Tangible ways to combat and abolish human trafficking and smuggling from its roots in Northern Africa and the European Eastern borders have to be set up, a group of young political leaders is urging.
The group sent a letter to European decision-makers today as part of their mission – that involved a 36-hour boat journey to and from Lampedusa – with concrete requests and proposals for the immediate action required to tackle irregular immigration challenges faced by the Mediterranean region.
Led by Nationalist MEP contender and MZPN president Kevin Plumpton, the group was made up of YEPP president Konstantinos Kryanakis from Greece and YEPP vice president Riccardo Pozzi from Italy.
Speaking at a press conference outside the Safi detention centre on their return, they recounted their experience in Lampedusa.
"As a Maltese I was expecting to see something different in Lampedusa, but the emergency situation they're facing is mainly to handle and process the huge number of immigrants that arrived on the island this month, before transferring them to mainland Italy," Mr Plumpton said.
While there, the group met deputy mayor Damiano Sferlazzo and assured that through their youth organisations they would be pressing European home affairs and immigration ministers to ensure words were translated into action.
They also called for effective and concrete action in the battle against illegal immigration.
“We are urging youth across Europe to take action – we want to see results. We’re calling on them to pressure their respective organisations to shoulder the responsibility of this pressing issue,” Mr Plumpton said.
In Lampedusa, the joint delegation met the local authorities of Lampedusa, followed by a visit outside the immigration ‘reception centre’.
Their journey was intended to promoted the urgent need for action beyond words to fight the rise in human trafficking taking its toll in the Mediterranean Sea.
The delegation also visited the site where the recent tragedy took place and held a memorial service where a moment of silence was held and flowers where thrown in the sea in memory of the victims.
Throughout the journey, the participants wore T-shirts with a message to EU institutions for Actions and Not Words. This message was aimed to reinforce the cry of the participating countries to the EU institutions to consider the plight of irregular immigrants with closer attention, and provide legislative and financial tools to curb the criminal action of human traffickers in the Mediterranean region.