10-18-2017, 09:42 PM
*** 19-Oct-17 World View -- Italy's deals with Libya's warlords substantially reduce flow of refugees
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
****
**** Italy's deals with Libya's warlords substantially reduce flow of refugees
****
![[Image: g171018b.jpg]](http://Media.GenerationalDynamics.com/ww2010/g171018b.jpg)
Migrants from Libya's port of Sabratha are transported to detention centers by Italy's deal with warlords (Reuters)
A record 180,000 refugees crossed the Mediterranean from Libya to
Italy in 2016, and Italian officials had been expect that number to
increase in 2017. Instead, the number has fallen substantially,
thanks to a series of deals that Italy's government made with Libya's
tribes, warlords, and coast guard, even though the deals have been
widely condemned by humanitarian and human rights organizations.
The number of crossings in July 2017 was half what it was in July
2016, and in August, 20 per cent of what it was a year
earlier. Crossings were down from nearly 28,000 people in June to
below 10,000 in August.
The reduction in the flow of refugees is attributed to a series of
deals that Italy has made with various tribes and government officials
in Libya during June to cut off the migrant flow. Many of the deals
were with tribes along Libya's southern border, to prevent refugees
coming from West Africa from entering Libya from Chad, Mali and Niger.
The initiator of the agreement was Italy's interior minister Marco
Minniti. According to Minniti:
<QUOTE>"But my conviction was the southern border of Libya is
crucial for the southern border of Europe as a whole. So we have
built a relationship with the tribes of southern Sahara. They are
fundamental to the south, the guardians of the southern border,
but they had been fighting one another and that meant the southern
border was not controlled.
On 31 March the tribes came to my office here in Rome. It was a
very difficult discussion; 72 hours were needed to to try to find
a solution and to build a peace that respected their
independence. All this was very complicated, more complicated than
you can imagine, but they were looking for a solution. My
conviction is that at a certain point [when] these conflicts
become unsustainable the important thing is to be ready when
someone is looking for a solution."<END QUOTE>
That wasn't all. Minniti also made deals with the mayors of 14 cities
in Libya:
<QUOTE>"We discussed a pact. It was quite simple: engage
yourself against the trafficking of human beings and we will help
you to build an alternative economy. The problems at the moment is
trafficking has been the only industry in Libya capable of
producing an income revenue."<END QUOTE>
What was the alternative economy? The tribal militias in these cities
had only one major source of income -- to become human traffickers and
collect money from refugees to put them on boats, push the boats out
into the Mediterranean, and hope that they'll be rescued by NGOs. In
many cases, Italy has accused NGOs of being in telephone contact with
these human trafficking militias, and paying off the militias to let
them know when refugee boats were pushed out into the sea.
So Minniti offered to provide aid to these mayors to replace the funds
received from human trafficking. According to Minniti:
<QUOTE>"When I met a sultan of the tribes he said: ‘You have
to help me so that my children so that can lead a different life
from trafficking.’ We have taken these projects to the European
commission. These people want to change and it is the duty of the
international community to help in this
reconversion."<END QUOTE>
In return for the aid, the militias are responsible for detaining the
migrants and keeping them in refugee camps.
In August, Rome also signed deals with the Libyan coastguard to help
it deal with people smuggling, and to permit Italy to perform naval
operations in Libyan waters.
These deals are considered to be morally questionable, but their
effect has been dramatic, in cutting the refugee flow to Italy and the
number of drownings in the Mediterranean Sea substantially.
Italy's prime minister Paolo Gentiloni bragged about the results on
Wednesday:
<QUOTE>"Italy is proud to be a good example on the issue of
migrants. We have reduced the number of people dying at sea and
the number of irregular-migrant arrivals."<END QUOTE>
Gentiloni said that Italy was a model for Europe on how to reduce
migrant arrivals. Reuters and Irish Times and Guardian (London)
****
**** Italy accused of turning a blind eye to atrocities received by refugees in detention centers
****
The deals that Italy's government has signed with Libya's warlords,
tribes, militias and coast guard have dramatically reduced the flow of
refugees, but Italy is being accused of turning a blind eye to the
abuse that refugees receive in "concentration camps," where they have
been left hungry, brutalized, raped and tortured.
