12,000 Nigerians awaiting deportation from Germany —Awoniyi

Germany-based publisher, Mr Femi Awoniyi, is a director of the Migration Enlightenment Project Nigeria, which is currently carrying out a campaign for safe migration. In this online interview with KUNLE ODEREMI, he speaks on the syndicate behind illegal migration, dilemma of hordes of victims, mostly Nigerians in parts of Europe, as well as other related issues. Excerpts:

IN specific terms, what does your organisation stand for, as many are thinking it’s a child of circumstance as a result of the uproar over Nigerians and other blacks becoming the article of  trade in Libya?

The Migration Enlightenment Project Nigeria (MEPN) was conceived by me in partnership with Kenneth Gbandi, the chairman of the Nigerians in the Diaspora Organisation Europe. And it’s being implemented in co-operation with the German chapter of the Nigerians in the Diaspora Organisation with the support of Germany’s Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We officially launched our campaign [for safe migration] in Lagos on September 12, 2017 this year. The objective of our campaign is to promote a greater public awareness of the risks and dangers of irregular migration. We also highlight the opportunities for legal migratio, for example, for work or education. Moreover, we explain to young Nigerians not to see migration as the only way to make something out of their lives. There are positive alternatives to migration. So, in a nutshell we advise that would-be migrants should weigh their options carefully. You can legally migrate to Europe to work, but also to receive training, to study and for the purpose of family union. For example, there is the EU Blue Card, which allows its recipients to work in Europe. And there’re opportunities for studying as well. There are more than 400 higher institutions of learning in Germany. And most of them do not even charge tuition fees and those that do, charge very moderate fees when compared to similar institutions in the US.

But why has illegal migration by Nigerians suddenly become a critical issue, in view of the fact that the problem has been with us for years?

It’s because of the increasing casualty figures and the horrendous suffering of Nigerians stuck in the process of irregular migration. This year alone, more than 3,500 migrants have drowned in the Mediterranean and many more are believed to have died en route, for example, in the Sahara desert. You must have read the accounts of some of the returnees who narrated how many of their friends died in the desert and detention camps in Libya.

The CNN video report has opened the eyes of the world to what is going on in Libya; it’s a humanitarian disaster. As we speak, there are between 700,000 and 1 million migrants stranded in Libya. They’re unable to continue their journey to Europe. And they’re exposed to widespread human rights abuse and live in appalling conditions in Libya.

Since the overthrow of Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has been in a chaotic state. There are three governments fighting for legitimacy even though only the Tripoli-based government of national accord is recognised by the UN. Added to that chaos are the hundreds of armed militias that are not under the direct control of these governments. So you have a lawless place. The problem is how the government in Libya manages migration. The government detains anyone who enters, stays in or attempts to exit the country illegally. There have been reports of grave human rights abuse in government-run detention centres. The militias also detain migrants who enter their territories because they effectively control territories. Not to talk of criminal trafficking gangsters who also detain migrants. So, the practice of detaining irregular migrants is at the heart of the problem. Migrants are extorted in detention; they are held like kidnappers would hold their victims and asked to call their families to send thousands of dollars so that they could be set free. One gang may sell migrants in its custody to another gang. This is the system that led to the sale of migrants as slaves for farm work or other forms of forced labour. It’s in these detention centres that migrants are exploited, abused and often tortured and killed. Irregular migrants have become a major source of revenue for the militias and trafficking gangs.

From your interactions with some of those involved, what would you consider as the primary cause?

The desire to seek greener pastures is the main motivation for migration. However, it has become clear that human traffickers are the main drivers of the ongoing crisis. They deceive vulnerable young people into believing that there is an easy road to Europe via irregular routes. They also deceive their customers about the true situation in Europe. The accounts of victims, for example, the returnees from Libya, show that if they had known the risks involved they wouldn’t have embarked on such a dangerous journey.

The thinking in some quarters is that illegal migration by Nigerians is a fallout of leadership failure in Nigeria, as the national economy has continuously asphyxiated over the years with a majority of the youth  as the major victims. 

Sure. Like we tell young people, we’re not against migration. It’s a legitimate aspiration to seek greener pastures. This is why we also highlight the opportunities for legal migration. But, we plead with them not to follow dangerous, irregular routes that could lead to their deaths. What does it profit you to spend as much as N2 million only to find yourself in a detention camp in Libya? The economic problems in the country cannot and will not be solved in the short term. What we can do to save lives now is by making would-be migrants aware of the risks and dangers of irregular migration.

Some of the so-called victims of the shame in Libya have been quoted as insisting on not returning home. Isn’t such attitude capable of encouraging more people, who, perhaps, feel disenchanted with the prevailing situation in Nigeria to also brave the odds?

Yes, it’s possible. But, it should be known that a new phase of struggle awaits those who even survive the journeys through the Sahara Desert and the Mediterranean. It’s the struggle to obtain legal residency in Europe. For irregular migrants, the major option available for the regularisation of their papers is to seek political asylum. However, an asylum application has chances of success only if the applicant had suffered political persecution. This is why people from countries, such as Nigeria, are generally denied asylum because EU member countries believe there is no political persecution in Nigeria. As I speak, there’re more than 1 million migrants in legal limbo in Europe. Either their asylum claims have been rejected or they’re deemed as lacking merits. Nigerians have the highest rejection rate of asylum applications made by Africans in Europe. According to a report of the UN Refugee Agency, the applications made by 21,427 Nigerians were rejected last year alone. In Germany, for example, a total of 12,000 Nigerians are awaiting deportation. Imagine after going through the desert, risking the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean to end up becoming an irregular migrant in Europe without the right to work or legal residency. This is the situation that makes women migrants become easy prey for those who force them into prostitution.

Given that this crisis that has brought shame to Nigeria and indeed the entire Black Africa over the years, do you think the Nigerian government given the problem the necessary attention it deserves?

I think the government has been active on this issue for a long time. The problem has now assumed a crisis proportion. So, the issue is not for government alone to deal with but for the whole of society. We must all join the campaign. Journalists, clergy people, traditional leaders, politicians, youth organisations – all of society.  It’s about saving lives and saving our people from unnecessary suffering.

So, you believe the victims deserve sympathy and not condemnation?

The victims deserve our sympathy. Most of them never knew what they were getting into. As I said earlier, they were deceived by traffickers.

Therefore, to what extent do you agree with those who claim the flamboyant lifestyle of some compatriots abroad encourage illegal migration to Europe?

I don’t think that such an observation applies to the overwhelming majority of Nigerians in the Diaspora, who work hard not only to take care of themselves and their families but also to lend helping hands to relations and friends back home. Unfortunately, there are some Nigerians engaged in criminal activities who could fall under the category you’re referring to. We know that there’re those engaged in human trafficking, drug trafficking, fraudulent financial schemes and such crimes who may be flaunting the gains of their illicit ventures in Nigeria.

Then, should the Nigerian government criminalise activities of individuals and firms that encourage any action capable of encouraging illegal migration?

Yes, absolutely. We believe that tougher laws should be made against human traffickers generally. Traffickers have led thousands of Nigerians to their untimely deaths. They have led too many of our citizens into slavery and horrendous suffering. They should be treated like kidnappers because their crime is a serious one.