Nigeria warns that migrating to Libya is “suicide mission”

Nigeria has issued a strong warning against illegal migration, following officials meeting with a young Nigerian woman who was rescued from abuses in Libya, according to the Libya Review on September 4th.

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission has described illegal migration as a “voluntary suicide mission,” their statement coming from Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Chairman and CEO of the Commission, when she met with 24-year-old Mercy Oluwabanga.

Oluwabanga left Nigeria in December of 2021 through irregular migration routes, and was lured into domestic work in Libya where she experienced severe abuse, threats, and was not paid wages.

Her story has drawn attention to the fates of many vulnerable Nigerians trapped in Libya who are victims to traffickers, forced labour, and dire living conditions.

Libya is a popular route used to reach Europe due to its northern border on the Mediterranean sea, and as part of efforts to tackle the high levels of irregular migration through the country, according to the Libya Review on September 3rd the Libyan Anti-Illegal Immigration Authority has deported 90 undocumented Nigerian migrants.

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission intervened to secure the safe release of Oluwabanga, alongside the Nigerian Community in Libya and the Trinity Foundation, after she released a distress video appeal to the CEO Dabiri-Erewa for rescue.

Dabiri-Erewa warned that going to Libya is “voluntary suicide and you will be sold into slavery.” She explained that Oluwabanga’s safe return to Nigeria was rare compared with other migrants who either remain trapped or die, and that her rescue was possible due to her escape to a private camp.

Human rights abuses in Libya have been under scrutiny recently with the United Nations Support Mission in Libya marking the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, August 30th, by calling for authorities to stop using enforced disappearances and highlighting two victims who were also MP’s in Libya’s House of Representatives.

The Libyan coast has been accused of attacking a humanitarian vessel that was rescuing migrants in the central Mediterranean sea on August 24th, an incident that has sparked serious criticism.

Libya Review/Maghrebi