Safeguarding health should not come at cost of lives lost at sea - Delia

PN leader Adrian Delia says the safeguarding of the health of the Maltese amid the COVID-19 crisis should not result in loss of lives of migrants in distress

PN leader Adrian Delia was speaking on Net TV on Monday evening
PN leader Adrian Delia was speaking on Net TV on Monday evening

Malta should not have to choose between safeguarding the health of its citizens in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic and saving the lives of migrants in distress at sea, Adrian Delia said.

The Nationalist Party leader urged people not to politicise the issue of migration, and said that the government was giving the impression that dedicating resources to fighting COVID-19 meant that the country could not act to save migrants in danger at sea.

Delia was speaking during an interview on Net TV.

His comments come as this evening Foreign Minister Evarist Bartolo called for the EU to launch a €100 million humanitarian aid mission to Libya. Delaying on this, Bartolo warned, would lead to a humanitarian disaster.

Last week, the government took the decision to close Malta's ports to migrants to focus the country's resources on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

Delia acknowledged that people were afraid in the context of the public health emergency caused by the coronavirus, but he insisted that the Maltese were mature enough to not wish that a single human being lost their life in the sea if Malta had the ability to save them.

"This does not mean we have a policy of opening our doors wide to illegal immigration, which would only increase our population problems," he noted, as he called on the EU to not let Malta face the problem alone. "It cannot be expected that we have the resources to solve the problems of the Mediterranean."

He emphasised that he was insisting that the EU offered "meaningful solidarity" with Malta.

On comments made by Alfred Grixti on Facebook that migrant vessels should be impounded and scuttled, Delia said the Foundation for Social Welfare Service head's words were "shameful".

"He incited racism without thought nor reason," Delia added.