A draft proposal likely to be
adopted at an emergency EU summit taking place in Brussels won't
be enough to end the humanitarian crisis in the Mediterranean,
Amnesty International said Thursday after viewing a draft of the
final document.
Resolutions contained in the draft "are wholly
inadequate...to stop an increase in the number of sea deaths,"
the human rights watchdog said.
The draft shows EU leaders will reject urgent requests for
more search-and-rescue operations, and will instead decide to
double its Triton operation without changing its mandate, which
is to patrol the EU's borders 30 miles off the coasts of Italy
and Malta - areas that are far away from where most of the mass
drownings occur, according to Amnesty.
"European leaders still have the opportunity and the
responsibility to remedy their colossal failures," the
organization said.
"What we need is to change the objectives and the areas of
operation, we need more ships and more planes," said Amnesty
Europe and East Asia Deputy Director Gauri van Gulik.
"Ignoring the urgent need to save those who are drowning
sounds like an insult to the thousands who have perished in the
Mediterranean, and a cynical affront towards those who have no
choice to undertake that dangerous voyage".
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