scholarly journals Criminalizing solidarity: Search and rescue in a neo-colonial sea

2021 ◽  
pp. 239965442097931
Author(s):  
Ċetta Mainwaring ◽  
Daniela DeBono
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Search And Rescue ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
Legal Geographies ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Trade And Exchange

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) rescued over 110,000 people in the Central Mediterranean Sea between 2015 and 2017. From 2017, EU member states and agencies increasingly criminalized these organizations, accusing them of ‘colluding with smugglers’ and acting as a pull factor. In this climate, as Italy, Malta and the EU increased cooperation with Libya to stop people from taking to the seas, many suspended their operations. This article explores the search and rescue efforts of NGOs in the Central Mediterranean Sea between 2014 and 2018. We examine the criminalization of this NGO activity and argue that it is made possible through an oscillating neo-colonial imagination of the sea as mare nostrum and mare nullius, our sea and nobody’s sea, respectively. We build on the work of other scholars who have pointed to the activation of the Mediterranean as ‘empty’ in response to migration flows, erasing the historical connections of colonialism, empire, trade, and exchange in the Mediterranean as well as the contemporary legal geographies that govern the space. Here, we go further to develop the idea of a neo-colonial sea, which is alternately imagined as empty and ‘European’. We explore how NGOs disrupt these depictions, as well as the disappearing figures of the migrant and refugee amidst the contestations between NGOs and states.

scholarly journals The Role of NGOs in Search and Rescue Operations in the Context of the European Union Migration Crisis

2020 ◽  
pp. 77-91
Author(s):  
U. Stoliarova
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Search And Rescue ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
Immigration Issue

In the early 2010s due to the aggravation of the situation in the Middle East and North Africa, the European Union faced an unprecedented escalation of the migration problem, which put serious pressure on many EU mechanisms. The article analyzes Brussels’ response to the increase in the number of victims in the Mediterranean Sea during the migration crisis, which peaked in 2015. The adoption of new initiatives that were aimed at easing the immigration issue did not lead to the expected results. The EU struggled to cope with a rise in the number of migrants who sought to reach European shores. The real challenge for the arriving migrants was crossing the Mediterranean Sea. Amid the increase in unmanaged flows of refugees and regular shipwrecks that led to the death of many migrants, non-governmental organizations stepped out. The organization and conduct of search and rescue operations (SARs) by NGOs led to the emergence of a new type of SARs, non-state ones, since even large NGOs began to conduct such operations for the first time. The article examines the contribution of European non-governmental organizations to the provision of search and rescue operations, as well as analyzes the main problems and challenges that these NGOs faced while implementing such activities from 2014 to 2020. It is concluded that European non-governmental organizations have saved tens of thousands of lives of migrants and refugees, thus becoming an important element in the EU’s migration crisis settlement. At the same time, they faced a number of problems and challenges, including criticism from some EU member states, which considered the activities of NGOs as a pull-factor for new migrants.

scholarly journals Summertime surface PM<sub>1</sub> aerosol composition and size by source region at the Lampedusa island in the central Mediterranean Sea

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (17) ◽  
pp. 11123-11142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc D. Mallet ◽  
Barbara D'Anna ◽  
Aurélie Même ◽  
Maria Chiara Bove ◽  
Federico Cassola ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Ammonium Sulfate ◽  
Organic Aerosol ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Aerosol Composition ◽  
Air Masses ◽  
Westerly Winds ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean

