Germany to take refugees from Malta

Germany has accepted to take 20 refugees from Malta, making it the second country after the Netherlands to lighten somewhat the island's immigration burden.

The refugees, who are living in open centres, will leave this morning to an undisclosed location in Germany, a Home Affairs Ministry spokesman told The Times.

The transfer is the result of several months of negotiations between former German Home Affairs Minister Otto Schilli and his Maltese counterpart Tonio Borg.

In coordination with Emigrants Commission director Philip Calleja, the immigrants were interviewed by German representatives to ensure they can integrate into society and the labour market.

Malta has raised the issue of illegal migration at various EU fora in a coordinated attempt to convince other member states to share the problems spawned by the immigrant tide.

The ambassadors of EU states to Malta were last year asked to circulate letters with the respective foreign affairs and home affairs ministries, underlining the chaotic situation of immigration here. Malta proposed resettling a number of refugees to other EU member states, especially those that require migrant labour.

But the response was lukewarm at best, with only the Netherlands accepting 36 refugees last December. In the Netherlands, the refugees were assisted by Dutch agencies to apply for jobs and settle in that country.

Malta is negotiating similar resettlements with Ireland and the Czech Republic, while the US has already pledged to take 30 refugees per year. So far, however, no concrete arrangements have been made.

The UN's refugee agency recently underlined the need to support Malta's efforts in the management of mixed flows of persons across the Mediterranean.