Libyan slaves evacuated by U.N.
by Rachel Scully
An evacuation plan has been devised for migrants in Libya who have been facing abuse in detention camps and sold as slaves. The plan was concluded late Nov. 9 by an African Union-European Union summit in the Ivory Coast. French President Emmanuel Macron commented on the slave auctions, calling them “crimes against humanity.”
Libya is the central way of passage for migrants to reach Europe. Every year for the past three years, about 150,000 people have made the journey and every year, thousands die on the way, according to The Washington Post.
Those who do survive the trek to Libya arrive with no money which creates vulnerability to slave traders.
In an investigation launched by Libya, it was found that migrants were being sold for as little as $400. Moussa Faki Mahamat, one of African Union’s top officials, claimed there could be 400,000–700,000 African migrants stuck in Libya against their will.
In an attempt to cut off migrants before they reach Europe, the European Union has been paying African authorities to stop and detain the migrants. However, the plan was not well executed because instead of preventing the migrants from traveling, it has actually forced them to travel in more dangerous smuggling areas. Still, pent up anger from African leaders was directed towards Libya, according to BBC News.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari professed his frustration on Tuesday, Nov. 28, saying, “Some Nigerians were being sold like goats for few dollars in Libya. After 43 years of Gaddafi…all [Libyans] learned was how to shoot and kill. They didn’t learn to be electricians, plumbers or any other trade.”
The conducted plan calls for the migrants to be evacuated and sent back to their home countries. Libya’s UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj agreed to give the International Organization for Migration entry into the detention camps, where it would offer the migrants a chance to evacuate. “This work will be carried out in the next few days,” said Macron.
In addition, certain at-risk migrants can be given to an asylum in Europe. The meeting also included the creation of a task force to target traffickers and dismantle trafficking networks, according to Time Magazine.
E.U. sources claimed that humanitarian organizations have already sent about 13,000 migrants back to their home country in the past year. Conclusively, only the advancement of Africa’s economic development will result in the reduction of migration.
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley denounced the abuses saying, “There are few greater violations of human rights and human dignity than this.”
Editor’s Note: Information from The Washington Post, BBC News and Time Magazine was used in this report.
