In 2021, eight migrants died or went missing every day in the seas around Europe
Rights — di Andrea Barolini
According to the United Nations, last year more than three thousand migrants died or went missing while attempting to reach Europe.
In 2021, eight migrants died or went missing every day in the seas around Europe
According to the United Nations, last year more than three thousand migrants died or went missing while attempting to reach Europe.
- In 2021, more than three thousand people vanished in the seas surrounding Europe, dead or missing.
- United Nations data indicate a doubling of cases compared to the previous year.
- The European agency Frontex accused of having covered up illegal pushbacks of migrants.
There are more than three thousand confirmed deaths, or people who have disappeared without trace, in 2021, while attempting to reach Europe. Across the Mediterranean and, to a lesser extent, the Atlantic. Eight people a day. One every three hours. This is explained in a report published by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), which has issued a fresh appeal for governments to act to stop the bloodshed.
The UN @Refugees agency said that last year, 3,000 people tragically died or went missing while attempting to cross the #Mediterranean & Atlantic.
news.un.org/en/story/2022/…
news.un.org/en/story/2022/…
Deaths and disappearances doubled compared to 2020
The UNHCR specified that 1,924 people lost their lives, or are in any case reported missing, in the central and western Mediterranean. A further 1,153 died attempting to cross the maritime route that runs from north-western Africa towards the Canary Islands. These figures represent a sharp increase compared to 2020, when the total number of victims across the three routes was "only" 1,776. To these are added the 478 cases already recorded since the beginning of the current year.
"Most of the crossings," the UN Refugee Agency notes, "are made on inflatable vessels that are overcrowded and in poor condition. Moreover, the journey from West African coastal states such as Senegal or Mauritania to the Canaries can take up to ten days and is particularly dangerous. In many cases, migrants simply vanish without a trace."
Women and men preyed upon by unscrupulous traffickers
Even overland routes are extremely dangerous for those attempting to reach Europe. Often the Sahara desert must be crossed, and many are then captured and locked in detention centres that resemble concentration camps run by unscrupulous armed groups, traffickers and people smugglers, where murder, sexual violence, slavery and forced marriages are commonplace.
More than 3,000 migrants, refugees and asylum seekers lost at sea trying to reach Europe in 2021, says UN aje.io/ec7uwh
The pandemic further aggravated the situation. The border closures that began in 2020 and in many cases continued into the following year pushed a greater number of desperate migrants to turn to people smugglers in order to attempt the crossing. According to the UNHCR, moreover, conflicts, political instability and the consequences of climate change will only increase the flow of people fleeing unbearable conditions.
The European agency Frontex accused of illegally pushing back migrants
It is for this reason that the United Nations agency is seeking to launch a new "Protection Strategy for Refugees", for which 163.5 million dollars will be needed: "What is required are credible alternatives," the UNHCR itself explained, "to these journeys of hope, alternatives that prevent migrants from falling prey to traffickers. Our approach aims to increase humanitarian aid, to guarantee support and solutions for people in need of international protection and for those who have survived flagrant violations of human rights."
1/ Europe’s border agency Frontex denies involvement in pushbacks but their own database shows the exact opposite. By analysing @Frontex data @LHReports can reveal how illegal push backs are registered and concealed
This is work that will involve countries of origin, transit and destination — twenty-five states in all. But it will require concrete commitments from governments, both in Africa and in Europe. An approach built on humanity, solidarity and pragmatism. The opposite of what happened in Greece, where migrants who had reached European shores were picked up, loaded onto patrol boats and returned to Turkish waters to be effectively abandoned. These extremely serious events, exposed by a consortium of news organisations, directly implicated the European agency Frontex, ultimately leading to the resignation of its director Fabrice Leggeri.