Authorities in
Niger, a major transit country for Africans seeking to reach the EU, say they
have rescued over 100 migrants in the past week, abandoned by traffickers in
the Sahara desert as they tried to cross into neighbouring Libya.
The impoverished
West African country is a way station for migrants heading to Europe and some
experts believe that more African migrants die in the Sahara than at sea.
The International
Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Niger said an increasing number of migrants
are taking new routes to Europe as Niger increases security at traditional
transit points.
“We think that
migrants have been exploring a new strategy, using alternative routes, not far
from the traditional routes. Because they have to pass somewhere where they can
access water, they have to stop somewhere in the desert. We think that the
strategy is, for example, leave at night instead of during daytime or very
early in the morning, so there have been increased efforts to bypass the army
or police but unfortunately, it comes at a greater risk as a result,” said
Giuseppe Loprete, IOM head of mission in Niger.
Hundreds of
thousands of African migrants have risked their lives to reach Europe in recent
years. Drawn by the continent’s famed wealth, they flee violence, oppression or
poverty only to discover that life in Europe is often grimmer than they had
imagined.
A growing number of
African migrants passing through Libya have also reported being traded in what
they call slave markets before being held for ransom, forced labour or sexual
exploitation, according to IOM.
Along the way, they
are prey to an array of armed groups and smuggling networks that often try to
extort extra money in exchange for allowing migrants to continue.
The Global
Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime estimates that migrant
smuggling is worth up to $323 million a year in Libya.
Migrants are often
obliged to pay not only the smugglers but also bribes to security officials
along the route.
Many of those at
this IOM transit centre in Niger’s capital, Niamey say they have opted to go
back home after coming face to face with the hardships of Libya’s deteriorating
economy and political turmoil.
“I wouldn’t even
wish this journey on my worst enemy, because it’s a complete waste because it
has now turned into human trafficking. You pay drivers to take you, but they
sell you to traffickers, who then put you in jail,” said 22-year-old migrant
from Guinea, who spent a year and a half in Libya.
“I spent a lot.
People think that taking these illegal trips is cheaper, but it’s more
expensive and very risky. It’s too expensive. Many people died in the truck I
was travelling on. We saw it all,” added Jean Tikum, a 26-year-old philosophy
graduate from Cameroon.
European countries
have promised Niger tens of millions of dollars to combat people smuggling and
the IOM said in April that the number of migrants crossing Niger to reach Libya
has declined since last year, largely due to a government crackdown.
But some experts
are sceptical, saying it could be attributed to migrants taking alternative
routes.
Nigerien officials
say the EU money for migration deal has significantly helped curb migration in
Niger.
“The government has
played its role, which is going to its partners in order to facilitate the
voluntary repatriation of the migrants back to their countries. But at the same
time, the government has decided that it will no longer tolerate impunity, you
cannot profit from the sale of human beings by exposing them to danger, by
abandoning them in the desert and then come and live off money made out of
illegal trafficking. The government has said no to that,” said the director of
the National Agency against Human and Migrants Trafficking, Goge Maïmouna
Gazibo.
Despite the dangers of trying to reach Europe, many continue to take the
risk.
More than 40
migrants died of thirst in northern Niger this month after their truck broke
down.
Source: - Channels
Television | June 19, 2017
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