Seebrüecke International demands abolition of Piantedosi Decree

Seebrüecke International has once again demanded for the abolition of the Piantedosi Decree and an end to the blocking of civilian sea rescue!

It said the European policy of letting people drown must come to an end!

Speaking on a recent rescue operation by MSF, the organisation said “During the rescue operation, two masked men boarded the wooden boat, which had previously been in distress with over 90 people. Panic broke out and people jumped into the water. The masked men and the two rubber dinghies then travelled on with the empty wooden ship.

“On Wednesday morning, the MSF team on board the Geo Barents carried out a rescue that was disrupted by a Libyan boat. The Libyan boat travelled close to the distressed vessel and some people on the boat in distress jumped into the water.”

Fortunately, it said, the crew of the Geo Barents were able to bring all 87 people safely on board despite the dangerous manoeuvres of the Libyans.

“In a further operation on Wednesday evening, 12 people were rescued from a fibreglass boat.

“The many operations show what a state of emergency currently prevails in the Mediterranean and how important it is that as many ships as possible are on site.

However, especially due to the allocation of distant harbours, Seebrüecke International added that ships are often kept away from the operational area for long periods of time. This is due to the so-called Piantedosi Decree, which allows for the allocation of distant harbours.

“We demand the abolition of the Piantedosi Decree and an end to the blocking of civilian sea rescue! The European policy of letting people drown must come to an end!”