Many European sailors consider the Mediterranean to be a place of longing. There are usually warm and dry summers, countless cultural and tourist highlights, spread over more than 20 countries on the three continents of Europe, Africa and Asia. Many regattas during the season, such as the annual Middle Sea Race starting from Malta, also promise carefree, sporty sailing. However, the Middle Sea also borders the poor countries of North Africa to the south. What to do if you suddenly come into contact with refugee boats at sea?
SeaHelp was there when the fleet of the 45th Malta Middle Sea Race left the Maltese Grand Harbour in Valetta on Sunday, October 20. A total of 112 yachts between 10 and 30 metres in length set off on the 606 nautical miles (1,122 kilometers) waterway around Sicily, organized by the venerable Royal Malta Yacht Club (RMYC).
The prestigious Regatta, which regularly features many internationally renowned sailors and boat names, has as start and finish point is Malta and, since 1978, the route has run counter-clockwise (left-handed) around the Italian island of Sicily first; then the Aeolian and Egadi Islands and finally the islands of Pantelleria and Lampedusa on the port side.
Lampedusa is only 138 kilometers east of the Tunisian coast on the shortest route
Lampedusa is the largest of the Pelagian Islands in the Mediterranean between Sicily and Tunisia. The island belongs to Italy, and here within the Autonomous Region of Sicily to the municipality of Lampedusa e Linosa in the Free Consortium of Municipalities of Agrigento. Lampedusa is located around 205 kilometers south of Sicily and on the shortest route only 138 kilometers east of the Tunisian coast, roughly at the same latitude as the city of Monastir.
For this reason, Lampedusa has become an increasingly popular stopover for migrants fleeing across the Mediterranean since the 2010s in the wake of the Arab Spring and the international military operation in Libya. Thousands made – and still make – the dangerous journey by water in refugee boats, some of which are unseaworthy, and many refugees do not survive these journeys.
What do you do if you are the crew of a leisure boat – or the skipper of one of the yachts taking part in the Malta Sea Race – and come across one of these refugee boats that is in danger of sinking in the next big wave? This can certainly happen off Lampedusa and the neighboring islands. What is the correct course of action for a skipper and crew in such an exceptional case? Looking the other way does not work.
Under international maritime law, all ships anywhere at sea are obliged to provide assistance to people in distress
As a general rule: under international maritime law, all ships anywhere at sea are obliged to provide assistance to people in distress. Rescue at sea is anchored in maritime tradition as a human duty and is considered customary international law everywhere at sea.
Francesca Vincenti from the Malta Tourism Authority, which has invited German and Italian journalists to this year’s Middle Sea Race, agrees: “It’s not a question of whether you should help, you are obliged to”, says the sailor one day before the start of the regatta. International maritime law applies.
Georges Bonello du Puis from the organizing Royal Malta Yacht Club also makes a clear statement on the subject. “If the participating boats encounter refugee boats, you should make a note of their position and take photos of them,” advised the race officer at the skipper briefing on October 18 at the Hotel Excelsior at Marina Marsamxett in Valetta.
Both photos and the position of the refugee boat should then be sent to the Coastguard. If the refugee boats are in distress at sea and there is a fear that they will sink, the “rescue should be accelerated” if possible and without putting themselves in danger.
This is in line with the statements of frigate captain Frank Martin, press officer at the German Navy’s Press and Information Center, whom Trans Ocean interviewed on this topic some time ago. “If they (…) have people who are in distress at sea, then of course they do what every sailor will do: they try to get them out of the water in some way,” Martin is quoted as saying.
“But if they have a boat with several hundred people, they can no longer handle the situation. Here it is crucial that they inform the respective Rescue Coordination Center as quickly as possible,” the naval officer concludes.
It is important to communicate the position of the refugee boat, estimate how many people are on board and provide further information
It is “very important” to communicate the position of the refugee boat, estimate how many people are on board and also pass on other information that is known from other distress situations: “what condition are the people in, are they exposed to direct danger, i.e. is the refugee boat shipwrecked, are there perhaps already people in the water?”.
His advice: you should organize yourself on board; the crew should divide up in such cases: “one makes the radio call, one keeps a lookout, and one steers the yacht”. Martin would “personally (…) be very careful about approaching refugee boats”.
After all, you never know whether there might be smugglers on board the refugee boat. You could very quickly end up in a “dangerous situation”. That’s why you should act “very carefully”. Their own safety has “top priority”, they should “make sure that they always remain in control of the situation and do not expose themselves to any danger”.
The assessment of whether a “dangerous situation” exists, whether the refugees are in “distress at sea” and whether or how help should be provided is the sole responsibility of each individual skipper and their crew. It depends solely on their assessment.
