The EU has been caught unprepared for prompt intervention to help Italian authorities deal with an influx of thousands of Tunisians in Lampedusa and could only send two Frontex experts to the island to “assess the situation”.
Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström has promised funds and a Frontex patrol mission to Italy but many MEPs, including Malta’s Simon Busuttil and David Casa, yesterday slammed the Commission for its “slow response”.
“The EU must intervene immediately and send a rapid intervention team to Lampedusa today,” Nationalist MEP Simon Busuttil told Ms Malmström during an urgent debate on the issue at the European Parliament.
He proposed the immediate establishment of a Marshall plan of assistance to Tunisia and Egypt in return for these countries to block their ports and prevent their citizens from crossing over to Europe.
Criticising the Commission’s response and the many promises the EU executive made every time there was a similar migration emergency, Mr Casa said: “God forbid that these immigrants landed in Malta as the island cannot cope with such a situation.
“It is not enough to throw money at the problem as we cannot turn Malta into one big prison. Member states, particularly the northern countries, must not pay lip service to solidarity. We need concrete action.”
The Italian authorities yesterday formally asked the EU for assistance and for the allocation of €100 million to share the costs of accommodation and repatriation needed in view of this “biblical” invasion of illegal immigrants, numbering 5,500 so far.
On her part, Ms Malmström reiterated that the EU was prepared to help Italy and said Frontex would soon be able to deploy a patrol mission off Lampedusa if Italian authorities agreed. However, she cautioned that this all depended on the availability of member states to participate in this mission through personnel and assets.
Ms Malmström also said the Commission was ready to allocate emergency funds to Italy to help cope with this emergency through the European Refugee Fund and the Border Fund.
“A wind of renewal is blowing in the Mediterranean as a result of popular revolutions.
This wind can bring many positive developments to Tunisia, to other countries and the EU,” she said.
“The current situation in Lampedusa should not undermine our intention to offer assistance to these emerging democracies and the young generation that, so passionately and in such a peaceful way, has been able to achieve fundamental political changes,” Ms Malmström added.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi yesterday also had a telephone conversation with the European Commission president José Manuel Barroso on an assistance plan the EU could formulate to help Italy.
The Commission has taken exception to comments made by Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni who accused the EU of abandoning Italy in the wake of the Tunisian landings.
On Monday, Commission spokesman for home affairs Michele Cercone, said Italy had turned down the EU’s help. Mr Cercone stated: “Commissioner Malmström was in contact with the Italian authorities over this issue on Saturday and when offered help the Italians replied: ‘Thank you, but no thank you’.”
Despite the negative answer by the Italian authorities, the spokesman said the Commission was fully aware of the exceptional pressure on Italy and was prepared to offer its support.
Last Saturday, Italy declared a state of emergency and proposed to send law enforcement officers to Tunisia, a proposal rejected by the country’s transitional government.
The issue was also raised directly with the Tunisian authorities on Monday during the EU’s foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton’s visit to Tunis.
Malta is also on the alert over the massive flow of immigrants from Tunisian coasts towards Europe. Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici has written to the EU presidency to put the issue on the agenda of the next meeting of EU interior ministers scheduled for next week in Brussels.