The report of the European Ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, regarding the deadly shipwreck of Pylos where 600 people drowned, is a big deal for our country. “Repeated calls by Frontex to the Greek coast guard for assistance went unanswered” notes the European Ombudsman, while pointing out that Frontex simply watched the refugees and migrants on the ship Adriana sink and was unable to intervene, at the responsibility of our country.
In an article in the Guardian, Emily O’Reilly, citing her research, states that for most of the time between the discovery of the ill-fated ship and its capsize and sinking, Frontex members remained uninvolved “due to the absence of authorization from the Greek authorities to act”.
Frontex is legally obliged to follow the orders and instructions of the “coordinating national authority”, with the European Ombudsman adding that – according to documents in its possession – “repeated calls by Frontex to the Greek port authorities for assistance, remained unanswered”.
And the drone sent by Frontex, according to the European Ombudsman, to provide assistance to the shipwreck off Pylos, “was sent by the Greek authorities to another incident”. “When Frontex was finally allowed to return to where the Adriana was, it had capsized with many hundreds of people already dead,” notes O’Reilly. According to the report, Frontex was at the place where the ship was sailing only 2 times. The first time for a while, by plane (two hours after the notification from the Italian authorities) and the second time, 18 hours later by drone and when the boat had already sunk.
As O’Reilly herself wonders “why a vessel so obviously in need of help never received that help despite the fact that an EU agency, the authorities of two Member States, civil society and private vessels knew of its existence . Why reports of overcrowding, apparent lack of life preservers, children on board and possible deaths failed to trigger timely rescue efforts that could have saved hundreds of lives.”
In addition, Emily O’Reilly also referred to the case of 2014 with the death of 11 people in Farmakonisi, which was the responsibility of the Greek coast guard, a case for which Greece was condemned, characteristically noting that “less than a year earlier, the European Court of Human Rights had condemn Greece in a case involving the sinking of another boat with dead people and with some similarities to the tragedy” off Pylos. “However, Frontex has, to date, chosen not to exercise its legal right to withdraw from Greece due to concerns about fundamental rights violations. This is something that we have now asked Frontex to examine and publicize these considerations”, emphasizes the European Ombudsman.
Read also: Pylos Wreck: “Someone was towing the boat before it capsized”
Pylos shipwreck: Frontex document reveals responsibilities of the Hellenic Coast Guard
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