Sooner or later Europe will be forced to make a difficult decision concerning migrants from Africa.

Do they continue to support the human trafficking industry with all the migrant exploitation, suffering and drownings, continue to depopulate Africa and dump people where there aren’t the jobs for them, create social division and facilitate the rise of fascist governments all through Europe or do they smash people- smuggling operations at their source as Australia did?

Australia turns back boats before they reach international waters or picks up migrants at risk and safely returns them while making its contribution to accepting genuine refugees through other channels.

The Australian navy escorts migrants safely back to the port from which they launched and it actually accepts more genuine refugees now than they did when boats were arriving from Indonesia (the last figures available show Australia accepted residency for just over 24,000 in 2016-17). The people traffickers have gone out of business and there have been no drownings in the years since.

What is happening now is madness and an indictment on our weak political leaders, many of whom have lost touch with those in their electorate who are disadvantaged by mass migration (those on low incomes, who queue for social housing, health services, welfare etc.). And those who allow the current situation to continue by opposing the stopping of the boats, while well intentioned, are actually complicit in the exploitation, suffering and drownings by promoting and encouraging the trafficking industry.  Accepting people who migrate this way is not the best answer.