In a day of desperation people yesterday responded to the latest migrant tragedy by sending flowers to the hospital morgue where 24 victims had been transferred.

It was Ivan Falzon, the CEO of Mater Dei Hospital, who started the initiative with a Facebook post asking people to send bouquets of flowers as a sign of solidarity with the migrants who died in last weekend’s tragedy.

By 4pm the hospital had received several bouquets, marked The Unidentified, from individuals and organisations.

One of the messages signed off Maltija (Maltese) read: “You escaped from your country to find freedom. The Lord will now welcome you and give you the highest form of freedom.”

The 24 bodies, all men, were disembarked in Malta by an Italian coastguard ship and transferred to the hospital morgue where autopsies will be held and tissue samples for DNA testing will be taken. The bodies will be buried in an unmarked grave when released by the inquiring magistrate.

In a post on his personal Facebook page, Mr Falzon urged his friends on the social networking site to spare a little thought for the migrants since they had no one to do it for them in Malta.

“Most probably their family, relatives, friends don’t even know they ceased to exist...

“We couldn’t offer them the chance for a better life, let’s at least guarantee a decent caring burial. They are human, they deserve this.”

He asked people to address the flowers to The Unidentified.

And people like the Mizzis of Kalkara responded: “May you live forever in paradise; rest in peace.”

The bouquets included those sent by the senior staff at St Joseph school in Blata l-Bajda and the Justice Ministry.

There were no relatives at the morgue to mourn the loss of 24 men as the uncanny silence that enveloped the place was broken by the commentary of journalists relaying the tragedy to their audiences worldwide.

kurt.sansone@timesofmalta.com

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