Divers Recover 83 Bodies Sunday from Migrant Ship Wreck off Italy
Divers recovered a total of 83 bodies on Sunday from the wreck of an unseaworthy boat carrying migrants that sank off the southern Italian island of Lampedusa, the Ansa news agency reported.
The death toll from Thursday's accident now stands at 194. Authorities fear many more bodies lie in the wreckage on the sea bed.
There were 155 survivors - 154 Eritreans and one Tunisian, according to UNHCR, the UN agency for refugees.
Integration Minister Cecile Kyenge, who was on Lampedusa as the bodies were brought to shore, said such a tragedy should not be allowed to happen again.
Pope Francis, who addressed the faithful at St Peter's Square during his Angelus address on Sunday, called for a moment of silence for the victims.
"Let us pray in silence for our brothers and sisters, women, men, children. Let our hearts cry," said the pontiff, who last week called the tragedy "shameful."
The pope visited the island in July, on his first trip since his election in March, during which he railed against what he termed "the globalization of indifference" towards the plight of migrants.
The boat, which reportedly had a capacity of about 500, caught fire and sank on Thursday.
Survivors told UN staff that the boat left from Libya about two weeks back, and the engine failed as it approached the Italian coast.
When the migrants noticed fishing boats passing them without helping, they set clothes and blankets on fire to attract attention. A tourist boat alerted the Italian coast guard, which began rescue operations.
The survivors could face illegal immigration charges, the Ansa news agency reported Saturday, citing prosecutors.
The charges would be automatically filed as soon as the people are identified, the report said. A guilty verdict could mean fines of up to 5,000 euros (6,777 euros).
Each year thousands of people from Africa and the Middle East, fleeing conflict, persecution and poverty, embark on treacherous sea journeys as they try to reach Europe via Italy and Malta. Many of them end up in Lampedusa, which is located half-way between Sicily and Tunisia.
While there are no official statistics, Fortress Europe, a non-governmental group, has estimated that more than 6,200 people have died off the coast of Sicily since 1994. It included some 4,800 missing people in the count.
William Lacy Swing, chief of the International Organization for Migration, has said that while the Italian coast guard and port authorities have saved thousands of lives in the Mediterranean over the past two decades, at least 20,000 people have died since 1993.
Source : Sapa-dpa /dm
Date : 07 Oct 2013 03:12