U.N. agencies have said that Italy's policies had trapped tens of
thousands of people in dire conditions in Libya. This is particularly
true in Libya's port of Sabratha, which Libyan human smugglers have
long used as an operations base and a main port for their boats
heading across the Mediterranean Sea. Last week, 4,000 migrants were
found, trapped in various locations around the city, often starving.
Commissioner Nils Muiznieks of the Council of Europe Human Rights
wrote to Italy's interior minister Marco Minniti, all but accusing
Italy of violating human rights laws:
<QUOTE>"The case law of the European Court of Human Rights is
clear about this duty and I think it bears relevance for Italy’s
operations in Libyan territorial waters. In light of recent
reports on the current human rights situation of migrants in
Libya, handing individuals over to the Libyan authorities or other
groups in Libya would expose them to a real risk of torture or
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, ... [violating]
Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Finally, the Commissioner requests information about the measures
to ensure that search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean,
including those conducted by non-governmental actors, can continue
to be carried out effectively and in safety."<END QUOTE>
Muiznieks added, "The fact that such actions would be carried out in
Libyan territorial waters does not absolve Italy from its obligations
under the convention."
In fact, based on news reports, the evidence is that Minniti has taken
no steps at all to prevent refugees from being exposed to atrocities.
According to the deals, the Libyan warlords and militias detain the
refugees, do not allow them to proceed to Europe, but instead lock
them up in detention centers where any form of abuse can be performed
on them with impunity. Deutsche Welle and Council of Europe-Commission of Human Rights and Deutsche Welle and BBC
Related Articles
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Italy, Libya, Sabratha,
Mediterranean Sea, Chad, Mali, Niger,
Marco Minniti, Paolo Gentiloni,
Nils Muiznieks, Council of Europe Human Rights
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- Italy's deals with Libya's warlords substantially reduce flow of refugees
- Italy accused of turning a blind eye to atrocities received by refugees in detention centers
****
**** Italy's deals with Libya's warlords substantially reduce flow of refugees
****
Migrants from Libya's port of Sabratha are transported to detention centers by Italy's deal with warlords (Reuters)
A record 180,000 refugees crossed the Mediterranean from Libya to
Italy in 2016, and Italian officials had been expect that number to
increase in 2017. Instead, the number has fallen substantially,
thanks to a series of deals that Italy's government made with Libya's
tribes, warlords, and coast guard, even though the deals have been
widely condemned by humanitarian and human rights organizations.
The number of crossings in July 2017 was half what it was in July
2016, and in August, 20 per cent of what it was a year
earlier. Crossings were down from nearly 28,000 people in June to
below 10,000 in August.
The reduction in the flow of refugees is attributed to a series of
deals that Italy has made with various tribes and government officials
in Libya during June to cut off the migrant flow. Many of the deals
were with tribes along Libya's southern border, to prevent refugees
coming from West Africa from entering Libya from Chad, Mali and Niger.
The initiator of the agreement was Italy's interior minister Marco
Minniti. According to Minniti:
<QUOTE>"But my conviction was the southern border of Libya is
crucial for the southern border of Europe as a whole. So we have
built a relationship with the tribes of southern Sahara. They are
fundamental to the south, the guardians of the southern border,
but they had been fighting one another and that meant the southern
border was not controlled.
On 31 March the tribes came to my office here in Rome. It was a
very difficult discussion; 72 hours were needed to to try to find
a solution and to build a peace that respected their
independence. All this was very complicated, more complicated than
you can imagine, but they were looking for a solution. My
conviction is that at a certain point [when] these conflicts
become unsustainable the important thing is to be ready when
someone is looking for a solution."<END QUOTE>
That wasn't all. Minniti also made deals with the mayors of 14 cities
in Libya:
<QUOTE>"We discussed a pact. It was quite simple: engage
yourself against the trafficking of human beings and we will help
you to build an alternative economy. The problems at the moment is
trafficking has been the only industry in Libya capable of
producing an income revenue."<END QUOTE>
What was the alternative economy? The tribal militias in these cities
had only one major source of income -- to become human traffickers and
collect money from refugees to put them on boats, push the boats out
into the Mediterranean, and hope that they'll be rescued by NGOs. In
many cases, Italy has accused NGOs of being in telephone contact with
these human trafficking militias, and paying off the militias to let
them know when refugee boats were pushed out into the sea.
