Second group of migrants arrives

F. Camilleri

Jul 19th 2008, 00:52

@Kenneth Pisani

Kenneth, helping people in need is a duty of ALL humanity.

However we have to:
i. be CAREFUL not to be ABUSED of our generosity,
ii. REALISE that our RESOURCES are LIMITED,
iii. CONVINCE other countries to help rather than dump the problem on us,
iv. BE PRACTICAL; our island is too small to carry such constant influx,
v. BE CONSCIOUS of the LONG-TERM ISSUES that have to be faced in the near future.

Moreover, we do not know who these people are – they do not carry identification papers.

People in need/distress must be helped IN THEIR OWN COUNTRY making ILLEGAL immigration an unnecessary risk. This aid, must be shouldered fairly by ALL countries especially those who impoverished the African continent.

Our country must take a firm stand about this problem by implementing tough, and if necessary unilateral decisions, to stop this invasion so that WE would ‘not need to catch a boat and risk our lives to maybe find a better life.’

The Aborigines no longer run their country. What was once rightly theirs is in the hands of others now; and, as you know, Australia is a continent not a small beautiful island like ours!

Sandro Pace

Jul 19th 2008, 00:28

- Europe need immigrants so much so that when an immigrant who had sneaked out of here is caught on the mainland, he is sent back here. Unless european countries volunteer to burden-share, expressed by their leaders, the 'Europe need peoples' is nonsense, expressed by mr. nobody .

- The government is not (only) taking our pennies, but our scarce land and buildings. Making make-shift towns, becoming permanent shanty towns.

- Faced with this influx, we have the right to reflect any sentiment we want.

- There is nothing that cannot be stopped.

- rewind and replay.

Alan Attard

Jul 18th 2008, 23:49

Mr Pisani ought to remind himself that these people are not leaving somalia, eritrea, sudan, etc, but LIBYA. They are thus not leaving a country where their live is at risk or under persecution. These people are therefore non other than illegal economic migrants. By the way, we are not lucky, our prosperity is not a matter of luck or chance, but fruit of our hard working ancestors and ourselves.

M. Mercieca

Jul 18th 2008, 23:18

– Europe needs immigrants as many immigrants need Europe. Irregular Immigrants understand this fact while most European citizens do not. Or prefer not to understand and start moaning and post nonsense messages.

– The government is doing the right job, and receiving funds from EU to handle irregular immigrants that eventually send to other EU countries. No penny is taken from our taxes to immigrants. (Debatable)

– No matter what you say. These only reflect our xenophobic and racist sentiments, which again enables EU, human rights organizations to slam us on the face more and more.
.
– No power on earth will stop a hungry human to get food and security.
– The topic has also bestowed xenophobic and racist peoples a good cloak to come into sight patriots like! And this is against EU values.

Kenneth Pisani

Jul 18th 2008, 23:06

Well Mr.Lombardi maybe for you a clean shaven man having a mobile is not a person who is not in distress.Maybe you wan't to see a person dying in hunger to spare him a few euros a day.Because that is what we are paying for these people!!!!!!!!
Maybe you are not going out tomorrow for dome drinks because of these people?Come on be serious enough to accept that we are lucky enough that we do not need to catch a boat and risk our lives to maybe find a better life.

m farrugia

Jul 18th 2008, 21:58

The problem has started long ago. Way back in 2000, black speedboats with three powerful outboards owned by Maltese were a common sight late at night in Bugibba and Mistra. Unfortunately our authorities seem to have taken little action at that time, despite repeated calls to the Police. At that time, merciless maltese, not libyans, were making lots of money out of the business ferrying immigrants to Sicily.
Now we bear the fruit of our actions. Obviously from that time onwards, Malta became popular with immigrants. It's useless complaining about Libya now when we let Maltese make money out of the business without intervening.

Tina Lombardi

Jul 18th 2008, 19:52

Has anyone heard the latest?? These 'poor refugees'' friends are now arriving by air as well!! I have personally assisted 2 of these in finding transport to MARSA(!!!!) from the airport during the strike! When will Maltese mature and understand that only a minor percentage of these invaders are really refugees!?! They get hear clean-shaven, mobile in hand and open centre address in the other! Even if they all were refugees, we should still send them back to Libya (they are NOT persecuted there...and that is were they ''set sail'' from) I say we adopt a Zero Tolerance approach on this matter, and limit liberalisation to other issues!

John Pace

Jul 18th 2008, 19:32

These people should be helped. They should be put on a better sea faring boat, given sufficient water and food and send back to where they came from!!

albert leone ganado

Jul 18th 2008, 19:30

Isn't it time that all illegal emigrants are interrogated and debriefed in depth as soon as they land and threatened with long jail sentences if they do not tell the truth . In this way it may be possible for our authorities to identify the criminals within libya who are benefitting and promoting this human trafficiking.

As the Sicilian courts did with the maltese traffickers a few years ago we should then issue an international warrant of arrest against them and try them in court even in absentia if libya fails to comply with the arrest warrant.

tony caruana

Jul 18th 2008, 18:30

This service is certainly Liberalised eh ?

Jooseph Calleja

Jul 18th 2008, 17:57

I wonder if there is are signs out there in the Mediterranean between Malta and Libya saying
" THIS WAY TO BEAUTIFUL SUNNY MALTA". Something or someone seems to be drawing all these emigrants towards Malta and how come most boats seem to be taking water soon as they get close to Malta? I believe it's a planned move by somebody making lots of money or some other country dumping their unwanted on this little island unless like I said there are signs out there in the middle of nowhere pointing to Malta. How many more emigrants can Malta support or hold, these people have to be fed and given a place to stay at the tax payers expense. When is the Maltese authority going to wake up and demand some help from the EU and I don't mean just talk. The cup is runneth over and starting to spill.

joe zammit

Jul 18th 2008, 17:55

now its too much for us and something has to be done

Anthony J. Camilleri

Jul 18th 2008, 17:30

If we are not going to seriously tackle this problem no one is going to do it for us.

apgrech

Jul 18th 2008, 17:12

For some mysteriious reason, boats start taking water or capsize when they get close to Malta.

martin said

Jul 18th 2008, 17:11

Roll on Roll on the more the merrier!!