More than 400 migrants and refugees have drowned in the central Mediterranean in the first three months of the year, making it the world’s deadliest quarter at the most dangerous crossing point for migrants, according to the United Nations.
In a report released Wednesday, the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) said 441 migrants and refugees drowned in the central Mediterranean between January and March 2023. But the IOM has warned that the figure is likely an underestimation of the true number of fatalities.
The Central Mediterranean has been described by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as the most dangerous migratory route in the world, with one in six people leaving the coasts of North Africa on small boats in search of refuge or better economic opportunities in Europe, die on their travels.
Since 2014, more than 20,700 people have drowned or disappeared in the Central Mediterranean while making the crossing.
These migrants are fleeing poverty, conflict, war, forced labour, female genital mutilation, corrupt governments and personal threats.
“When you see in life that you have lost everything, you are not afraid of anything anymore,” a migrant from the Central African Republic told Al Jazeera. “You don’t see the waves. You just see a boat. And that is your chance to get your freedom back.”
In addition to the number of casualties, those forcibly returned, especially to Libya, have been described as “hell” by those who survived the ordeal in transit.
Since February 2017, more than 36,000 people have been intercepted by the Libyan coastguard and returned to the North African country, according to UN figures.
Oliver Kulikowski of Sea-Watch, a Germany-based search and rescue (SAR) organization operating in the Mediterranean, told Al Jazeera that while the dinghies used by migrants and refugees cross the central Mediterranean have been replaced by larger fishing boats. boats, they are still dangerous.
“These people have no choice,” Kulikowski said, adding that many of them continue to undertake the journey in the hope that they will survive.
IOM stressed that delays and gaps in state-led SAR missions on the route played a role in at least six incidents this year, which killed at least 127 people.
The complete failure to respond to a seventh case led to the deaths of at least 73 people, it added.
“The most urgent step is to strengthen the SAR at sea and when disembarking,” an IOM spokesman told Al Jazeera on Wednesday.
“Search, rescue and disembarkation must become more responsive and faster, cooperative and predictable between all actors at sea to prevent further loss of life.
“It is also crucial to address the many causes that push people to attempt this dangerous sea crossing. Key to this is undermining the smugglers’ business model by expanding and improving access to safe, regular migration channels and pathways to protection, and this is a measure that needs much more priority.”
Earlier this week, a ship carrying around 400 migrants and refugees was reported to have been adrift between Italy and Malta for two days before being checked by the Italian Coast Guard.
Italian authorities carried out a SAR operation “only when the boat reached their SAR region,” rescue service Alarm Phone told Al Jazeera.
State of emergency
On Tuesday, Italy declared a state of emergency in a bid to contain a wave of migration along its southern coasts, claiming the move will help better manage arrivals and repatriation facilities.
Italy’s Interior Ministry reported that about 31,300 migrants and refugees have arrived in the country so far this year, up from about 7,900 in the same period last year.
“With over 20,000 recorded deaths on this route since 2014, I fear these deaths have normalised. States must respond,” said IOM Director General António Vitorino, highlighting the lives lost due to delays and gaps in state-led SAR operations.
“We need to see proactive, state-led coordination in search and rescue efforts.”
Last month, more than 1,000 people were brought to safety in two Italian ports after the overcrowded boats they were on encountered problems in the Mediterranean. Two weeks earlier, at least 76 people died in a shipwreck.
The European Union has reportedly spent more than 90 million euros ($98 million) funding and training the Libyan Coast Guard to stop the crossings.
Reporting by Priyanka Shankar, Hafsa Adil and Faras Ghani