Few days ago, at least 65 migrants died after their boat capsized in the Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of Tunisia. Survivors said the boat left Libya and ran into trouble during strong waves. The incident is thought to be one of the deadliest shipwrecks involving migrants since this year.
In November 2017, Cable Network News released a shocking footage of a slave auction of migrants in Libya. The auctioning, which lasted for few hours, ended with the men being transferred to their masters, and in a space of seven minutes, a dozen of Nigerians were sold.
Illegal migration is the movement of people across national borders in a way that violates the immigration laws of the destination country. Illegal migrants are also referred to as undocumented migrants.
Each month, able and energized Nigerian and African youths leave their families, friends and relatives and embark on perilous journey to Europe through Sahara Desert and Mediterranean Sea. Many die or were even killed by traffickers in Sahara, while dozens drown in Mediterranean and a few make it to Europe. Some even got imprisoned or deported.
According to the United Nations High Commision for Refugees, twenty thousand people fled to Italy from Africa in 2005, the figure rose to sixty-one thousand in 2011 and skyrocked to one hundred and thirty thousand in 2014. Although the number of migrants reduced in 2017, a UN report said six migrants died crossing the the Mediterranean everyday in 2018.
For some years now, migrants, fleeing due to insecurity, inadequate utility services and human needs, have flooded parts of Europe, taking greater risk to cross the Mediterranean Sea. While some gave up on the journey and transmogrified into decomposing corpses in the Sahara Desert; many ended up as meals for fishes when their overcrowded boat capsized.
The unprecedented wave of migrants entering Europe from Africa is beginning to define a new era. Since the Second World War, there has not been such a mass migration of people. A significant number of migrants in Nigeria have been noted to have gone out in an attempt to get juicy income for their families here in Nigeria. Trafficking girls is reportedly rampant in the Niger/Chad/Nigeria border. Hundreds of trafficked girls from Nigeria end up in sex industry in Italy.
Other causes of illegal migration include lack of employment, educational opportunities, and lack of social justice, corruption and poor governance among others. Whatever be the case, however, something urgent must be done to solve the problem.
In the first place, government at all levels must improve governance, implement public education and create information programmes about consequences of illegal migration. Governments should introduce and implement intervention programmes for illegal migration returnees.
Nigerian youths should come to grips that it is only a fool finds solution in running away from his problems. Youths should also be encouraged to work hard, acquire entrepreneurial skills and concentrate less on white collar jobs. They should jettison the ‘get rich quick’ syndrome.
International bodies such as European Union, United Nations and African Union must devote a substantial amount of their budget to help refugees in war-torn African countries and discourage them from risky migration journey. Plans should equally be made to increase fight against the empires of human traffickers in Africa, who encourage youths to dare the Mediterranean Sea.
Illegal migration has serious negative consequences on Nigeria and Nigerians. There is need to mitigate and possibly prevent migrants from crossing miles of scorching desert lands and roaring Mediterranean Sea.
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