39 Moroccans feared dead in Canary Islands boat tragedy
The Moroccan economy, which has failed to tackle poverty, is driving more desperate people to risk dangerous boat trips to flee in search of a better life with the number of tragedies at sea continuing to take a toll and shock the world.
As many as 39 people are feared dead after a ship sank in the waters between Morocco and Spain’s Canary Islands on June 21st, according to the Spanish migrant organisation, Walking Borders, Anadolu Agency reports.
The Spanish Coast Guard has confirmed one death, so far, according to Spanish news agency, EFE.
The ship was carrying some 60 people.
Moroccan authorities rescued 24 passengers, some of whom were already in the sea when the rescue team arrived, EFE reported.
The migrant ship had been begging for help for 12 hours in Spanish waters, Helena Maleno Garzon, head of Walking Borders, said on Twitter.
The delay, she claims, was because of a mix up between Morocco and Spain over who should lead the rescue mission. Authorities eventually confirmed that Morocco would coordinate the rescue, but the mission moved slowly, she said.
“There was no communication, no coordination — there was a shipwreck,” she told Spanish broadcaster, Cadena Ser.
No news or information has been offered on whether authorities are continuing to look for the dozens missing.
At the time of its sinking, the dinghy was in waters off the coast of Western Sahara. Although Morocco administers a majority of the former Spanish colony, its sovereignty remains under dispute and the United Nations lists it as a non-self-governing territory.
Spain’s state news agency EFE reported that a Spanish rescue service ship, the Guardamar Caliope, was about 46 kilometers, about an hour’s sail, away from the dinghy on the evening of June 20th
The Guardamar Caliope did not aid the dinghy because the operation had been taken over by the Moroccan Rescue Coordination Centre in Rabat, which dispatched a patrol boat that arrived on Wednesday morning, about 10 hours after it had been spotted by a Spanish rescue airplane, EFE added.
The EU has said it and member states have been intensifying efforts to establish an “effective, humanitarian and safe” European migration policy.
Morocco’s Interior ministry has not responded to a Reuters request for comment and Morocco has not made any official communication about what happened.
On Tuesday, Spanish authorities rescued 52 migrants off the coast of the island of Lanzarote, along with the corpse of one pregnant woman.
AA/VOA/Reuters
