SUMMER TIDES, 2017 - 2

Yesterday the UN and people around the world marked World Refugee Day. It followed a weekend during which 2,500 desperate souls were saved in the Mediterranean and fell the day after 1,096 of those rescued had been brought to Palermo and 495 to Pozzallo. These numbers are in no way unusual these days.

Among the migrants who disembarked at Palermo on Monday were the only four survivors of a dinghy which left Libya for Italy last Thursday with 126 - 130 people on board. Before long a group of people traffickers approached the dinghy and took the engine. Sudden movement among the migrants in the dinghy probably caused it to sink and the survivors were found clinging to the wreckage by Libyan fishermen, who deposited them on yet another migrant boat in the area. They were then rescued, for the second time, by the Italian Coast Guard.  The four survivors said that many women and children were among those who drowned.

Speaking on World Refugee Day, President Mattarella called for cooperation in finding long-term, rather than emergency, solutions to what he called a human tragedy to which Italy cannot be indifferent because migrant arrivals in the country are a daily, not an occasional, occurence.  He said that this would involve a commitment to preventing conflict in the regions most at risk, combatting climate change (which leads to "environmental migration") and making choices regarding the causes of conflict.  He emphasised that such action must involve the whole international community as the effects of migration are being experienced not only in the countries most involved but worldwide and because migration flows need to be managed on a global level.

UNHCR estimates that 2,000 lives have been lost on the Mediterranean migrant route since the beginning of this year. Of the 77,000 who have attempted this dangerous journey in 2017, 60,000 have reached Italy.

"This is not about sharing a burden. It is about sharing a global responsibility, based not only the broad idea of our common humanity but also on the very specific obligations of international law. The root problems are war and hatred, not people who flee; refugees are among the first victims of terrorism." 

- UN Secretary-General, António Guterres

SUMMER TIDES, 2016

Will there ever again, I wonder, be a good time to be a migrant? Once we [for I regard myself as one, albeit from choice] were needed, wanted and even welcomed, but no more.  These lines come to mind:

"Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,"

- Emma Lazarus

How different from today's world, with police on the Greek - Macedonian border, clearances at Calais and Idomeni and now 80 Austrian police on the Brenner Pass, much to the understandable concern of Italy, which relies on the Brenner to keep its trade moving. Migrants are unlikely to receive any help from the referendum-obsessed UK in the near future, either.  Perhaps the only ray of hope comes from Mrs Merkel, who at least seems to be trying to create a positive environment .

Although a tragedy in the Mediterranean has featured in international headlines today [Wednesday] - Sky News UK are covering the story as I write - I have a feeling that it will soon disappear and few people outside Italy will realise that the Italian Navy and Coast Guard also saved 3,000 people from 23 boats in the Mediterranean yesterday and that this is by no means an unusual occurence.

The pictures of today's migrant tragedy have now gone around the world and we should all bear in mind that it could have been much worse had it not been for the swift action of the Italian Navy:  Two of its ships hurried to the scene 18 miles off the Libyan coast after a satellite SOS had been received and  the boat, carrying an estimated 600 migrants,  capsized as they approached.  This was because of the sheer number of people on board and its resultant instability.  Naval operatives managed to save not only people from the sea and  the deck, but migrants who had been trapped below deck too.  It is estimated that 550 people were rescued and five deaths have been confirmed. The number of fatalities should, however, be treated with caution, as it is impossible to know exactly how many people were on board and the figure may rise.

In another development yesterday a 17-year-old Moroccan who was "captaining" the boat on which 52 people died of asphyxiation on 26th August last year was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment by an Italian court. He was found guilty of aiding illegal immigration and will be tried separately for homicide, as will nine other alleged people traffickers involved in the tragedy.  Italy has a good record of bringing people traffickers to justice, though this is seldom mentioned by the international media.

Headlines, politics, a UK referendum whose result could depend on migrant scare stories, the Italians continuing to save lives and deal with the situation as best they can whilst their European "partners" largely ignore their plight - it is easy to forget the individual, human aspect of what is happening. My thoughts tonight are with all migrants but particularly with a baby girl aged nine months, now being cared for on Lampedusa, who lost her mother on a migrant boat yesterday.

Finally, it is good to know that one politician has not forgotten: President Mattarella will visit Lampedusa on June 3rd for the opening of the Museo di Fiducia e Dialogo which is to be dedicated to migrating peoples. A Caravaggio, on loan from the Uffizi, will be among the exhibits and this is in memory of Aylan.

May those of us who sleep in our own beds give thanks this night, whilst 28 nations, whose history should cause them to know better and whose collective indifference could have unimaginable consequences, fail to cry,

"Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,"

Ibid.

A WORLD CHAMPION

Many congratulations to 26-year-old Modican fencer Giorgio Avola, who, with teammates Andrea Baldini, Andrea Cassarà and fellow-Sicilian Daniele Garozzo won the men's team foil gold medal at the World Fencing Championships in Moscow last week. Italy also won the men's team sabre and women's team foil events.

Italy came second overall in the medal table and Rossella Fiamingo from Catania won the women's individual épée gold medal with Arianna Erigo taking bronze in the women's individual foil event.

