Bench dispersed with force on May 10, the self-organized movement Refugees in Libya 1 I can't say I'm done. On February 4, the leaders of the Ain Zara field, Many people, who were arrested after the military stormed the prison outside the local UNHCR headquarters, have spoken out about the indecent conditions in which they are forced to live, on the occasion of a visit by some officials. The common awareness of the injustices that have taken place involves crossing the border, with the dissemination of information and sales necessarily passing through the network.
But the strenuous struggle for rights is always accompanied by a widespread discomfort with a situation that is so dramatic and difficult to change. In a direct discussion about Twitter del 3 febbraio, the promoters have issued a drastic appeal to African citizens who hope to reach Europe via Libya: “Don't come here, it's not safe”. Nonostante i media dipingano Libya Today, as a country in transition towards stability, the fact that institutions are beginning to function is the normalization of racist violence within the state system. Abuses against migrants are the norm and there is no protection or recognition of their status. This system It is made possible by generous contributions from Europe., Italia in prima linea.
I libici fanno un “uso eccessivo della forza”, ma l'Europa non mette in discussione gli accordi
The fact that Libya is not a safe place for migrants is practically under everyone's eyes. Nessuno può affermare di non sapere cosa succede sull'altra riva del Mediterranean, especially not those who economically support this system of abuse and segregation. A ulteriore conferma della tacita connivenza delle istituzioni europee, a confidential military relationship Associated Press report 25 May 2 refers to a “excessive use of force” on the part of the Libyan authorities. The motivation, according to the report, is that the Libyans are no longer following the training provided by the Europeans.
A finding of this kind - insofar as it ipocritically grasps the core of the problem - should only resolve doubts about the financial system in Libya. And yet, as the report reveals, the EU's intention is to continue the operation to support the formation of a free Coast Guard in a position to exchange ever more of the imbarcations that try to reach the European shores.
It doesn't matter if this entity is controlled by the same people involved in the trafficking of human beings and in the management of the detention centers for migrants, These are characterized by torture, violence, deprivation and precarious living conditions. The name of Mohammed al-Khoja, capo milizia già noto per violazioni dei diritti dei migranti, a guida del Dipartimento per la lotta all'immigrazione irregolare 3 the deep connection between the empowerment of the Libyan Coast Guard and the strengthening of the militias that deal with the detention and trafficking of migrants.
One day, then, someone will have to tell. But in the meantime, the European Union has decided to continue to ignore the violations committed by the Libyan forces to the dances of migrants, refugees and people in transit. Around 5,000 people who were trying to cross the border were returned from the sea to Libya only between August and November 2021: they were forcibly, and illegally, transported to the territories from which they were escaping.
What it means to finance the free
The continuous flow of money into the treasuries of the Libyan authorities translates into a direct reinforcement of repressive structures. Con il violent sgombero del 10 gennaio the people who had been demanding decisive action from international institutions for months were killed. The people, who were taken from the Qargarish district in October following a raid, were camped in front of the UNHCR. to request protection and an evacuation plan from the country, It is impossible for a refugee to live in safety because of the total support of a system of protection for migrants.
"[I miliziani] ci hanno attaccato furiosamente, hanno iniziato a picchiarci con violenza e ad arrestarci, ci hanno caricati in macchine della polizia e autobus; alcuni rifugiati hanno cominciato a correre e le milizie hanno sparato a tutti quelli che cercavano di escappare”, says one witness. “It was an incubus [...], there have been violations, stupors, violence as in all these effective operations that we all know very well. Almeno sono sopravvissuto” 4 More than 600 arrests have been estimated 5: many have been deported to the Ain Zara camp, a government-run migrant detention center active since 2013 in which, according to the latest data available for 2021, there were already around 1,200 detainees. One of the migrants killed in the raid recounts in a recent interview published by Manifesto 6 how she lives in Ain Zara, through rape and torture by the prison guards.
Sarebbero more than 12 thousand according to the United Nations, the first migrants of the 27 sparse governance structures for the country, to which thousands of centers are attached “information”, even more difficult to monitor 7. There have been few reports of this lately, but the situation seems to be even more distressing: recent testimonies from the al-Maya camp, just outside Tripoli, have mentioned frequent droughts and spasms, malnutrition and illnesses that have led to several deaths, including that of a woman and her baby, who had only just been born, due to a lack of assistance and suitable conditions.
According to InfoMigrants, the UNHCR is aware of the camp, but it is not within its remit because it is not run by government officials: this means that no international humanitarian staff enter the camp to check conditions or provide assistance. Around 3,000 people will be sent to the only camp in al-Maya, but many others are spread across the country. An Oxfam report denounces the displacement of 20,000 people, out of a total of 80,000 by 2021, among those intercepted at sea and returned to Libya. 8: they are probably invested in informal structures like this one.
Recounting the protest: a non-indifferent act
Even those international authorities who should be working on behalf of vulnerable people have shown that they are not only powerless, but also that they are denying their role. It is difficult to justify the UNHCR Libya's long silence in the face of requests for action from migrants who have been camped for more than three months on their doorsteps: the organization has not provided adequate responses or emergency assistance, attributing the cause of the interruption of services to the presidency itself. 9. In a video message on December 5, Jean Paul Cavalieri, head of the UNHCR mission in Libya, accused the demonstrators of preventing asylum seekers from entering the headquarters and the registration center to carry out the regular procedures. 10in this way the agency has been able to take full responsibility for the situation of extreme disaffection in front of its headquarters.
Source: Meltingpot