World ‘wholeheartedly ignores’ child deaths during dangerous Mediterranean crossings
The number is equivalent to 11 children who die each week, “more than what we hear in the news headlines,” Vera Knaus, the agency’s Global Leader on Migration and Migration, told reporters attending UN humanitarian conference in two weeks in Geneva.
“We cannot continue to ignore what is happening – stand in silence when almost 300 children – a whole plane full of children – are dying in the water between Europe and Africa in just six months,” he said. .
Preventable deaths
Conflict and climate change are forcing an increasing number of children to embark on the perilous sea journey from North Africa to Europe.
UNICEF estimates that 11,600 children have made the crossing during the first six months of the year – again almost twice as many as during the same period in 2022.
However, the agency warned that the true number of children injured could be much higher as many of the collapses in the Central Mediterranean did not leave survivors or were not rescued.
Mrs. Knaus said it seems the world is “deliberately denying what is happening”, given the numbers and the silence surrounding many of these preventable deaths.
‘Shine in the world’s injustice’
“The children are not only dying in our eyes; they are dying while we seem to close our eyes. Hundreds of girls and boys are drowning in global poverty,” he said, noting that the Central Mediterranean is one of the deadliest migration routes for children.
UNICEF also estimates that many children are making the crossing without their parents or guardians, with girls traveling alone particularly vulnerable to violence throughout the journey.
During the first three months of the year, 3,300 unaccompanied or separated children came to Europe through the Central Mediterranean route, or more than 70 percent of the total.
Strengthen child protection
In response to the growing crisis, UNICEF is supporting countries in strengthening child protection, social protection and migration and asylum systems. Workers also work with governments to provide support and inclusive services to all children, regardless of their legal status, or that of their parents.
“These deaths are preventable,” Ms. Knaus said. “They are very much driven by complex emergencies, conflicts and climate risks that force children from their homes as well as the lack of political and practical action to do what is needed to ensure access to safe haven and to protect the rights and lives of children. wherever they came from and how they traveled.”
Save lives at sea
Meanwhile, countries in the region, and the European Union (EU), must do more to protect vulnerable children at sea but also in countries of origin, transportation and travel, he said.
It also emphasizes the need for safe, legal and accessible pathways for children to seek safety and reunite with their families, through access to family reunification, refugee resettlement or other humanitarian visas.
In addition, countries must increase coordination on search and rescue operations at sea and ensure rapid evacuation to safe locations.
Ms. Knaus said that the duty to rescue a ship in distress is a fundamental rule in international maritime law, and pushes at sea or land borders are a violation of national, EU and international law.
