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Many people share my opinion that the European Union’s record on migration so far has been pretty scandalous. It’s a scandal that since the beginning of the year, 4,000 migrants and refugees have died at sea trying to enter the EU. It’s a scandal that many of our leaders have shown a clear lack of solidarity with people fleeing war, poverty and persecution. On top of this, I have become aware of another, lesser-known scandal; those who try to save the lives of these people can face fines and even imprisonment.

When I went to meet with European Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos who is responsible for migration last week, I did not go alone. I went with Manuel Blanco, a Spanish firefighter who has been saving migrants’ and refugees’ lives with his association PROEM-AID. Instead of being applauded for his heroic action, he was arrested by the police for ‘smuggling’ people into the EU. Just watch the video of what happened and I’m sure you’ll share my outrage and puzzlement. As a fireman who respects international maritime laws – and as a decent human being – Manuel has an obligation to render assistance to those in distress at sea regardless of their nationality, status or the circumstances in which they are found. Manuel now faces up to ten years in prison thanks to a loophole in the EU’s Facilitation Directive, which states that Member States ‘may’ sanction those who offer humanitarian assistance to migrants and refugees. Effectively, Manuel is being treated the the same as smugglers who put lives in danger for their own profit.

I believe that no EU law should be so flawed so as to allow Member States to sanction those who provide humanitarian assistance. We want ‘may’ to be replaced with ‘shall’ to ensure that sanctions are not allowed. I understand the problem; some smugglers or traffickers might use the argument of ‘humanitarian assistance’ for their shameful business. But this should not be used as a reason not to protect those who are assisting people risking their lives to save the lives of others.

This is why we have partnered with WeMove.eu and have submitted a petition signed by over 132,000 people who want this change in the legislation, which we handed over to Commissioner Avramopoulos last week. You can still sign up to it here. We are also organising a round table meeting in the European Parliament on 15 November to mobilise EU decision-makers around the same issue. The Commission is due to announce their next move on the Facilitation Directive in the coming weeks, so we’ll be keeping our eyes open for it.

On this day before ‘All Saints’ Day’, it is a good time to reflect on how strongly we want to stand by our own values, including solidarity. Each one of us has to take up his or her responsibility, just as Manuel has done in his own way. I want to make sure that the EU does not criminalise those who are doing what we should all be doing.

Let’s engage!

Pierre Baussand, Director