How the Mediterranean became the most Dangerous Sea for Refugees | Iasonas Apostolopoulos | TEDxNTUA

The Mediterranean: A Sea of Death for Refugees

• The Mediterranean Sea has become the most dangerous sea for refugees, with the speaker having witnessed this firsthand through their experiences with rescue operations starting in the fall of 2015 on the Greek island of Lesvos as a volunteer rescuer and solidarity activist during a massive wave of refugee arrivals (33s).
• The speaker's life was forever changed by their experience on Lesvos and they have since participated in rescue operations in the central Mediterranean, specifically between Italy and Libya (1m10s).
• One of the rescue operations the speaker is involved with is the Mare Ionio rescue ship, operated by the Italian humanitarian organization Mediterranea Saving Humans, which organizes missions in international waters to search for boats with refugees in distress and transport them to the nearest safe port (1m23s).
• Unfortunately, the Mediterranean remains the deadliest sea in the world, with around 850 people lost in 2024 and over 30,000 in the last 10 years, with these deaths resulting from a massive lack of state-organized rescue efforts rather than accidents or natural disasters (1m55s).

The Absence of Rescue Efforts

• The lack of rescue efforts is evident in the frequent sightings of boats in distress and people in need of help who are not being rescued, as seen in the case of the Pylos shipwreck, where people were left stranded for 16 hours without being rescued (2m41s).
• Rescue operations in the Mediterranean are conducted by various civil society organizations, including efforts to save 116 people, among them a two-month-old infant and its mother. (2m57s)

Causes of Refugee Migration

• These individuals are fleeing from multiple conflicts, such as the war in Sudan, which has resulted in 6,000 deaths and 8 million displaced people, the war in Cameroon with 10,000 deaths and a million displaced, and the war in Mali, as well as the ongoing conflict in Syria. (3m15s)
• The experience of refugees boarding boats to escape war is perilous, as they often lack life jackets, cannot swim, and are crammed into boats without knowing if they will survive the journey. (3m49s)

The Perilous Journey and Urgent Need for Rescue

• Rescue operations in the Mediterranean are urgent because if refugees are not located quickly, their boats, especially inflatable ones, can collapse, leading to people falling into the water and drowning. (4m22s)
• Rescuers frequently encounter half-destroyed inflatable boats with people struggling to stay afloat by bailing out water with their hands or shoes. (4m41s)
• Upon reaching these boats, rescuers are met with the sight of dozens of outstretched hands seeking help. (5m0s)
• As the rescue team approached with an inflatable boat, they encountered parents holding their children up, pleading for their children to be rescued first. This is a recurring and deeply impactful experience. (5m15s)

Invisible Shipwrecks and the High Cost of Inaction

• There are instances where the team arrives at a location only to find no trace of life, encountering what are referred to as "invisible shipwrecks." (5m44s)
• A month prior, 85 people were stranded in the middle of the Mediterranean without food or water for a week, resulting in 60 deaths from thirst, while 25 survived by disposing of the bodies of their deceased companions into the sea. (6m1s)
• On another occasion, two entire boats disappeared a few miles away, leading to the deaths of 250 people in a single day. (6m26s)
• Many deaths in the Mediterranean go unreported and are not included in official statistics, as often only a few bodies are recovered from shipwrecks, leaving the number of missing persons to be estimated based on the size of the boat. (6m44s)
• The vastness of the Mediterranean makes it difficult to determine the exact number of deaths, which is a shocking realization compared to experiences in Lesbos, where the number of deceased is more apparent. (7m18s)

The Emotional Toll on Rescuers

• Survivors on the rescue ship often ask about the whereabouts of their loved ones, such as their brother or mother, and it can be difficult to respond to these questions (7m36s).
• The number of people dying at sea is often underestimated due to the prevalence of fake news and misinformation about refugees, which can be misleading and inaccurate (7m53s).
• Refugees are often falsely accused of not caring about their children or intentionally damaging their boats to be rescued by the coast guard, which is not supported by evidence (8m1s).

Debunking Myths and Misinformation

• In reality, refugees have been observed trying to keep their boats afloat by covering holes with duct tape, even using their bare hands to prevent the boat from sinking (8m18s).
• Refugees are willing to risk their lives for freedom, and it is essential to remember that no one migrates by choice, but rather out of necessity (8m37s).
• No one would put their child on a boat if the sea were not safer than the land, especially in the case of Libya, where refugees often express a preference for death over being sent back (8m45s).
• During rescue operations, migrants often ask where the ship is headed, and many express a desire to die rather than be returned to Libya (9m0s).

The Brutality Faced by Refugees in Libya

• Many rescued migrants have physical trauma from torture, and some have been sold into slavery two or three times in Libya (9m18s).
• A significant number of rescued women have been sexually abused by multiple men in Libya (9m27s).
• Recently, a small part of the violence that these people face was experienced, as armed groups are involved (9m36s).

