OVER 250 organisations wrote to Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday urging the German government to prevent more refugees drowning in the Mediterranean as they flee Africa for Europe.

“We are shocked at current European policy, which is relying increasingly on building walls and deterrence, and thus readily accepting deaths by the thousand,’’ the open letter states.

The signatory organisations included aid organisations, Christian groups, trade unions and rights organisations, among them Amnesty International, Doctors without Borders and Sea Watch.

According to UN figures, crossing the Mediterranean became more dangerous in 2018, with an average of six people dying each day.

During that year, almost 117,000 people crossed from the African coast to Europe while no fewer than 2,275 died in the attempt.

According to the International Organisation ‎for Migration (IOM), 311 people have died in the Mediterranean this year.

In their letter, the organisations said it was a “scandal’’ that rescue workers were being treated as criminals.

They called for a reorientation of policy, with refugees distributed across European countries.

Refugees rescued from the sea should not be returned to Libya, given the appalling human rights situation there, they said. (dpa/NAN)

– Apr. 3, 2019 @ 13:45 GMT |