Immigrants attempt to board fishing boat
Some illegal immigrants tried to forcibly board an Italian fishing boat, obliging the crew to take a whole group of 30 on board, the AFM reported yesterday.
The group was one of two brought ashore by the AFM on Wednesday night and in the early hours of yesterday morning.
A spokesman for the AFM said the Frontex operation Nautilus 3 informed the AFM's Operations Centre on Wednesday night that the Italian fishing vessel, the Alibut, had reported picking up 30 male migrants from a boat 40 nautical miles south of Malta. The boat was not in a condition to continue on its journey.
The Alibut was instructed to approach Malta to conduct a mid-sea rendezvous with an AFM patrol boat for a transfer of the migrants, who arrived at Haywharf at 3.30 a.m. yesterday.
At 6.50 p.m. on Wednesday, the tanker Forward Bridge informed the AFM that it had encountered a boatload of immigrants 27 nautical miles east of Malta asking for fuel and food.
An AFM Air Wing Alouette helicopter was scrambled and the Maritime Squadron dispatched a patrol boat.
The helicopter reported sighting a 20-foot fibre-glass boat aboard which were migrants wearing life-jackets and still heading north. The patrol boat initially failed to find them.
However, another merchant vessel, the Vema Cape, then reported that the same migrants were alongside requesting assistance. The patrol boat was within seven miles of the tanker and at 11.20 p.m. located the migrants' boat, which was found unfit to travel further.
The migrants, 26 males and 2 females, one of whom is pregnant, were taken aboard the patrol boat and landed at Haywharf base later during the night.
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a.cassar
Aug 9th 2008, 11:44
@I Abela
Of course they can. But in so doing they may be stepping on someone's toes. Said someone could be a business partner/government! No country is going to endanger its working relations with an oil producing country for Malta's sake. Let's face it, we are alone in this and so we must act alone in our interest. If the law is working to our disadvantage then the law has to be changed. We are facing a veritable invasion of our culture and way of life to say nothing of the financial strain these people are excerting on us.In a few decades' time think how many immigrants will be settled in Malta. We just cannot cope with such a huge influx in such a short time.
I Abela
Aug 9th 2008, 10:09
Most of these boat people are not leaving from Lybia, they are dropped half way here by a larger vessel. The EU for whatever reason is HAPPY with the situation. Frontex is just a farce of an operation so that the citizens think that the EU is actually doing something. Most G8 countries have reconnaissance satellites some of which have live capability. US and UK use them to cover the SEALS and SAS troops. They can follow their movements and advice them if their is an enemy unit in proximity. Now THINK. If they can follow (LIVE) the movements of a 2 feet soldier (shoulder to shoulder as seen from above), do you honestly think that they can't spot a 21ft boat leaving a 200ft ship?
I Abela
Aug 9th 2008, 09:45
All creatures have a natural instinct for survival and since most of these boat people can't swim, it is only natural for these people to panic if they find themselves in trouble, in open waters, thus obliging the fishermen to take aboard the whole lot. This event will almost surely backfire against the boat people as fishermen will now be reluctant to approaching a boat in distress. And although some already have, now most fisherman will be carrying some sort of weapons to protect their investment.
a.cassar
Aug 9th 2008, 08:33
Are maltese fishermen in danger? what happens if or rather when a maltese fishing boat is boarded? what will the do gooders say I wonder?
Denis Catania
Aug 9th 2008, 05:49
Again using the unborn as a tool. Forcibly, isn't this hijacking,?isn't this a crime?
Polic Commish John Rizzo will you file charges against these hijackers? If not? Why not?