A group of shipping bodies and associations sent an open letter to European Commissioners, including President Ursula von der Leyen, calling for prompt and predictable disembarkations of persons rescued by merchant vessels in the Mediterranean Sea.
Maersk reported that they safely disebarked the 27 migrants from the Maersk Etienne tanker in the Mediterranean. The migrants have now been transferred to the ship Mare Jonio operated by the non-governmental organization Mediterranea.
The European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) and the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) sent a letter to EU Vice President and Commissioner expressing their concern over the humanitarian crisis onboard Maersk Etienne.
ICS, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) are calling for the immediate disembarkation of 27 rescued people trapped onboard a cargo ship.
Maersk Tankers reported that three migrants jumped overboard the Maersk Etienne. The crew acted rapidly and the recovered persons are now being given due care.
Liberia Maritime Authority advises operators to lookout for possible sightings of vessels engaged in human trafficking in the Andaman Sea and the northern part of Straits of Malacca including coastal areas off Bangladesh/off Myanmar.
Singapore’s Information Fusion Centre (IFC) published an analysis focusing on 5 incidents of attempted irregular human migration (IHM) undertaken by Rohingya migrants via the sea.
Clandestine migration is an issue that attracts interest these days, with TT Club informing that except border disruptions, this issue poses a great risk of contamination and damage to goods. Now, 2019 closed with surging numbers concerning clandestine migration with each Brexit deadline, as smugglers anticipated the border becoming more secure after Brexit.
Namely, in his statement at the Foreign Affairs Council, High Representative/Vice President Josep Borrell stated that the EU needs to revive Operation Sophia. It was in May 2019 when the European Union decided to suspend the EUNAVFOR MED ‘Operation Sophia’ until 30 September 2019, with only air patrols to continue.
The Supreme Court of Cassation in Italy confirmed that the German captain of a migrant-rescue ship, should never have been arrested. Specifically, the Master of “MV Sea Watch 3”, Carola Rackete, was arrested on 29 June 2019 by Italian authorities for helping and abetting illegal immigration and for forcing her way into the port of Lampedusa.