But it is also a fact that no potentially endangered human life should be less important than the prestigious line honors (First Ship Home) in Mediterranean regattas such as the Middle Sea Race with its more than 100 participating boats, some of which are worth millions.
Pro Asyl has published a brochure on the subject of refugees in distress at sea, which is intended to help boat crews live up to their responsibilities
Pro Asyl e.V. has published a flyer “Refugees in distress at sea“. The brochure is intended to help boat crews fulfill their responsibilities. It provides an overview of the regulations of the relevant international law that skippers should be aware of, specific tips on how to behave when rescuing people at sea and a selection of other sources and emergency numbers. Quote (excerpts):
“The duty of rescue at sea is laid down in several international treaties under international maritime law. They have been implemented by the contracting states. This means that sea rescue is more than just a charitable duty. Rather, there is a legal obligation to help. Distress at sea is “a situation in which it must be assumed that a person, ship or other vessel is threatened by serious and imminent danger and requires immediate assistance”.
Do I have to rescue even though it puts me and my crew in danger?
No. In the SCLOS (UN Convention on the Law of the Sea) and in the Bergungsabkommen emphasizes: They only have to rescue if they “are able to do so without serious danger to the ship, the crew or the passengers”. Recreational craft in particular may be too small to accommodate a large number of people on a refugee boat.
You can and must still act in this case: If you find yourself unable to help, you must not only record this in your logbook with reasons, but above all inform the relevant sea rescue service (Rescue Co-ordination Center, RCC) so that they can proceed with the rescue. You should also try to make contact with large freighters or fishermen in the vicinity via VHF – they may be able to provide assistance before the sea rescue service arrives.
Otherwise, you are not only risking the lives of those affected. You may also be liable to prosecution for failing to render assistance. At sea, you are subject to the criminal law of your flag state, i.e. your state of origin, and in territorial waters to that of the coastal state.
Who do I have to rescue?
Anyone in distress at sea. SAR and SOLAS emphasize this: The duty to rescue applies indiscriminately to every person – regardless of their nationality, their legal status and the circumstances in which they are found. It is therefore irrelevant which country the person comes from. It is equally irrelevant whether they put themselves in danger at their own risk and for what reasons they sought to cross the sea.
Above all, however, one thing is irrelevant: Whether the person in distress at sea has a visa that allows them to enter a European country. This will usually not be the case – immigration by sea is a typical case of irregular entry, as there are hardly any legal and risk-free routes for refugees and migrants to Europe.
The rescue – what do I have to do?
According to SAR, this means for you: Rescue the people in distress, ensure that they receive first aid or other basic medical care and take them to a safe place (what this is – see below, editor’s note). Contact the sea rescue service responsible for the search and rescue zone in question.
They will request the following information from you, following the IMO guidelines: Information about the survivors including name, age, gender, apparent medical condition and any medical needs; your assessment of the safety of your vessel after the rescue.
This includes, for example, asking about sufficient life-saving equipment, water, food, medicine, accommodation for those taken on board. This also includes questions about the safety of your crew if there is a risk that persons taken on board could become aggressive or violent.
The following information is also required: measures you have already taken and plan to take, the current occupancy of your vessel with the additional persons taken on board; the next safe port you have in mind; your preferred measures for disembarking the survivors, any assistance you may need during or after the rescue operation, any special factors relevant to the situation (e.g. current weather conditions or urgent cargo).
If there are people on board who reveal themselves to be asylum seekers, you should also follow the recommendations of UNHCR and IMO follow. This means: make the sea rescue service aware that there are potentially vulnerable people on board. You can find a detailed overview of the necessary rescue steps in the “Handbook Search and Rescue“.
Starting point “What is a safe location?”
The SAR obliges you to bring the rescued persons “to a place of safety”. According to the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) of the IMO, a place of safety is where the rescue operation can be considered to have ended. Here, the life of the rescued person must no longer be at risk. Basic human needs must also be met. These include, above all, food, shelter and medical care.
Such a place can be the nearest local port, the next port of destination of the rescuing ship or a port in the rescuing ship’s country of origin. The solution always depends on the individual case. But one thing applies in any case: disembarkation is a must. The rescuing ship is not a safe place. It will often not be sufficiently equipped to safely care for and accommodate the increased number of people as a result of the rescue. In addition, the crew of the rescuing vessel should not be overwhelmed.
In the brochure, it is also pointed out that skippers who come across a (sinking) refugee boat often find themselves in an apparent dilemma: If you don’t help, you could be fined for failing to render assistance. If you rescue people who might otherwise be at risk of drowning and disembark them in a (European) port, you may be punished for aiding and abetting unauthorized entry.