Two more gruesome boat tragedies involving migrants show that the world has done precious little to address one of the biggest humanitarian crises in decades.
Greece yesterday said its coast guard rescued 144 refugees and recovered the bodies of 22, including four infants and nine children, after their boats sank in two separate incidents in the Aegean sea. In the first incident, 138 migrants were rescued and 19 drowned after their wooden boat capsized off the island of Kalymnos late on Thursday. In the second case off the island of Rhodes, three people, including a child and an infant, drowned and four were missing. Six people were rescued at sea, the coastguard said. Some 16 people, including two infants and eight children, were confirmed dead and 274 people were rescued when a wooden boat they were on literally fell apart in rough seas off the Greek island of Lesbos late on Wednesday.
The death toll from drownings at sea has increased recently due to a change in weather and the desperation of migrants to reach Europe before the harsh winter sets in. Due to the change in the weather, the sea has become turbulent, turning the wind-whipped waters into a deadly passage for thousands of refugees crossing from Turkey to Greece. If weather is a major factor in the latest tragedies, more deplorable is the inability of the world to stem the flow of migrants into Europe by taking whatever measures necessary. Syrians are willing to die in their desperate bid to rebuild their lives because life in Syria is worse than death.
It’s not late to act. These drownings are likely to continue as nothing is being done to prevent it. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras expressed “shame” over Europe’s failure to prevent yet another humanitarian tragedy, and said it was crucial to prevent the Aegean Sea from becoming a graveyard for people fleeing war and misery. Tsipras is in fact speaking for migrants and his warning must be taken seriously.
The migrant flow has created a crisis for Greece. The country has been a transit point for more than 570,000 refugees and migrants fleeing conflict in the Middle East and beyond this year, triggering disputes among European nations on how to deal with the issue.
It’s true that there is no easy solution to the war in Syria, but there are other steps that can be taken to avert tragedies, like a crackdown on smugglers. Refugees have reported smugglers offering ‘discounts’ of up to 50 percent on tickets costing between 1,100 to 1,400 euros to make the journey on inflatable rafts in bad weather, UN refugee agency UNHCR said on Thursday.
Two more gruesome boat tragedies involving migrants show that the world has done precious little to address one of the biggest humanitarian crises in decades.
Greece yesterday said its coast guard rescued 144 refugees and recovered the bodies of 22, including four infants and nine children, after their boats sank in two separate incidents in the Aegean sea. In the first incident, 138 migrants were rescued and 19 drowned after their wooden boat capsized off the island of Kalymnos late on Thursday. In the second case off the island of Rhodes, three people, including a child and an infant, drowned and four were missing. Six people were rescued at sea, the coastguard said. Some 16 people, including two infants and eight children, were confirmed dead and 274 people were rescued when a wooden boat they were on literally fell apart in rough seas off the Greek island of Lesbos late on Wednesday.
The death toll from drownings at sea has increased recently due to a change in weather and the desperation of migrants to reach Europe before the harsh winter sets in. Due to the change in the weather, the sea has become turbulent, turning the wind-whipped waters into a deadly passage for thousands of refugees crossing from Turkey to Greece. If weather is a major factor in the latest tragedies, more deplorable is the inability of the world to stem the flow of migrants into Europe by taking whatever measures necessary. Syrians are willing to die in their desperate bid to rebuild their lives because life in Syria is worse than death.
It’s not late to act. These drownings are likely to continue as nothing is being done to prevent it. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras expressed “shame” over Europe’s failure to prevent yet another humanitarian tragedy, and said it was crucial to prevent the Aegean Sea from becoming a graveyard for people fleeing war and misery. Tsipras is in fact speaking for migrants and his warning must be taken seriously.
The migrant flow has created a crisis for Greece. The country has been a transit point for more than 570,000 refugees and migrants fleeing conflict in the Middle East and beyond this year, triggering disputes among European nations on how to deal with the issue.
It’s true that there is no easy solution to the war in Syria, but there are other steps that can be taken to avert tragedies, like a crackdown on smugglers. Refugees have reported smugglers offering ‘discounts’ of up to 50 percent on tickets costing between 1,100 to 1,400 euros to make the journey on inflatable rafts in bad weather, UN refugee agency UNHCR said on Thursday.
