Special ceremonies have taken place on the Italian island of Lampedusa to mark the first anniversary of a shipwreck that claimed the lives of 366 African migrants.<br /><br />Mostly Eritrean and Somali refugees, they were drowned within sight of the island on October 3 last year. The disaster came as a wake-up call to European politicians.<br /><br />On Friday protesters vented their anger at a perceived lack of action on the part of the EU to deal with the crisis.<br /><br />European Parliament Speaker Martin Schultz was heckled as he addressed the ceremony.<br /><br />“We must face the immigrant problem as soon as possible,” he was quoted as saying.<br /><br />But one protester was heard to shout at the dignitaries: “this is a joke… you are the killers.”<br /><br />Italy has repeatedly called for the European Union to contribute more to Rome’s search-and-rescue mission, which costs the Navy nine million euros a month.<br /><br />“Mare Nostrum will not be abandoned until the EU comes up with something just as good or better,” Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said during a question-and-answer event in Ferrara, Italy, which was broadcast live on television.<br /><br />“Mare Nostrum” is due to be replaced by an Italian-led EU programme, Frontex Plus, following an agreement with the European Commission in August.<br /><br />But individual EU countries have been slow to pledge money or vessels.<br /><br />Italy continues to bear the burden. Earlier this week it intercepted more than 2,000 migrants in two days.
