The Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic on Tuesday called for a ship operated by the Sea-Watch NGO to be assigned a port of safety after it rescued 52 migrants off Libya last week.
Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said the the Sea Watch 3 ship should dock in Tripoli, but the vessel has refused, saying the Libyan capital is not a safe port. "Migrants saved as sea should never be disembarked in Libya because the facts show that it is not a safe country," Mijatovic told ANSA. "I am worried about the Italian government's attitude towards NGOs that conduct rescue operations in the Mediterranean.
"The Sea Watch 3 should be quickly assigned a safe port that can be reached rapidly". Mijatovic called for an end to Salvini's policy of closing Italy's ports to NGO-run search-and-rescue ships. She also expressed concern about the government's new security decree, which sees NGO ships that bring migrants rescued at sea to Italy without permission facing fines of up to 50,000 euros.
"I am seriously worried about impact some parts of the second security decree could have on the lives of people who need to be saved at sea," said Mijatovic.
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