Abstract. Measurements of aerosol composition and size distributions were taken during the summer of 2013 at the remote island of Lampedusa in the southern central Mediterranean Sea. These measurements were part of the ChArMEx/ADRIMED (Chemistry and Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment/Aerosol Direct Radiative Forcing on the Mediterranean Climate) framework and took place during Special Observation Period 1a (SOP-1a) from 11 June to 5 July 2013. From compact time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer (cToF-AMS) measurements in the size range below 1 µm in aerodynamic diameter (PM1), particles were predominately comprised of ammonium and sulfate. On average, ammonium sulfate contributed 63 % to the non-refractory PM1 mass, followed by organics (33 %). The organic aerosol was generally very highly oxidized (f44 values were typically between 0.25 and 0.26). The contribution of ammonium sulfate was generally higher than organic aerosol in comparison to measurements taken in the western Mediterranean but is consistent with studies undertaken in the eastern basin. Source apportionment of organics using a statistical (positive matrix factorization) model revealed four factors: a hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol (HOA), a methanesulfonic-acid-related oxygenated organic aerosol (MSA-OOA), a more oxidized oxygenated organic aerosol (MO-OOA) and a less oxidized oxygenated organic aerosol (LO-OOA). The MO-OOA was the dominant factor for most of the campaign (53 % of the PM1 OA mass). It was well correlated with SO42-, highly oxidized and generally more dominant during easterly air masses originating from the eastern Mediterranean and central Europe. The LO-OOA factor had a very similar composition to the MO-OOA factor but was more prevalent during westerly winds, with air masses originating from the Atlantic Ocean, the western Mediterranean and at high altitudes over France and Spain from mistral winds. The MSA-OOA factor contributed an average 12 % to the PM1 OA and was more dominant during the mistral winds. The HOA, representing observed primary organic aerosol, only contributed 8 % of the average PM1 OA during the campaign. Even though Lampedusa is one of the most remote sites in the Mediterranean, PM1 concentrations (10 ± 5 µg m−3) were comparable to those observed in coastal cities and sites closer to continental Europe. Cleaner conditions corresponded to higher wind speeds. Nucleation and growth of new aerosol particles was observed during periods of north-westerly winds. From a climatology analysis from 1999 to 2012, these periods were much more prevalent during the measurement campaign than during the preceding 13 years. These results support previous findings that highlight the importance of different large-scale synoptic conditions in determining the regional and local aerosol composition and oxidation and also suggest that a non-polluted surface atmosphere over the Mediterranean is rare.

scholarly journals Remarks on Echinodermata from the South Central Mediterranean Sea based upon collections made during the MARCOS cruise (10 to 20th April, 2007)

2009 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 63 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. MIFSUD ◽  
M. TAVIANI ◽  
S. STOHR
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The South ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Management Zone ◽  
Maltese Islands ◽  
South Central ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
First Time ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

The MARCOS cruise, which took place in the South Central Mediterranean Sea on board the RV ‘Urania’, resulted in the collection of 27 species of Echinodermata from shallow to bathyal depths, many from around Malta (the Fisheries Management Zone). The fauna is represented by common to rare taxa already reported from the Mediterranean with the exception of the amphi-Atlantic ophiuroid Ophiotreta valenciennesi rufescens (Koehler, 1896), recorded from the Mediterranean Basin for the first time. Odontaster mediterraneus (von Marenzeller, 1893) and Luidia sarsi Lutken, 1858 are also first records for the Maltese Islands.

THE POSSIBILITIES OF SAVING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS, BY THE SHIPS OWNED BY NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS ON THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA

2020 ◽  
Vol XIV ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Rokiciński
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Illegal Immigrants ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
The Mediterranean

The paper analyzes the possibilities of saving illegal immigrants, on the Mediterranean Sea, by the non-governmental organizations. The number, structure, equipment and legal determinants of using the ships owned by the organizations were evaluated.

First record of Dosima fascicularis (Ellis & Solander, 1786) (Crustacea, Cirripedia) in the Strait of Messina (Central Mediterranean Sea)

Zootaxa ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 4743 (3) ◽  
pp. 447-450
Author(s):  
M. CAVALLARO ◽  
G. AMMENDOLIA ◽  
P. BATTAGLIA
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
First Record ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean

Four specimens of Dosima fascicularis were collected from the Strait of Messina (Central Mediterranean Basin), representing the first record of the species from this locality, the second from Italian waters, and the most eastern indication of the species in the Mediterranean Sea. 

scholarly journals Health conditions of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers on search and rescue vessels on the central Mediterranean Sea, 2016–2019: a retrospective analysis

BMJ Open ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. e053661
Author(s):  
Elburg van Boetzelaer ◽  
Adolphe Fotso ◽  
Ilina Angelova ◽  
Geke Huisman ◽  
Trygve Thorson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Search And Rescue ◽  
Health Conditions ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Female Population ◽  
Acute Injuries ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Refugees And Asylum Seekers

