The Catalan Parliament will award the Chamber's Gold Medal to the founder of the Proactiva Open Arms NGO, Òscar Camps, and the captain of the Seawatch 3, Carola Rackete. The prize proposal, which was chaired by the Parliament Speaker, Roger Torrent, was unanimously approved at the Bureau meeting this Tuesday morning. The prize will be awarded around 10th September, depending on the agenda and availability of the winners who, according to Torrent, have already been informed and are "satisfied" and "grateful."
At a press conference after the agreement, Torrent wanted to highlight the "humanitarian work they carry out in the Mediterranean, where thousands of people have been saved from an imminent death" and considers that they "exemplify determination and perseverance in the defense of human rights". Torrent also wanted to underline the fact that both of them bet their "well-being, their freedom and their lives to save the lives of others" and that they also do it "in the silence of most states". "We can not resign ourselves to the fact that thousands of people die in the Mediterranean striving for a better future" - Torrent stated.
In a tweet, the Catalan Parliament announced the award of this year's Catalan Parliament Gold Medal:
La Mesa del @parlamentcat hem aprovat atorgar la Medalla d'Honor del #Parlament, en categoria d'or, a la Carola Rackete, capitana del #SeaWatch3, i a l'Òscar Camps, director de l'@openarms_fund, per la seva tasca humanitària salvant milers de vides a la Mediterrània. pic.twitter.com/AprIpH4dMd
— Roger Torrent 🎗 (@rogertorrent) July 16, 2019
The award comes after both winners have recently challenged European governments by carrying out rescue efforts for migrants in the Mediterranean. At the end of June, the Proactive Open Arms ship disregarded the Spanish government and set sail to resume rescue operations despite having been blocked from leaving the port for six months by an order of the Spanish executive. A few days before, Rackete had been detained in Italy for having docked in Lampedusa port with 42 migrants on board despite the fact that the Italian executive had not granted them permission to do so.