48 people found dead off the coast of Canary Islands in one of the worst shipwrecks.

Translated by Irene Cecchi

On September 28th 2024, a ship overloaded with migrants trying to reach Europe sank near El Hierro Island, one of the most remote ones. The hope to find the 48 people alive rapidly vanished due to the depth and temperature of the ocean in the area. This shipwreck is one the biggest migratory disasters of the last thirty years in this region.

The atlantic route, every day more dangerous and popular

Canary Island, is well-known to be one of the most dangerous in the world. Despite the high risks, migrants keep trying going through this route hoping for a better life condition in Europe. According to the estimates, since 2020 thousands of people have died or got lost in this route, lured by the belief it is less supervised than the Mediterranean route.

The Canary Islands are part of Spain and so, for many migrants, are a gateway for Europe. Anyways, the conditions of the Atlantic Ocean, especially during winter and Autumn, are particularly harsh. The means used by migrants are often not appropriate for this kind of journey, overcrowded and lacking the necessary security measures like life vests or adequate navigation systems. In this case, on the boat there were about 75 people and only 27 of them were saved from the sea.

The institutional responsibilities and answers

Tragedies like this one bring up the issue of responsibilities, both on a national and international level. On one hand, the governments of countries of origin often aren’t able to improve economic and social conditions, making people want to migrate. On the other hand, Europe couldn’t implement effective and safe migratory policies, creating a void that human traffickers filled.

The securitarian approach of the European Union has been heavily criticized because it is more focused on militarizing the border and preventing the arrivals rather than creating legal and safe migratory paths. This approach not only doesn’t stop migration flows but it makes them more dangerous, making migrants try riskier routes. The El Hierro shipwreck is explanatory of how the lack of humanitarian corridors and borders’ externalization contribute to a rising number of deaths in the sea.

The voice of the victims and of their families

Every migrant has a story. Behind the cold statistics of deaths and missing people there are actual men and women and children who flee their homes out of desperation. Some of them do it to escape extreme poverty, some others from armed conflicts, dictatorships or climate changes that make it impossible for them to live in their hometowns. Many of the people who were on the sunk boat were originally from Sub Saharan Africa, like Mali, Senegal and Guinea, a region that is heavily affected by political instability, economic crisis and environmental disasters.

The victims’ families, back in the origin countries, often don’t receive factual news about their loved ones. The lack of corpses, the difficulties recovering them and the total absence of official information make the grief even more painful. In addition, many families paid the traffickers huge amounts of money to ensure their children a brighter future, but ended up covered in debts.

The NGO answer and the importance of sea rescue

The Non Governmental Organizations keep playing a central role in monitoring and rescuing migrants at sea. Nevertheless, in the last few years, many NGOs were hindered by restrictive policies aiming to criminalize sea rescues and making it harder for them to work. Spanish authorities, for example, strengthened control measures offshore Canary Islands and reduced the presence of rescue ships in international waters.

Despite these obstacles, NGOs keep denouncing the lack of an organized rescue system and of cooperation between European Countries. It is obvious that relying only on security forces and the Coast guard is not enough to prevent tragedies like the El Hierro one.

Migration is a complex phenomenon that requires a global action. It is not just about protecting the borders but facing the roots of the reasons why people keep fleeing their countries. Poverty, conflicts, persecutions and climate change are only a part of the reasons that force millions of people to leave their homes every year.

Policies like closed borders,migration criminalization and control externalization are not sustainable actions. On the contrary, a more human and inclusive approach is needed, in order to establish legal paths to reach Europe and strong development programs in origin Countries. Every death at sea is a failure of migration policies and a call for action for governments and international organizations. Only with a true international commitment will it be possible to reduce the number of deaths at sea and to ensure the respect of human rights in every step of the migration process.

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