Dear friends of Sea-Eye,
while our first mission in the coming year remains in serious jeopardy due to a drop in donations, the full cruelty of state action is revealed on the ongoing mission.
That the EU and its member states stand by and watch while people drown in the Mediterranean is as scandalous as it has long been known. Last weekend, the crew of the SEA-EYE 4 documented the full dimension of this cruelty.
45 people struggled for days to survive in an unseaworthy boat in the Maltese search and rescue zone. However, instead of coordinating the rescue, the Maltese Rescue Coordination Centre tried to prevent merchant ships from rescuing those people by intimidating and threatening the ship with consequences. As a result, one ship called off the search. Fortunately, another ship continued the search anyway and was actually able to find the people. When the SEA-EYE 4 finally arrived, all the people were saved.
The 45 people had already been on the open sea for six days, and both Maltese and Italian authorities had been aware of the situation for at least three days. Italy nevertheless ordered the SEA-EYE 4 to immediately head for the port of Livorno. Nearly all of those rescued suffered burns from spilled gasoline, including at least 17 severe cases. The medical team was able to provide initial treatment to all of them. Now the SEA-EYE 4 is on its way to the port of Livorno to finally bring the people to safety. Read our detailed report on the case here.
The recent incidents have shown once again that we cannot expect rescue operations from Malta, Italy or any other EU state in 2023. For us, this means that our work remains a matter of survival.
As a matter of truth, we still have a drop in donations of about 23 % compared to last year. We therefore ask you once again for your support and also to share this information with your family members and friends at Christmas. Because we can only carry out our first mission in January 2023 if we collect enough donations in the last days of the year.
We will get back to you around Christmas with the latest information on the disembarkation of the 108 rescued people in the port of Livorno.
Yours, Gorden Isler
- Chairman Sea-Eye e.V.