On a Trek to Safety, Somalis Risk All in Libya
UNHCR seeks US$210 million to help refugees risking death, rape, arbitrary detention, forced labour and starvation as they travel towards the Mediterranean.| Español | عربي
Dangers along the route include being kidnapped, murdered, raped or sexually assaulted, being left to die in the desert, or being sold as slaves. Of those who reach the shores of the Mediterranean aboard a boat, at least 331 people died or went missing at sea this year after departing Libya – a rate equivalent to about one-in-six who attempt the journey.
In a bid to do all it can to save lives, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, today launched its Routes towards the Mediterranean strategy, seeking US$210 million to help thousands of people fleeing horrific abuses at the hands of traffickers and smugglers.
- “In Niger, we are finally safe.”
The agency aims to find alternatives for refugees like Maryam and Ahmed – who fled Somalia after three close family members,including their parents, were killed – so that they never need to set out overland in the first place..
As part of its work in the country, UNHCR has been identifying the most vulnerable people trapped inside Libyan detention centres, like Maryam and Ahmed, and taking them to its Gathering and Departure Facility in Tripoli, while they await evacuation out of the country.
In March of this year, the couple were among more than 100 men, women, children evacuated by charter flight to Niger.
“In Niger, we are finally safe,” Maryam says. “We are so happy to finally live together as a couple. We live in hope for a good future and that we can spend the rest of our lives together.”
Since the flights began in 2017, UNHCR has evacuated 2,913 of the most vulnerable to safety in Niger, where more lasting solutions, such as resettlement to third countries, can be found for them.
“The horrors that people face along these perilous journeys are beyond all comprehension. They are a violation of human rights and dignity,” says Alessandra Morelli, UNHCR’s Representative in Niger. “We work to bring a sense of hope back to these people, through care and healing.”
*Names have been changed to protect the identity of the people in this story.
*SOURCE: UNHCR. Go to ORIGINAL. 2019 Human Wrongs Watch
Source: https://human-wrongs-watch.net/2019/06/29/on-a-trek-to-safety-somalis-risk-all-in-libya/
