Could Europe Stop Migrants Dying In The Mediterranean?

The Inquiry

• Episode: Could Europe Stop Migrants Dying In The Mediterranean?
• Website: The Inquiry
• Feed URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p029399x/episodes/downloads.rss
• Duration: 00:23:10
• Published: 2015-02-24 08:00

More than 3,000 people are estimated to have died in the Mediterranean Sea last year. The Pope has warned that the waters are in danger of becoming "a vast cemetery". So what could European countries do to stop these deaths? The Inquiry hears evidence about the people smugglers described as the most ruthless travel agents on the planet, the Italian Navy rescue mission that’s been dramatically down-sized, and the claims that saving migrants at sea creates a "pull factor".

Presenter: Neal Razzell

(Image: The coffins of immigrants who died trying to reach the Italian coast arrive from Lampedusa to Porto Empedocle, 11 February 2015. Credit: MARCELLO PATERNOSTRO/AFP/Getty Images)