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• Migrants, the Libyan government issues a decree to neutralize NGOs

Migrants, the Libyan government issues a decree to neutralize NGOs

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Country/Region

06 November 2019

"The decree, issued by the Presidential Council of the Libyan national agreement, bears the date of September 14 and has as its object "the special treatment of international and non-governmental organizations in the Libyan area of ​​maritime search and rescue". He has also been sent to Italy and is a grotesque and dangerous attempt to hinder even more the work of humanitarian ships but above all to attack them with police operations with the threat of leading them and seizing them in Libyan ports. A decree that, on the eve of the expiry of the pact between Italy and Malta, raises further concerns also because the NGOs, which continue to operate in the Sar Libyan area, have never been subjected. But it is already, at least on the operational paper. And, absurdly, it seems that the rescued shipwrecked cannot be taken to Libya. The decree, which Repubblica has consulted translated by the Arci immigration office, consists of 19 articles and begins as follows: "The provisions of this regulation apply to all governmental and non-governmental organizations involved in maritime search and rescue ".The NGOs "interested in collaborating in maritime search and rescue" are required to submit a prior request for authorization to the Libyan authorities to which they are obliged "to provide periodically all the necessary information, including technical – relating to their intervention. they are imposed on humanitarian ships: "work under the principle of collaboration and support, do not block the search and rescue operations carried out by the authorized authorities inside the area and leave the priority of intervention". "The NGOs are limited to the execution of the instructions of the center and undertake to inform it in advance about any initiative even if it is considered necessary and urgent." And then the articles that most concern the NGOs because they prelude to a police intervention and authorize the Libyan coast guard to board ships. “The personnel of the device is authorized to board the maritime units at every request and for all the time necessary for legal and safety reasons, without compromising the human and professional activity for which the ship is responsible flag"."