MARE JONIO

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In a legal first, six Italian activists to stand trial for migrant rescue

An Italian court has ordered six members of the NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans to stand trial over a 2020 rescue operation involving 27 migrants stranded in the Mediterranean. This was the first time a criminal case against a sea rescue crew has moved to trial in Italy. In Aug 2020, the 'Maersk Etienne', now sailing as 'Keonamex Victory', rescued 27 people from a wooden boat about 70 nautical miles north of Libya, following instructions from the Maltese rescue authorities. The migrants had been attempting to reach Europe but were stranded when their vessel began sinking. Despite rescuing them, the 'Maersk Etienne' was not granted permission by Malta, Italy, or Libya to let the migrants disembark. As a result, they remained aboard the tanker for 38 days without access to proper care or facilities. The operator, Maersk Tankers, said the ship was not equipped to host that many people and urgently required assistance. The NGO ship 'Mare Jonio' was dispatched to provide help. The vessel had a doctor on board to offer basic medical attention. The migrants were transferred from the tanker onto the 'Mare Jonio' and then taken to Pozzallo, The talian prosecutors in Ragusa later accused six members of the NGO, including five men and one woman, of aiding illegal immigration. Those named in the case included the captain, a crew doctor, and Luca Casarini, one of the group’s founders and a well-known activist. They all said they were helping people in need and did nothing wrong. One of the main accusations from the prosecutors involved a payment of €125,000 (around $140,000) made by Maersk Tankers to Idra Social Shipping, the company that owns the 'Mare Jonio', a few months after the rescue. The authorities suggested that this was a financial transaction linked to the migrants’ transfer. According to Mediterranea Saving Humans, the payment was a transparent donation meant to cover operational costs. The lawyer Serena Romano, speaking on behalf of the NGO, said that no previous case against rescue crews in Italy had ever reached trial, stating that similar investigations had either been closed during the inquiry or dropped at the pre-trial stage. The court in Ragusa has scheduled the first hearing for Oct 21, 2025. Casarini said the trial would serve as an opportunity to examine the decisions made by authorities during the 38-day standoff.

NGO ship detained after rescue of 58 migrants

On Oct 13, the 'Mare Jonio' rescued 58 migrants, who was departed from Libya and had been drifting in the sea for over 22 hours in the Mediterranea. The NGO ship refused Naples, which was four sailing days away, as a safe port. After seven hours waiting, and while the ship was already in the waters of Lampedusa, the master Filippo Peralta refused the destination, explaining that there were exhausted people on board. Then two patrol boats headed towards the humanitarian vessel with orders to escort it to Naples. But the master disobeyed, even resisting the attempt to impose a new route. In the end, on Oct 14 after 10:30 p.m.), after a tense radio confrontation, the MRCC in Rome gave the green light to dock in Porto Empedocle. The patrol boats then returned to Lampedusa and the 'Mare Jonio' headed towards the port of Agrigento, where it arrived on the morning of Oct 15. On the afternoon the captain had to appear at the Coast Guard. The ship, which was inspected immediately after docking, has been banned from sailing for 20 days for the violation of the Piantedosi decree which regulates the management of rescues at sea, including the indications relating to the safe port. Report with photos: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/world/news/2024-10/dramatic-rescue-in-mediterranean-58-migrants-critial-condition.html

NGO ship detained in Trapani

The 'Mare Jonio' of the Bologna-based NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans has been placed under administrative detention following checks carried out Sep 17 by inspectors from the Harbour Office in Trapani, where the vessel was moored. "We are in a state of detention and we have an order, issued by the Ministry of Transport, to disembark, immediately, the rescue assets, under penalty of losing our certificate of seaworthiness," said mission head Luca Casarini in Trapani.