Migrant deaths are the real tragedy

At the time we went to press last night, hopes were dimming that the five people in the OceanGate submersible – which vanished on Sunday on a dive to see the wreck of the Titanic – would be found alive.

The deaths of these people, if they are not miraculously saved, would be a human tragedy – inasmuch as it’s tragic that their family and friends will have lost loved ones. But is it a tragedy for broader humankind? The answer to that would have to be no.

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These were wealthy people taking an expensive tour to see a historic icon – for what? To be able to boast that they had been where few others had been? More people have been to the moon than have been to the 4 000m-depth where the Titanic lies in the mud of the Atlantic Ocean floor.

They were not pushing the boundaries of human endeavour … they were privileged tourists. Lest we forget, too, the huge amount of media attention lavished on these five lives – all the drama; all the pathos.

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All while dozens of people are drowning every day in the Mediterranean or English Channel trying to escape to a better life. That’s the real tragedy…