Today, activists from Moviment Graffitti were joined by other activists and MEPs for a demonstration in front of the European Parliament about the ongoing case against the El Hiblu 3, Abdalla, Amara and Kader.

Almost 5 years ago, these 3 brave teenagers acted as mediators and translators aboard the El Hiblu 1, an oil tanker that rescued them from a sinking dinghy, along with another 100 people. Amara, Kader and Abdalla were 15, 16 and 19 years old at the time and they journeyed to Europe in search of a better life. Upon realising that the tanker was attempting an illegal pushback to Libya, they helped negotiate passage to Malta, as the only people aboard that spoke English. During the journey, no one was hurt, no weapons were found, and no damage was done to the ship.

However, as soon as they arrived in Malta, they were immediately arrested and unjustly accused of terrorism, a crime they did not commit. After five years, this is an injustice they continue to face as their case has yet to even come to trial. Although after 8 months, they were released on bail, they still have to report to the police regularly. The case of the El Hiblu 3 exemplifies Europe’s systematic attempts to criminalise people on the move.

We call on MEPs to put pressure on the Maltese authorities to drop the charges and to put an end to this injustice which has been going on for far too long. We reiterate that resisting illegal push-backs to Libya is not a crime, and certainly not a terrorist act. Moviment Graffitti continues to demand that the Maltese authorities drop the charges. We will continue to fight until we ensure justice for the El Hiblu 3!