ObjectivesThis study will contribute to the systematic epidemiological description of morbidities among migrants, refugees and asylum seekers when crossing the Mediterranean Sea.SettingSince 2015, Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) has conducted search and rescue activities on the Mediterranean Sea to save lives, provide medical services, to witness and to speak out.ParticipantsBetween November 2016 and December 2019, MSF rescued 22 966 migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.Primary and secondary outcome measuresWe conducted retrospective data analysis of data collected between January 2016 and December 2019 as part of routine monitoring of the MSF’s healthcare services for migrants, refugees and asylum seekers on two search and rescue vessels.ResultsMSF conducted 12 438 outpatient consultations and 853 sexual and reproductive health consultations (24.9% of female population, 853/3420) and documented 287 consultations for sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). The most frequently diagnosed health conditions among children aged 5 years or older and adults were skin conditions (30.6%, 5475/17 869), motion sickness (28.6%, 5116/17 869), headache (15.4%, 2 748/17 869) and acute injuries (5.7%, 1013/17 869). Of acute injuries, 44.7% were non-violence-related injuries (453/1013), 30.1% were fuel burns (297/1013) and 25.4% were violence-related injuries (257/1013).ConclusionThe limited testing and diagnostics capacity of the outpatient department, space limitations, stigma and the generally short length of stay of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers on the ships have likely led to an underestimation of morbidities, including mental health conditions and SGBV. The main diagnoses on board were directly related to journey on land and sea and stay in Libya. We conclude that this population may be relatively young and healthy but displays significant journey-related illnesses and includes migrants, refugees and asylum seekers who have suffered significant violence during their transit and need urgent access to essential services and protection in a place of safety on land.

scholarly journals Summertime surface PM<sub>1</sub> aerosol composition and size by source region at the Lampedusa island in the central Mediterranean Sea

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc D. Mallet ◽  
Barbara D'Anna ◽  
Aurélie Même ◽  
Maria Chiara Bove ◽  
Federico Cassola ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Ammonium Sulphate ◽  
Organic Aerosol ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Dominant Factor ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Aerosol Composition ◽  
Air Masses ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean

Abstract. Measurements of aerosol composition and size distributions were taken during the summer of 2013 at the remote island of Lampedusa in the southern central Mediterranean Sea. These measurements were part of the ChArMEx/ADRIMED (Chemistry and Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment/Aerosol Direct Radiative Forcing on the Mediterranean Climate) framework and took place during the Special Observation Period 1a (SOP-1a) from 11 June until 5 July 2013. From compact time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer (cToF-AMS) measurements in the size range below 1 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM1), particles were predominately comprised of ammonium and sulphate. On average, ammonium sulphate contributed 63 % to the non-refractory PM1 mass, followed by organics (33 %). The organic aerosol was generally very highly oxidised (f44 values were typically between 0.25 and 0.26). The contribution of ammonium sulphate was generally higher than organic aerosol in comparison to measurements taken in the western Mediterranean but is consistent with studies undertaken in the eastern basin. Source apportionment of organics using a statistical (positive matrix factorisation) model revealed four factors; a hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol (HOA), a methanesulfonic acid related oxygenated organic aerosol (MSA-OOA), a more oxidised oxygenated organic aerosol (MO-OOA) and a less oxidised oxygenated organic aerosol we label (LO-OOA). The MO-OOA was the dominant factor for most of the campaign (53 % of the PM1 OA mass). It was well correlated with SO42−, highly oxidised, and generally more dominant during easterly air masses originating from the eastern Mediterranean and central Europe. The LO-OOA factor had a very similar composition to the MO-OOA factor, but was more prevalent during westerly winds with air masses originating from the Atlantic Ocean, the western Mediterranean, and in high altitudes over France and Spain from mistral winds. The MSA-OOA factor contributed an average 12 % to the PM1 OA and was more dominant during the mistral winds. The HOA, representing observed primary organic aerosol only contributed 8 % of the average PM1 OA during the campaign. Even though Lampedusa is one of the most remote sites in the Mediterranean, PM1 concentrations (10 ± 5 μg m−3) were comparable to those observed in coastal cities and sites closer to continental Europe. Cleaner conditions corresponded to higher wind speeds. Nucleation and growth of new aerosol particles was observed during periods of northwesterly winds. From a climatology analysis from 1999 until 2012, these periods were much more prevalent during the measurement campaign than during the preceding 13 years. These results support previous findings that highlight the importance of different large-scale synoptic conditions in determining the regional and local aerosol composition and oxidation and also suggest that a non-polluted surface atmosphere over the Mediterranean is rare.