So Minniti offered to provide aid to these mayors to replace the funds
received from human trafficking. According to Minniti:
<QUOTE>"When I met a sultan of the tribes he said: ‘You have
to help me so that my children so that can lead a different life
from trafficking.’ We have taken these projects to the European
commission. These people want to change and it is the duty of the
international community to help in this
reconversion."<END QUOTE>
In return for the aid, the militias are responsible for detaining the
migrants and keeping them in refugee camps.
In August, Rome also signed deals with the Libyan coastguard to help
it deal with people smuggling, and to permit Italy to perform naval
operations in Libyan waters.
These deals are considered to be morally questionable, but their
effect has been dramatic, in cutting the refugee flow to Italy and the
number of drownings in the Mediterranean Sea substantially.
Italy's prime minister Paolo Gentiloni bragged about the results on
Wednesday:
<QUOTE>"Italy is proud to be a good example on the issue of
migrants. We have reduced the number of people dying at sea and
the number of irregular-migrant arrivals."<END QUOTE>
Gentiloni said that Italy was a model for Europe on how to reduce
migrant arrivals. Reuters and Irish Times and Guardian (London)
****
**** Italy accused of turning a blind eye to atrocities received by refugees in detention centers
****
The deals that Italy's government has signed with Libya's warlords,
tribes, militias and coast guard have dramatically reduced the flow of
refugees, but Italy is being accused of turning a blind eye to the
abuse that refugees receive in "concentration camps," where they have
been left hungry, brutalized, raped and tortured.
U.N. agencies have said that Italy's policies had trapped tens of
thousands of people in dire conditions in Libya. This is particularly
true in Libya's port of Sabratha, which Libyan human smugglers have
long used as an operations base and a main port for their boats
heading across the Mediterranean Sea. Last week, 4,000 migrants were
found, trapped in various locations around the city, often starving.
Commissioner Nils Muiznieks of the Council of Europe Human Rights
wrote to Italy's interior minister Marco Minniti, all but accusing
Italy of violating human rights laws:
<QUOTE>"The case law of the European Court of Human Rights is
clear about this duty and I think it bears relevance for Italy’s
operations in Libyan territorial waters. In light of recent
reports on the current human rights situation of migrants in
Libya, handing individuals over to the Libyan authorities or other
groups in Libya would expose them to a real risk of torture or
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, ... [violating]
Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Finally, the Commissioner requests information about the measures
to ensure that search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean,
including those conducted by non-governmental actors, can continue
to be carried out effectively and in safety."<END QUOTE>
Muiznieks added, "The fact that such actions would be carried out in
Libyan territorial waters does not absolve Italy from its obligations
under the convention."
In fact, based on news reports, the evidence is that Minniti has taken
no steps at all to prevent refugees from being exposed to atrocities.
According to the deals, the Libyan warlords and militias detain the
refugees, do not allow them to proceed to Europe, but instead lock
them up in detention centers where any form of abuse can be performed
on them with impunity. Deutsche Welle and Council of Europe-Commission of Human Rights and Deutsche Welle and BBC
Related Articles
- EU countries refuse to help Italy deal with massive refugee crisis (16-Jul-2017)
- Italy begs for help after 12,000 migrants arrive in four days (30-Jun-2017)
- Italy prepares for possible Mediterranean refugee crisis this summer (05-May-2017)
- EU migrant crisis moves to Italy as Austria begins closing border (13-Apr-2016)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Italy, Libya, Sabratha,
Mediterranean Sea, Chad, Mali, Niger,
Marco Minniti, Paolo Gentiloni,
Nils Muiznieks, Council of Europe Human Rights
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