Attack by the Libyan Coast Guard

• A rescue operation in the Mediterranean Sea was disrupted by the Libyan coast guard, who opened fire on the rescuers while they were saving refugees in international waters, 95 miles away from the Libyan coast (9m49s).
• The refugees jumped into the sea to escape, including those who did not know how to swim and were not wearing life jackets, with some clinging to a barrel and using their other hand to push the water and try to survive (10m17s).
• On the Libyan coast guard's boat, dozens of migrants who had been captured in previous incidents were seen kneeling with their heads down, being beaten with clubs and threatened with guns to discipline them (10m36s).
• Despite the violence, some people jumped into the water to escape, and bullets from the Libyan coast guard's guns fell just 2 meters away from the rescue boat (11m0s).

Europe's Complicity in the Tragedy

• The Libyan coast guard's actions were an attempt to enforce an agreement with Europe, which includes funding, equipment, and training for the Libyan coast guard to patrol the maritime borders, rescue refugees, and return them to Libya (11m19s).
• However, in practice, rescue by the Libyan coast guard means returning refugees to a country with an ongoing civil war, where atrocities against migrants are well-documented by international organizations (11m55s).
• A country is not recognized as a safe country by any international organization, making it a crime to return people there, and unfortunately, in the chaos, it's unclear if there are fatalities in the incident (12m8s).
• The majority of people in the incident were rescued, but some were caught by the Libyan vessel (12m22s).

The Question of 'Foreigners' at Sea

• The phrase "operation to search and rescue foreigners" is often used in the media and public discourse, which raises questions about why human life at sea is divided into locals and foreigners (12m33s).
• International law is clear that when there is a risk to life at sea, it doesn't matter what the person's nationality, status, or reason for fleeing is, and they should be rescued (13m13s).
• The status of a person in distress at sea is the only relevant status, and this is stated in three international conventions: the SOLAS, the CLO, and the OAS, which emphasize the universal obligation to rescue people in distress (13m47s).
• These conventions explicitly state that assistance should be provided to every person in danger at sea, regardless of their nationality, legal status, or reason for fleeing (13m57s).
• The reason for flight, even if the person is a serial killer, does not change the obligation to rescue them (14m8s).
• The priority in rescue operations should be to save lives first and then determine the identity and status of the rescued individuals, whether they are migrants or refugees, and whether they have documents or not (14m16s).

The Pylos Shipwreck: A Maritime Disaster

• Unfortunately, this approach is not always followed, which has led to one of the largest maritime disasters in the Mediterranean's history, the Pylos shipwreck on June 14, 2023, resulting in 650 deaths and missing persons (14m41s).
• It is essential to note that if people in distress at sea are not rescued promptly, it is not because they are not in danger, but because the danger is often underestimated (15m13s).
• Overcrowded migrant boats are considered vessels in distress, as they are often of poor quality, overloaded, and lack safety equipment, life jackets, and navigation and communication means (15m18s).
• According to international maritime standards, a vessel in distress is one that has a high risk of sinking or is already sinking, but also one that is in a situation of danger due to its condition, such as being overcrowded or lacking safety equipment (15m35s).
• In such cases, the only mandatory action for any coast guard is to rescue the people on board, regardless of their intentions or the circumstances (16m3s).

The Role of Human Traffickers and Smugglers

• When a major shipwreck occurs, it is often blamed on human traffickers who allegedly put people on a boat and sent them to their deaths, but it is essential to clarify that the real traffickers do not board the vessels themselves (16m22s).
• Smugglers exist due to the current border policies, as there are no legal and safe routes for refugees and migrants, forcing them to pay thousands of euros to a smuggler and risk their lives at sea to make an illegal entry and seek asylum (16m45s).
• The lack of legal and safe routes for refugees and migrants leads to the closure of all border crossings, making it impossible for foreigners to seek asylum in Europe without resorting to smugglers and risking their lives (16m53s).
• In 2024, there is no legal or safe way for a person to exercise their internationally recognized right to asylum, resulting in refugees being forced to make an illegal entry and then being granted asylum (17m19s).
• The only way to eliminate smuggling networks is to create safe and legal routes for refugees and migrants, as defined by the Geneva Convention and other international law provisions (17m45s).

The Need for Safe and Legal Migration Routes

• Migration is a global and multifaceted phenomenon that has always existed throughout human history, and in the current context, refugees and migrants are the most vulnerable people on the planet, having lost their homeland and seeking a new one (18m6s).
• A new protection means an asylum application is a request for international protection, but until this new protection is acquired, individuals are in a state of limbo and are extremely vulnerable, with their lives exposed, as described by Ben, (18m34s).
• The issue at hand is what kind of society we want to live in, where some lives are valued more than others, or one that prioritizes solidarity, mutual aid, and harmonious coexistence, (18m59s).
• The current situation raises questions about the kind of society we want to build, where people are left to die at sea due to the color of their skin, or one that puts solidarity and cooperation first, (19m5s).
• Racism and hatred towards the weak may currently be targeting refugees and migrants, but eventually, this hatred will also be directed towards other social groups and individuals with fewer privileges, (19m34s).
• No one is safe in a society where racism and hatred towards the weak exist, and therefore, it is essential to prioritize solidarity and defend it, as it protects our communities, (19m56s).
• The ultimate goal should be to create a society that values the lives of all individuals equally and promotes a sense of community and cooperation, (20m0s).