scholarly journals Particulate biogenic barium tracer of mesopelagic carbon remineralization in the Mediterranean Sea (PEACETIME project)

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (22) ◽  
pp. 5891-5902
Author(s):  
Stéphanie H. M. Jacquet ◽  
Christian Tamburini ◽  
Marc Garel ◽  
Aurélie Dufour ◽  
France Van Vambeke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Deep Convection ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Late Spring ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Dust Deposition ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. We report on the sub-basin variability in particulate organic carbon (POC) remineralization in the western and central Mediterranean Sea in late spring during the PEACETIME (ProcEss studies at the Air–sEa Interface after dust deposition in the MEditerranean sea) cruise. POC remineralization rates were estimated using the excess biogenic particulate barium (Baxs) inventories in the mesopelagic layers (100–1000 m depth) and compared with prokaryotic heterotrophic production (PHP). Baxs-based mesopelagic remineralization rates (MRs) ranged from 25±2 to 306±70 mgCm-2d-1. MRs were larger in the Algero-Provençal (ALG) Basin than in the Tyrrhenian (TYR) and Ionian (ION) basins. Our Baxs inventories and integrated PHP data also indicated that significant mesopelagic remineralization occurred down to 1000 m depth in the ALG Basin in contrast to the ION and TYR basins, where remineralization was mainly located above 500 m depth. We propose that the higher and deeper MRs in the ALG Basin were sustained by an additional particle export event driven by deep convection. The TYR Basin (in contrast to the ALG and ION basins) presented the impact of a previous dust event, as reflected by our particulate Al water column concentrations. The ION and TYR basins showed small-scale heterogeneity in remineralization processes, reflected by our Baxs inventories and integrated PHP data at the Tyrr long-duration station. This heterogeneity was linked to the mosaic of blooming and non-blooming patches reported in this area during the cruise. In contrast to the western Mediterranean Sea (ALG Basin), the central Mediterranean Sea (ION and TYR basins) showed lower remineralization rates restricted to the upper mesopelagic layer during the late spring PEACETIME cruise.

scholarly journals New records of the genus Pachygrapsus (Crustacea: Decapoda) from the central Mediterranean Sea with a review of its Mediterranean zoogeography

2011 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 75 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. CROCETTA ◽  
S. MIFSUD ◽  
P. PAOLINI ◽  
J. PISCOPO ◽  
P.J. SCHEMBRI
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
New Records ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Maltese Islands ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
First Time

The occurrence of Pachygrapsus maurus and Pachygrapsus transversus is reported from the Maltese Islands for the first time on the basis of one specimen of P. maurus collected in 1990 and numerous recent specimens, and the distribution of the two species is mapped. The controversial presence of P. maurus in Italy is confirmed and two new sites for this species are reported, including the first for the mainland of Italy. The examination of the historical specimen of P. maurus from the Genova area revealed a misidentification of P. transversus; this record could be a result of ship-mediated transport. First notes on the habitat of P. maurus in the central Mediterranean Sea are given. Updated maps of the distribution of P. maurus and P. transversus in the Mediterranean are provided and the zoogeography of these species is revisited.

scholarly journals New records of two uncommon species, Calappa tuerkayana Pastore, 1995 (Decapoda, Calappidae) and Parasquilla ferrussaci (Roux, 1828) (Stomatopoda, Parasquillidae), from the Strait of Sicily (central Mediterranean Sea)

2020 ◽  
pp. 113-121
Author(s):  
G. Sardo ◽  
M. L. Geraci ◽  
D. Scannella ◽  
F. Falsone ◽  
S. Vitale
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
New Records ◽  
Trawl Survey ◽  
Soft Bottom ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Crustacean Species ◽  
Mantis Shrimp ◽  
Strait Of Sicily ◽  
Central Mediterranean Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean

The shamefaced crab Calappa tuerkayana Pastore, 1995 and the mantis shrimp Parasquilla ferussaci (Roux, 1828) are two crustacean species rarely reported in the Mediterranean Sea. In December 2018, two specimens of C. tuerkayana and one specimen of P. ferussaci were collected on a soft bottom at about 132 and 145 m depth during a trawl survey off Mazara del Vallo harbour (Strait of Sicily). This note reports the northernmost record of C. tuerkayana in the Strait of Sicily and confirms the occurrence of P. ferussaci in the same area. An update of the spatial distribution of these crustacean species in the Mediterranean Sea is also presented.

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