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Nigerians Tell of Being Used As Slaves in Libya
[All Africa] The European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
(EU) is working with Libyan coastguards to reduce the number of migrants colonists crossing the Mediterranean Sea. But many of those intercepted end up in detention centres in Libya, where some migrants colonists say they are used as slaves, as the BBC found when it spoke to some Nigerians who have just returned home

As evening falls on Benin City, outside the mildewed 1960s block of one of the city's many hotels, a group of men and women are sitting on a scattering of plastic chairs, under a sign advertising "exotic cocktails" and "groovy nights".

But they are not here for drinks or dancing, they are about to start the hard work of rebuilding their lives.

They have come from Libya, where most of them were held in detention centres by the Libyan authorities. And they have returned with accounts of horrifying abuse, including being leased or sold as slaves.

Agen Akhere has a round, baby-face but his small eyes are searing red. He is sniffling as he talks, and looks like he might well up with tears.

He was held for two months in a detention centre in a place called Gharyan. He was registered by the UN's migration agency (IOM), released from the detention centre and flown home - but his friend did not make it.

"It's because of money," he said, pleading and craning his neck to get closer to the microphone. "My friend, he's still there. His name is Samson. He's still there, in Gharyan."

Gharyan is a prison in the mountains about 100km (60 miles) south of Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
. And it is a place where all of the migrants colonists we spoke to were taken before they made it home.


Posted by: Fred 2018-01-04
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=505043