|
Altruism or vigilantism?
|
| trancaholic |
I have highlighted the important parts:
Linky
The authorities in Italy have arrested a ship's captain and a German aid official after 37 African asylum seekers were allowed to land in Sicily.
Elias Bierdel of the Cap Anamur group and captain Stefan Schmidt were accused of aiding and abetting illegal immigration, Italian officials said.
The German aid group said the Africans were rescued from a leaking dinghy in the Mediterranean Sea late last month.
They were allowed to disembark on Monday after being stranded for weeks.
The BBC's David Willey in Rome says their plight has touched the Italian public.
Citing strict new EU immigration laws, both Italy and Germany had previously refused to accept the asylum seekers and tried to shift responsibility to Malta, where the German-registered Cap Anamur ship made a brief call to land some other migrants.
Italian police impounded the vessel and detained captain Stefan Schmidt and Mr Bierdel as part of an investigation into illegal immigration.
"We haven't yet had time to discuss this to know how we are going to react," Cap Anamur's spokeswoman Michaela Schunko was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.
Earlier on Monday, the Africans were finally allowed to disembark and were taken to a refugee shelter at Agrigento.
"They left the boat this morning," an Italian interior ministry representative told BBC News Online.
"From what we can gather, they are in a decent state," he said.
The Italian interior ministry said the ship's captain radioed for help on Sunday morning, signalling "he was no longer able to guarantee the control of the ship and the command of the crew" and was concerned about the well-being of the migrants.
Both the United Nations refugee agency and the Vatican, who had urged Italy to let the African migrants disembark on humanitarian grounds, welcomed the decision.
"We are pleased that the Italian government decided to allow the refugees to land," Laura Boldrini, spokesperson for the UN agency, told reporters.
The migrants will now have the opportunity to apply for political asylum in either Germany or Italy, she said.
The semi-official Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, said Italy's decision to let the Africans land was a triumph of humanity over bureaucracy.
But Germany said the refugees could not claim asylum in Germany.
"An asylum application in Germany requires one to have reached German territory," an interior ministry spokesman said.
The asylum-seekers had claimed to be fleeing the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region but the Italian authorities now say they appear to be from Ghana and Nigeria.
Italy's long and porous coastline mean it is often a target for immigrants seeking an entry-point into Europe.
The Cap Anamur organisation says it is dedicated to helping refugees in distress at sea.
The group has rescued tens of thousands of refugees at sea since it began helping Vietnam's boat people two decades ago.
---------------
So, what do you think? Is it ok for an organization to deliberately get itself into a situation where it needs to be exempted from the laws of a democracy, if that organization is doing it for humanitarian reasons? |
|
|
| NYCTrancefan |
Many of these indviduals are never from where they claim, and since they have no IDs on them in the first place it becomes a guessing game. I gurantee you that most of them are not from the Sudan, in the past another place they use to claim to be from if they were French speaking was from Rwanda, when in actuality they may be from Guinea, Mali, etc.
It has to be tough for the Italian authorities because no one wants these people in their country but yet Italy is being blasted for not wanting them to enter into Italy. If it is the fact that they are in Italian waters, then as soon as one makes it into Italian waters, granted they make it that far in the first place then they should be let into the country? People will keep coming no matter the hard journey, because as they see it the shores of Europe offer them a better chance. |
|
|
| Yoepus |
| quote: | Originally posted by trancaholic
The Italian interior ministry said the ship's captain radioed for help on Sunday morning, signalling "he was no longer able to guarantee the control of the ship and the command of the crew" and was concerned about the well-being of the migrants.
|
I don't get this part:conf: |
|
|
| Q5echo |
sounds like mutiny.
to a lamen mutiny sounds rather silly, but i assure you, to a captain of a ship its very serious. for one reason or another he suspected he was losing command of his crew and is obligated by law and his superiors to report it. |
|
|
| ResonantDrag |
| quote: | Originally posted by Q5echo
sounds like mutiny.
to a lamen mutiny sounds rather silly, but i assure you, to a captain of a ship its very serious. for one reason or another he suspected he was losing command of his crew and is obligated by law and his superiors to report it. |
damn, beat me to the draw:D
:thepirate
the question is, was that distress call for real, or used as a way to gain easy access to an Italian port?
I understand the desire for refugees to try to gain a better life for themselves, but if Europe responds to every cry for help, there won't be much of a better life for anyone.. |
|
|
| Yoepus |
| quote: | Originally posted by ResonantDrag
damn, beat me to the draw:D
:thepirate
the question is, was that distress call for real, or used as a way to gain easy access to an Italian port?
I understand the desire for refugees to try to gain a better life for themselves, but if Europe responds to every cry for help, there won't be much of a better life for anyone.. |
Thats exactly what wasn't clear to me. They don't follow up on the mutiny aspect. If the Captian did indeed feign a mutiny, he should indeed face criminal trial regardless of motive. |
|
|
| ResonantDrag |
I wouldn't be surprised if that's why the captain was arrested..
the charges were "aiding and abetting illegal immigration", but the representing organization of the captain says they only help refugees in distress at sea.
I'm curious to how this turns out |
|
|
| trancaholic |
| quote: | Originally posted by ResonantDrag
I wouldn't be surprised if that's why the captain was arrested..
the charges were "aiding and abetting illegal immigration", but the representing organization of the captain says they only help refugees in distress at sea.
|
If that indeed was the whole truth then I do not understand why the organization feel that it needs to sail the rescued refugees to Europe, as opposed to back to the place they sailed out. Hence, my question as to whether this conduct is vigilantism or not. |
|
|
| ResonantDrag |
| quote: | Originally posted by trancaholic
If that indeed was the whole truth then I do not understand why the organization feel that it needs to sail the rescued refugees to Europe, as opposed to back to the place they sailed out. Hence, my question as to whether this conduct is vigilantism or not. |
If this speculation is true.. it is vigilantism.
The organization's appeals to the vatican and the bbc proves it. Or so it seems |
|
|
|
|
