Malta is likely to see an increase in the number of migrants and asylum seekers next year and the country is not sufficiently prepared to address such an influx, according to a United Nations human rights expert.
François Crépeau believes Malta has to “urgently” step up its preparedness to receive more migrants and asylum seekers crossing the Mediterranean in the absence of Italy’s initiative to save lives at sea after it halted its Mare Nostrum rescue operation.
“Over the last year, as a result of Mare Nostrum, the number of migrants arriving in Malta dropped significantly because, once rescued at sea, they disembarked in Italy. Things are about to change and Malta must be prepared,” Mr Crépeau said.
He said there would probably be an increase of landings in Malta in the coming months, peaking around May to July next year.
Things are about to change and Malta must be prepared
Mr Crépeau urged the authorities to develop the capacity to adequately process such high numbers.
This must be accompanied by a long-term vision to deal with providing immediate assistance, legal safeguards and integration programmes for asylum seekers, he said, calling on the EU to support Malta’s efforts.
He said receiving significant numbers of migrants must be considered as “the new norm” rather than the exception or an emergency. If efforts were not stepped up to handle a larger influx, the country would have to cope in “panic and chaos” mode.
“Mare Nostrum was phased out and replaced by Triton, in which EU member states have decided to support, on a much smaller extent, search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean. So, probably, Malta will be called to do a lot more search and rescue operations,” Mr Crépeau told Times of Malta.
The UN special rapporteur was critical of Malta’s mandatory detention policy saying “people should be free” and detention only used as a measure of last resort under specific criteria. This would also cut costs, he added.
“Mandatory detention serves to inspire fear and distrust in the relationship between migrants, asylum seekers and the Maltese. This climate of fear goes on to define the policies and programmes of the authorities,” Mr Crépeau said.
He commended the initiatives in the pipeline to improve reception and integration.
Yet, he was critical of the “dominant nationalist populist discourse” portraying migrants as a threat, saying these were “fantasies” used in political speeches because it helped elections. Yet, social science proved the opposite, he said.
Labour violations were a preoccupation every time he visited. “Due to their precarious status, migrants and asylum seekers have to accept conditions that are unacceptable,” he said, adding unions should help with this problem.
His five-day visit to Malta was a follow up to his 2012 year-long study on the management of the EU’s external borders.
He met a range of government officials responsible for border management, EU institutions in the country, international organisations and migrants.