Medicins Sans Frontiers to assist Malta deal with migrants

The government and Medicins Sans Frontiers have signed a one-year agreement through which the international humanitarian aid organisation are providing personnel to help illegal immigrants in Malta as from this week.

MSF is providing two medical doctors, a nurse, a psychologist, a health promotion expert and interpreters to assist migrants upon their arrival, in detention and open centres.

The assistance will focus primarily on the mental, sexual and reproductive health of the immigrants and will also identify vulnerable people.

Home Affairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici welcomed the agreement, saying it sent the message that Malta was a democratic and civilised country which was facing serious problems because of illegal immigration and it was not right for people to criticise and move on, when they could help.

He said that some 1,600 migrants had arrived in Malta so far, up by some 600 over last year during the same period. All efforts were being made to repatriate those who were not granted any sort of status, but the government, working with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees had to make sure that the migrants returned to countries which were safe.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici reiterated Malta’s call for burden-sharing among EU countries and said that the operations of Frontex also needed to be fine-tuned, especially with regard to where migrants were landed.