
At the same time, the government in Valletta accused the other EU countries of lacking solidarity. „The government is unwilling to endanger the lives of both migrants and the occupation, given the fact that the Member States of the European Union show no solidarity with the takeover,“ it said.
„No European country wants to accept these migrants, although there was talk of solidarity,“ wrote the government. First, the „Europa II“, originally used as a tourist boat, entered a port near Valletta, as the newspaper „Times of Malta“ reported. The ship was accompanied by two patrol boats.
Reports of revolt on board
According to reports that have not been officially confirmed, there has previously been a revolt by the refugees against the occupation. Malta’s government spoke of a „difficult situation“ on board. It has rented four tourist boats to detain people outside its sovereign waters for a coronavirus quarantine.
Aid organizations and the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatovic, had sharply criticized the procedure. Malta, like Italy, had declared itself a non-safe haven for migrants in the coronavirus pandemic.
