International

The stream of refugees will be demanding our attention in the years to come. The situation is untenable; the conditions on the Mediterranean Sea are unacceptable. The human suffering which we have all seen makes our hearts bleed.

By Emile Roemer

Some parties and some people would rather look away. Others see an opportunity to set people against each other: them and us. All we can do is stand up to this.

There is no quick and easy answer to the massive numbers of refugees now coming into Europe. We must help the countries in the Middle Eastern region, which are accommodating millions of refugees,  and with all possible means. We must also be prepared ourselves to pay our share of the bill. And we must do all we can to save people’s lives at sea. We can do no other, nor do we wish to.

But an honest approach must also identify the causes of the misery in which these people find themselves. The military invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq meant that millions of people were torn adrift. The illegal and lie-based attack on Iraq eventually gave birth to ISIS. Western recklessness has led to disasters.

Western indifference in the face of Africa’s underdevelopment, and in particular towards the hopeless situation in which millions of young people find themselves, has provoked a flood of people in search of a better future.

What would I do? What would you do?