2014-03-18 17:38:32

Migrants die in attempt to reach Greece


(Vatican Radio) The bodies of seven Asian migrants were recovered in the eastern Aegean Sea early this morning after a boatful apparently capsized. The boat had been coming from a Turkish port and sank off the Greek island of Lesvos. The Greek Coast Guard rescued the rest of the people on board the boat, though two are missing. The circumstances of how the boat capsized are unclear, as the weather has been calm over the Aegean Sea over the past few days. The victims are believed to have drowned while trapped inside the overturned hull.
Springtime in Greece generally sees a surge in illegal migration by boat from Turkey. Sometimes the people-traffickers are captured. Recently they have been trying to avoid this by throwing their passengers into the sea near a Greek island, expecting them to swim to safety, while the traffickers themselves turn back out of harm’s way.
Migration from Asia and Africa is becoming a hot-button issue in crisis-ridden Greece, where unemployment is now at a record 28 percent and rising. Most migrants head for low-paying farm and construction jobs. The white backlash here in Greece has fuelled extremist parties such as the far-right Golden Dawn, which has a record of attacking dark-skinned people.

Listen to the report from John Carr: RealAudioMP3








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