Humanity Overboard
To mark World Refugee Day 2024, we are publishing our report “Humanity Overboard” with analyses of the ongoing humanitarian emergency in the Mediterranean. The report contains operational data, reports from survivors and a survey conducted on board of the Humanity 1. The report highlights the breaches of law by EU member states and the inhumane consequences for people seeking protection.
Read the report in full length here.
The evaluation of a survey on board provides insights into the reasons for and experiences of people fleeing across the Mediterranean. In addition to these findings, the report also publishes the specific experiences of crew of the Humanity 1. During the reporting period from September 2022 to March 2024, the crew witnessed multiple human rights violations at sea. These were committed by the so-called Libyan Coast Guard, which is funded by the EU, among others.
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Rescues37
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Survivors2223
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Medical evacuations5
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Illegal pull- and push-backs witnessed5
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Distant ports14
The report shows on 28 pages: The EU and its member states are obstructing search and rescue in the Mediterranean and depriving refugees of their human rights. SOS Humanity therefore urgently calls on the EU and its member states to change course towards a human rights-based migration policy. Instead of abolishing the individual right to asylum, criminalising flight and humanitarian aid for refugees as well as outsourcing responsibility for people seeking protection to third countries, human and refugee rights must be respected at all times, both at the EU’s external borders and within the EU.
SOS Humanity is campaigning for compliance with international law and the basic principle of humanity. We bear the humanitarian responsibility at sea that should be a matter of course for European decision-makers: to help people in acute distress and take seriously their experiences.