Giorgio and other members of the Italian team will meet President Mattarella at the Quirinale tomorrow.

Well done, Giorgio. Your home town can celebrate again!

AFTERMATH 2015

Three days on from the worst migrant tragedy that the Mediterranean has seen, the main facts of the disaster are being reported in every media outlet and language but perhaps I can add some detail and reaction from here, including my own:

The images of the survivors landing at Catania last night are heartbreaking and many Sicilians who were present have commented on the sadness in their eyes. The bodies that have so far been recovered have been taken to Malta and, although the numbers are not yet official, it is thought that the final toll will be around 825. Some of these were women and children who were locked in the hold. Shocking accounts are emerging of survivors who had to cling to corpses in order to avoid drowning.

As was reported on Sunday, one of the causes of the tragedy was that many of the migrants rushed to one side of the boat when they saw one of two merchant ships approaching the area.  The other cause, according to survivors, was that one of the people traffickers, the "captain" of the boat, was steering carelessly, causing a collision with the nearer merchant vessel.  It is not clear which event happened first. This man and another people trafficker from the boat have now been arrested and are under investigation for aiding illegal immigration and for multiple homocide.

Here in Sicily opinion is divided between those who feel that the Italian Coast Guard and Navy should not be going so close to the Libyan coast to save migrant boats in trouble and those who feel that Mare Nostrum, or an operation like it, should be restored. Everyone, however, has expressed profound sorrow for the migrants. Premier Renzi said on Sunday that Italy cannot remain indifferent to boats in difficulty in an age of global communication and has today called for the entire international community to act against the people traffickers who, in the words of President Mattarella, are causing the slaughter of innocents. Mr Renzi has also today ruled out military operations within Libya.

Meanwhile the boats keep coming and you will have read of the deaths off Rhodes yesterday and possibly of two other rescues in which Italy has been involved in the last 24 hours. We have also learnt that richer Syrians have been paying up to €8,500 each for a safe passage to Italy and yesterday a yacht carrying 98 such migrants was rescued when its engine failed off Siracusa. The passengers, among whom there were many families with young children, have been brought to Pozzallo.  Well, if you or I were in Nazi Germany or today's Syria and our family's lives were threatened, wouldn't we do it if we had the means? I will say again that for me, the logic is simple: if we agree that the régimes in question are awful, then we cannot blame people for trying to escape from them, in whatever way they can.

You may read for yourselves the European Commission's ten-point plan on migration:  yes, destroy the smugglers' boats before they leave but what about the people who are in fear of their lives? Then there is the point about reinforcing joint operations "but within the Frontex mandate".  We shall see but it still seems to be more about protecting borders than people to me. An "EU resettlement project" sounds good, until you read the part about "offering a number of places to persons in need of protection." What number? I am always suspicious when statistics are mentioned before humanity.  

Humanitarian organisations are calling for a European or UN Mare Nostrum operation and Cécile Kyenge, among others, is suggesting that this should be Italian-led.

Finally, an extraordinary European Council has been called for Thursday to discuss the situation. How many people will die before that?

Image:  Cécile Kyenge facebook page

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Standard of the President of Italy

If you were watching the same UK news channels as I did over the weekend, you could be forgiven for believing that nothing newsworthy had happened in Italy. In case you missed it, then, I bring you the news that the country's Parliament did, in fact, elect a new President on Saturday. It has been hard to find any coverage of the event in online editions of the UK press, too, and I am wondering if this is a reflection on how the world now regards Italy - I hope not - bafflement with its political system or whether other news was simply deemed more important.

The new President, Sergio Mattarella, is a 73-year-old widower and it is thought that his daughter Laura will carry out the duties of "First Lady".  Born in Palermo, Sergio Mattarella is the first Sicilian to hold the office. As you may imagine, there has been much discussion about him here and most people I have spoken to believe him to be a decent and honourable man. His brother Piersanti Mattarella was killed by the Mafia in 1980 whilst serving as President of Sicily. Therefore people here think he is likely to understand some of the problems they face.

President Mattarella is a Constitutional Court judge who has also served as Minister of Education and Minister of Defence. In the latter role, he was instrumental in ending conscription in Italy. In 1990 he resigned his position over the liberalisation of the media in Italy, a relaxation of the rules which led to the rise of the Berlusconi television empire.

Later Sergio Mattarella became one of the founders of the current Democratic Party [PD] in Italy.

Upon his election on Saturday President Mattarella said,

"Il mio pensiero va soprattutto e anzitutto alle difficoltà e alle speranze dei nostri concittadini - My thoughts are first and foremost with the difficulties and hopes of our citizens."

He will be sworn in as President tomorrow. The Italian President has largely ceremonial duties but is regarded as a guarantee of the democratic process in the country.  His role can be crucial at times of political stalemate or instability [as President Napolitano's was].

It seems to me that few people, in any country, go into politics for purely altruistic reasons, but it has to be said that those in democracies other than Italy make a better pretence at doing so. My hope for President Mattarella is that he will encounter more honourable politicians than perhaps he expects to during his term or terms of office. 

Incidentally, I was immensely cheered up to read on twitter that, on the day of President Mattarella's election, arancini were being served in the canteen of the US Congess - whether by accident or design I know not!