Thread by @_lea_li

Why did we end up in a situation, in which we were not able to move the #LouiseMichel safely anymore?
It all started with an official Mayday Relay by the aircraft #Moonbird and authorities that refused to act accordingly.
A thread!
1/x

https://twitter.com/MVLouiseMichel/status/1299407298360737792

#Moonbird reported an overcrowded Rubber boat, which was not moving anymore and was taking in water - in an official way, on an official channel.
The reported position was 25 nautical miles away from the #LouiseMichel which was heading north.
2/x

We were searching a place of safety for 89 people who we had rescued before.
Even though the position was clearly inside a European SAR zone, no one replied to the Mayday call.
As seafarers, it was our responsibility to render assistance to whoever is in distress at sea.
3/x

This is not only ingrained in maritime law but also something that should be a human imperative no matter what colour skin the distressed people have. But here is the true problem. More about that later
4/x

Thanks to the speed of #LouiseMichel, we arrived on scene only 2 hours later. Even though our rescue team has encountered many boats at Europe's border, we were shocked! ~130 people crammed on a boat filled with a mixture of saltwater & fuel, which results in chemical burns.5/x

The women and children, sitting in the middle of the boat, suffered the most. The smell was horrible. It was night. People were frightened. There was one deceased body. Later we learned that 3 more people had died and their bodies couldn't be recovered. 6/x

Probably their bodies will be washed ashore someday. Or just sink and become another piece of the mass grave in the central Mediterranean.
Once our rescue team assessed and reported the situation, I sent a Mayday Relay on behalf of the boat.
7/x

We were aware that the capacity of #LouiseMichel had nearly been reached.
We first received a reply from the authorities in Lampedusa asking for more information. And then: they told us, they are not responsible.
I lost track how many emails and phone calls I made. 8/x

How much I harrased the EU authorities to do their fucking job. To take on their responsibility: To send a rescue boat.
We recovered the body. And then we decided to take the women and children on board the Louise. There was no help in sight, we were on our own. 9/x

We had to do what needed to be done. We had to act like humans. We had to treat these people, who have been at sea for 3 days like humans.
The situation on the boat deteriorated. The wind picked up. The flimsy Rubber boat was shaking like hell.
10/x

We were afraid for the lives of the people.
So we took on board as many as we could, without endangering our vessel. For those remaining, we deployed liferafts. We sheltered them, gave them water, food and medical treatment - and hopefully - some hope.
11/x

They knew they were safe with us. They knew people were caring for their lives. But it was again - as so often in the past years - civil society, 'normal people' not accepting the status quo, who took action. 12/x

Just imagine that it was white people on that boat. Can you imagine rescue centers not picking up the phone? Can you imagine a vessel that rescues white people abandoned at sea? Can you imagine the distress call of white people being ignored for hours and hours?
13/x

I can't. And that's why I call this by it's name: racism. How much of this are we ready to accept? What is enough? More than 500 lives have been lost this year already in the Mediterranean.
14/x

We have to show solidarity, we have to be allies for those on the move, forced to take this dangerous journey. And all of us need to do that, we have to fight against this racism together. Because: #BlackLivesMatter Everywhere!