SOS Mediterranean Entitled to an Alternative Nobel Prize
SOS Mediterranean Entitled to an Alternative Nobel Prize
 |
SOS Mediterranean, a refugee rescue group, is one of the winners of the 2023 Right Livelihood Award. SOS Mediterranean, a non-governmental European organization
providing assistance in maritime emergencies, has been awarded the Right
Livelihood Award for its life-saving and search and rescue operations in the
Mediterranean Sea. Every
year, thousands of people die trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea with the
dream of reaching Europe. According to estimates by the United Nations Refugee
Agency, more than 2,400 people tried to cross the Mediterranean in the hope of
reaching Europe in 2022 alone. But the exact number is still uncertain. According
to SOS Mediterranean, the organization has rescued more than 36,000 people in
emergencies at sea since the start of its operations. Humanitarian Crisis and the Role of this OrganizationOn Thursday, September 28, the NGO was awarded the Right
Livelihood Award, dubbed the "Alternative to the Nobel Prize." This
award is given annually
to individuals and organizations who are committed to building a peaceful,
sustainable and just world. SOS was also awarded the prize because it continues
to remind European institutions and the public about the plight and problems of
illegal immigrants. Ocean VikingIt was the lack of attention and inaction of these European
institutions towards this humanitarian crisis that led to the establishment of
SOS Mediterranean in 2015. The founders of this organization are German captain
Klaus Fogel and French anthropologist
Sophie Bayou. The organization bills itself as the "European Humanitarian
Organization for Rescue in the Mediterranean". The ship "Ocean
Viking" has been sailing the Mediterranean since 2019 to participate in
the activities of this aid organization. The Mediterranean and the flood of illegal immigrantsRecall that the Italian government recently declared a state
of emergency to deal with a "significant increase" in the number of
migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean. The state of emergency will last
for about six months, while five
million euros were announced to deal with the migrant crisis in the south
of Italy. This money will be given as
funds for the establishment of new reception centers for immigrants. Meanwhile,
according to the International Organization for Migration, since the beginning
of 2023, more than seven thousand migrants have been stopped during sea travel.
|
