17/10/2007 Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
Strasbourg, 17.10.2007 - At the end of a two-day visit to Malta, the Rapporteur on large scale arrival of migrants and asylum seekers of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Morten Østergaard (Denmark, ALDE), expressed concern that Malta was struggling to cope with the arrival of irregular migrants and asylum seekers.
“Warning bells have been ringing about the situation in Malta, but now a solution has to be found,” the Rapporteur commented. “1,665 persons have arrived in Malta already this year, and it is clear that the reception facilities are not adequate to deal with this number of persons.”
Mr Østergaard expressed concern at the overcrowded conditions in the closed detention centres set up by the Maltese authorities. He expressed particular concern at the sanitation facilities, noting that many of these facilities were broken down and inadequate for the needs of the population in detention.
He was also concerned about the length of detention of asylum seekers, for up to one year, and the detention period for irregular migrants, which was for a maximum period of 18 months. “Such lengthy detention is well above the European norm for detention of this kind.” Mr Østergaard said. “The situation is particularly serious for the 446 persons who are crammed into tents, and these persons should be moved to more suitable accommodation as a matter of urgency,” he added.
Mr Østergaard called on Malta and its European partners to take all steps necessary to meet the challenge of the arrival of migrants and asylum seekers on Malta’s shores. “Malta has to invest much more into the reception of these persons and Europe has to assist Malta in this. Europe has a responsibility to share the burden, not just in financial terms, but also in terms of resettlement of the relatively large number of persons arriving on the small territory of Malta.”