Philanthropists in search of funds to sustain migrant assistance mission

The Migrants Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) has rescued some 2,200 migrants crossing from Libyan shores in two months. But its future looks bleak as a lack of funds may force the cancellation of the operation during the winter months.

Although the number of migrant crossings during the winter months usually go down, chances are that the situation in Libya may force migrants to flee the North African country, irrespective of sea and weather conditions.

The mission has so far been funded by its founders, philanthropists Regina and Christopher Catrambone. The privately-funded humanitarian initiative consists of a 40-metre ship, Phoenix, conducted by a professional crew of rescuers, seafarers, paramedics and humanitarians.

The mission started off near end August and spent a total of 60 days at sea. But on 31 October, the Huffington Post reports, the Phoenix could sail for the last time due to lack of funds.

MOAS saw its inception when, shocked by the shipwreck tragedy off Lampedusa in October 2013, the Catrambones decided to heed Pope Francis’s call for entrepreneurs to help prevent tragedies. They became the first civilians to fund a mission to assist migrants at sea.

The mission, directed by Brigadier Martin Xuereb who served as Malta’s chief of defence, assisted in the rescue of migrants. Its primary aim was to prevent loss of life at sea and not to ferry migrants from one point to another.

The Phoneix is equipped with an aid clinic, with paramedics trained in trauma; it has two Schiebel remote piloted aircraft – camcopters – which monitor the seas from the sky and provide real-time intelligence to MOAS and the Rescue Coordination Centres of Malta and Italy.

MOAS was conceived before Mare Nostrum, an operation that sees the Italian government taking responsibility for the lives at sea that even fall under the Maltese government’s responsibility.

The Italian mission is set to be discontinued when Operation Triton, coordinated by Frontex, is launched.