Frontex to help in migrants' return
Justice Ministers to discuss EC proposals today
Frontex has committed itself to help Malta repatriate illegal migrants to their country of origin.
Frontex sources said yesterday that, on Malta's suggestion, the Warsaw-based agency would soon be making a proposal to start some of its regular "joint return flights" directly from Malta.
This development, which should help Malta significantly cut the number of illegal immigrants in its detention centres, followed talks in Malta between Justice and Home Affairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici and Frontex executive director Ilkka Laitinen earlier this week.
A few years ago, Frontex started coordinating flights to repatriate illegal immigrants from EU member states. This is normally done through charter planes paid for by the EU. They pick up illegal immigrants from various member states en route to a particular country of origin. For example, Nigerian illegal immigrants in the EU, whose asylum application would have been rejected are picked up through a flight calling at Paris, Berlin and Rome and then taken together to Abuja. This system helps member states coordinate better repatriation while cutting costs.
As the flights leave from big countries, only a handful of vacant seats would remain for illegal immigrants in Malta. The sources said the idea now was to have some flights depart from Malta to ensure that as many immigrants as possible leave the island.
A spokesman for Frontex yesterday confirmed these developments following Mr Laitinen's talks in Malta.
"This is one of the very important parts of border control. Sending persons staying illegally on the territory of Malta to the countries of origin is, so to say, the closure of a border management circle," he said.
Malta has lately taken it upon itself to repatriate immigrants but this is a very complicated and costly exercise.
Besides the difficulty of verifying the migrants' identity, as many illegal immigrants do not hold any identification documents, some countries of origin, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, do not cooperate with the Maltese authorities. This results in illegal immigrants overstaying in detention until the whole bureaucratic process is over.
EU Justice Ministers will today be discussing specific proposals tabled by the European Commission last week to grant Malta and similar over-burdened countries concrete help to fight illegal migration. These urgent measures include more finances, a specific burden-sharing mechanism and more cooperation with Libya.
EU sources said some member states were still resisting the Commission's proposals particularly those related to burden sharing.
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Margaret Richards
Jun 4th 2009, 19:20
RACIST COMMENTS GALORE!!! I'M ASHAMED!!!!
Franco Xuereb
Jun 4th 2009, 14:53
@ R. Azzopardi - With reference to your comments as the patrols are bearing fruit.
Thanks should go for the Italian Government, for the wise and only solution that there is to stop this influx by implementing the one and only solution to the problem-
A) Repatriate immediately the ones that are caught at sea
B) All illegal immigrants who entered the Island will follow suit
On the contrarily the Frontex is just helping the illegal immigrants to a safe journey to Europe.
Is this an other gimmick before the MEP elections...? The local MEP's and the rest of Europe had five years to solve this problem, but the situation remained Statu8s Quo.
I for one can not, and will not trust my local MEP’s and Europe any more ,
Enough is enough.
E.Muscat
Jun 4th 2009, 14:44
@R.Azzopardi
Wait till the flood gates are opened again after the voting for EU parliament:this summer we will get 10,000 and then you can start talking!
Galea. L
Jun 4th 2009, 13:17
Like the voluntary burden sharing did.
Raymond Sammut
Jun 4th 2009, 12:33
"This results in illegal immigrants overstaying in detention until the whole bureaucratic process is over." So what are Mr Laitinen's talks in Malta about, really?
Mr Laitinen: "Our Frontex boats are ready to pick up the illegal immigrants!"
Dr Gonzi: "Sorry. You can't pick them up. The bureaucratic process is not over yet."
R. Azzopardi
Jun 4th 2009, 12:26
I have no statistics in hand but I think the number of landings this year has been lower than that of previous years. Maybe the patrols are bearing fruit. Towards the beginning of the year we had a few landings with large number of people on board and most of us were bracing ourselves for a larger than average number of landings. So far, the contrary has happened. Maybe these patrols are bearing fruit after all. Let's keep our fingers crossed.
Joanne Micallef
Jun 4th 2009, 12:05
If this really was to happen it's great news indeed, but since we've heard alot and hardly anything has been done, guess we'll just have to wait and see.
In the mean time I would like to know what is the plan for after the 6th of June? Should we brace ourselves for the thousands to come?
Mario Gauci
Jun 4th 2009, 11:48
Have faith in minister Mifsud Bonnici. Read between the lines, this is the biggest move so far. If followed through it will stop this unsavoury business once and for all.
mario gellel
Jun 4th 2009, 11:35
THIS GOVERMENT IS USING ALL OPTIONS EVEN IF HE KNOWS IS FALSE OR TWISTED NEWS TO MAYBE GAIN SOME ANGRY VOTES.
THESE ARE NOT PROMISES ANY MORE BUT TRUE LIES.
m cutajar
Jun 4th 2009, 11:35
WE DON'T GIVE A DAMN------- WHATEVER ONE SAYS ------ MALTESE HAVE HAD ENOUGH -------- NO MORE ---------TAKE ALL ILLEGALES BACK. DO NOT BLAME OUR PARTIES -------- THEY HAVE THEIR DUTIES TO PERFORM.
John Azzopardi
Jun 4th 2009, 11:18
The policitians needs to stop playing with our lives as well as the destabilization of a small nation like Malta that cannot afford to take on any more illegal immigrants regardless of where they are coming from. This island nation of 400,000 people does not have the resources, capabilities and other means to fend for itself. Also, stop any effort to turn us into a camp of illegal immigrants in the mediterranean so that we can keep our big brothers in Brussels happy. Enough is enough. This issue is squarely on the shoulders of our policians, whether they are pl OR pn.
G Psaila
Jun 4th 2009, 10:57
We're Waiting!!
Alex Spiteri
Jun 4th 2009, 10:40
unfortunately these 'good news' are only false hopes, whose objective is to fool the folk on the even of an election!
P. Cassar
Jun 4th 2009, 10:00
FRONTEX IS EXACTLY LIKE GONZI PROMISES PROMISES PROMISES BUT THEY BOTH FAIL MISERABLY ON DELIVERY. YOU CANNOT FOOL ALL THE PEOPLE ALL THE TIME!!!
Mario Tabone-Vassallo
Jun 4th 2009, 09:31
PROSIT TASSEW issa nittamaw li hekk jaghmlu
Please choose the reason of your report below: