Rescued from Libyan Detention Centres and Evacuated to Rwanda, Survivors of Horrific Torture and Rape Receive the Help They Need to Start to Heal
A report published by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the Mixed Migration Centre at the Danish Refugee Council, titled ‘On this journey, no one cares if you live or die,’ details how hundreds of refugees and migrants are dying each year on desperate journeys from West and East Africa towards and through Libya and Egypt.
Thousands more endure extreme human rights abuses and violations, including killings, torture, extortion, sexual violence and forced labour at the hands of smugglers, traffickers, militias and some State authorities.
In a list of recommendations, UNHCR and MMC are calling on states to do far more to identify and protect survivors of abuses on the routes and to hold the perpetrators of these acts accountable, including through criminal prosecutions and sanctions.
Samrawit was forced to reach out to her extended family, who in turn contacted her elder brother. Together, they raised a total of US$12,000 which covered her ransom and secured a space on a boat to Europe.
As she speaks, she tugs absentmindedly at a colourful bracelet on her wrist.
“I got this from a friend in Libya. He made it for me,” she says, adding that he remained in one of the detention centres. “I really worry about him because I know how bad the situation is back there.”
She recounts vividly how last July, the smugglers finally took 350 of them to the Mediterranean coast to attempt the crossing to Europe.
“We left at midnight and after a few hours the boat started to sink,” she says.
About 150 people died in the incident – one of the deadliest shipwrecks in recent years. Out of all the survivors, only four were women, including Samrawit.
“Luckily, I was able to swim but I can’t really say it’s because of this I survived. It’s God who saved me,” she says, adding that she swam for over eight hours, ending up back on the Libyan shore.
They were found there by the Libyan authorities and eventually held in an official detention centre to which UNHCR had access.
Tired, scared, dirty and hungry, they were registered by UNHCR and given first aid. They were then taken through an assessment process to identify those most vulnerable. Due to the limited number of available evacuation and resettlement places, efforts are usually made to prioritise those most in need, often including unaccompanied children, survivors of torture and other abuses and people in need of urgent medical treatment.
“We identify their needs and link them with social workers for counselling.”
Samrawit was among those identified as highly vulnerable and evacuated to Rwanda where UNHCR and partner agencies provide life-saving assistance, including food, water, medical care, psychosocial support and accommodation.
Margaret Mahoro, an education and livelihoods coordinator with the American Refugee Committee, a UNHCR partner, outlines why this support is critical.
“We identify their needs and link them with social workers for counselling,” she explains. “Where they need special treatment, we refer them to doctors, including psychiatrists.”
The evacuees have been given asylum-seeker status in Rwanda as their cases are assessed and further solutions are pursued.
Since December 2018, UNHCR has evacuated nearly 2,000 refugees and asylum seekers from Libya. Some 2,500 refugees and migrants remain extremely vulnerable inside official detention centres.
Since her arrival, Samrawit has spoken to her brother twice and assured him of her safety.
“I am relieved because I didn’t get pregnant or get a sexually transmitted disease,” she says of her long ordeal. “There’s a big difference now. It’s like the distance between heaven and earth.”
While she hopes to be reunited with her brother, she is focusing on her healing and has taken up English classes and is considering a sewing course.
“I need to occupy my mind instead of worrying and remembering the bad things that happened,” she says.
Samrawit was resettled to Sweden, as part of UNHCR’s resettlement programme for highly vulnerable refugees.
*Name changed for protection reasons.
*SOURCE: UNHCR. Go to ORIGINAL. 2020 Human Wrongs Watch
Source: https://human-wrongs-watch.net/2020/07/30/rescued-from-libyan-detention-centres-and-evacuated-to-rwanda-survivors-of-horrific-torture-and-rape-receive-the-help-they-need-to-start-to-heal/
