Sea-Watch, 02 July 2018, 9AM CET

Sea-Watch
learned today that its vessel is detained in Malta, without any legal
grounds provided by authorities. Since the Sea-Watch 3 is not registered
in the sportboat register, as is the case for LIFELINE and SEEFUCHS,
but is listed in the royal shipping register as a Dutch seagoing vessel,
fully entitled to fly the Dutch flag, the lack of permission to sail
from Malta turns out not to be a registration issue, but a political
campaign to stop civil rescue at sea.
While rescue
assets are blocked in port, recent days have become the deadliest this
year. Yesterday, the UNHCR reported another 63 people missing, while on
Friday more than 100 people had drowned, among them babies and children.
At the moment there is no suitable rescue asset left in the area of
operation, despite the fact that the Sea-Watch 3 is well equipped and
ready to sail. Sea-Watch strongly urges the Maltese government to stop
hindering rescue workers, as human lives are at acute risk.

Yesterday, the EU has declared its readiness to criminalize those who rescue refugees at sea as well as build massive ‘Control Centers’ to detain refugees (concentration camps would be as accurate a word). Today, they are deliberately holding back rescue vessels that are equipped and prepared to go out and save lives.