Editorial: Mere platitudes won’t suffice when confronted with yet another migrant tragedy, warns The Guardian

According to survivors, a fishing boat carrying primarily Afghan and Pakistani migrants on their way to Italy capsized suddenly on Wednesday, resulting in the deaths of at least 78 individuals. However, the actual number of casualties could be much higher. The overcrowded vessel, which was ill-equipped for such a journey, sank 50 miles off the coast of Pylos, a Greek coastal town.

In response to the tragedy, political parties in Greece halted their pre-election campaigns, and three days of mourning were declared. However, there’s a reason why the ill-fated boat was traveling in a deep part of the Mediterranean Sea. Migrant boats are taking greater risks and embarking on longer journeys to avoid the patrols and illegal pushbacks that occur in Greece. During his re-election campaign for prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis capitalized on Trumpian themes by promising to extend a border wall with Turkey.

As demonstrated by this week’s tragedy, harsh deterrence measures do not prevent irregular migration. Instead, they drive desperate individuals to consider even more perilous actions. Greece is not the only country that needs to reflect on this situation. Throughout Europe, governments disingenuously argue that building high walls, implementing barbed-wire fences, and shifting responsibility for asylum seekers to third-party nations are morally justifiable actions. The concept of “breaking the people smugglers’ business model” has become the rationale behind Europe’s strategy of fortifying itself against the repercussions of global crises.

Forced displacement is driven by various factors such as conflict, the climate emergency, human rights violations, and economic insecurities, all of which have become prominent features of 21st-century geopolitics. However, the increasingly right-wing influenced Europe is outsourcing its moral responsibility through dubious agreements. The European Union recently outlined a potential deal with Kais Saied, Tunisia’s authoritarian leader, in which economic aid will be provided in exchange for intensified border control and facilitation of repatriations from Italy.

Mr. Saied has recently propagated a conspiracy theory that portrays black African migrants as a threat to Tunisia’s Arab-Muslim culture, leading to violent attacks against sub-Saharan refugees. Yet, the EU seems unaffected by this or the horrific abuses suffered by migrants in Libyan detention camps funded by Italy. In fact, last week, the rules pertaining to “safe” non-European Union destinations for rejected asylum seekers were weakened, as desired by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Furthermore, in violation of international law, the UK still plans to forcibly send irregular migrants to Rwanda.

This week, the UNHCR reported a significant increase of 19.1 million in forced displacements compared to the previous year. Europe, to its shame, largely leaves poorer countries to deal with the consequences. However, without more safe and legal pathways to European nations, only a small fraction of these individuals will attempt to reach the continent, and unfortunately, some will lose their lives in the process. A change in approach and mindset is urgently needed.

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