*this text was updated at 16:23 pm
“Dozens and dozens of drowned dead, including children, many missing. Calabria is in mourning over this terrible tragedy”, lamented Roberto Occhiuto, president of the Calabrian region, in a note.
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According to rescue teams, the vessel was carrying more than 120 people and crashed into some rocks a few meters from the coast. The fire department said more than 200 people were on board.
In the images released by the Italian police, it is possible to see pieces of wood scattered on the beach, where emergency teams went, while those rescued waited to be transferred to a reception center.
Immigration in focus
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, leader of the party 'Fratelli d'Italia' (FDI, Brothers of Italy, extreme right), expressed “deep pain” in a statement and stated that it is “criminal to send a vessel of just 20 meters with 200 people on board and a bad weather forecast.”
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“The government haspromehad to prevent exits and this type of tragedy. And it will continue to do this by demanding, before anything else, greater collaboration from the states of departure and origin”, he added.
The sinking happened just days after the approval in the Italian Parliament of new and controversial rules for rescuing migrants, supported by the government dominated by the far right.
Anti-immigration policy
Rome has been criticizing the number of arrivals to its territory for several years. According to the Interior Ministry, almost 14.000 migrants have entered Italy since the beginning of the year, compared to 5.200 in the same period last year and 4.200 in 2021.
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Although NGOs only rescue a small percentage of them – most are intercepted by the Coast Guard or Navy ships – the government accuses them of encouraging travel and encouraging traffickers with their operations.
“People at sea must be rescued regardless of the cost, without penalizing those who help them,” Carlo Calenda, former minister and leader of the centrist Azione party, said on Twitter.
“It is unacceptable from a human point of view and incomprehensible, why are we here witnessing tragedies that can be avoided?”, reacted the NGO Doctors Without Borders (MSF) on Twitter.
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(Source: AFP)
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