‘Mediterranean a cemetery for migrants’ – Zammit Dimech

As the world celebrated International Migrants Day on Sunday, opposition spokesman Francis Zammit Dimech bemoaned the death of hundreds of migrants who perish each year while crossing the Mediterranean Sea seeking a better future for themselves.

“The Mediterranean is a cemetery for hundreds of migrants,” he said. “As the world tries to tackle the migration crisis, Malta should be more aware of the challenges faced by migrants, particularly in view of the number that die while attempting to reach Europe by sea.”

Zammit Dimech said one could not forget that millions of migrants worldwide had left their homes because of war, poverty, persecution, dictatorship and other issues that led them to seek a better future elsewhere.

The people of the world should come together in solidarity with the migrants’ plight and focus on saving lives above all else, he said.

“The European Union in particular should take more concrete action to tackle this phenomenon, instead of only giving lip service,” Zammit Dimech said.

Facts and figures

The United Nations said that the total number of international migrants had increased from an estimated 175 million in 2000 to 244 million persons in 2015, with nearly two thirds of all international migrants living in Europe (76 million) or Asia (75 million).

Migration was now more widely distributed across more countries; the top 10 countries of destination receive a smaller share of all migrants today than in 2000.

One of every ten migrants was under the age of 15, according to the UN.

The impact of remittance flows was also significant having reached $436 billion in 2014 – far exceeding official development assistance and, excluding China, foreign direct investment.