Back Way:
This can be defined as the migration
of people across national borders in a way that violates the immigration laws
of the destination country.
Africa has never seen such a flood
of young men heading for Europe. The number of migrants crossing by sea to
Italy, a top entry point, nearly quadrupled from 2013 to 2014, reaching about
170,100. Sub-Saharan Africans made up a growing percentage of the total, with around
64,600 arriving last year.
As of 1
January 2015, there were 5,014,437 foreign nationals resident in Italy. This
amounted to 8.2% of the country's population and represented an increase of
92,352 over the previous year. These figures include children born in Italy to
foreign nationals (who were 75,067 in 2014; 14.9% of total births in Italy),
but exclude foreign nationals who have subsequently acquired Italian
nationality; this applied to 129,887 people in 2014.
And in 2016, more
than 361 thousand immigrants arrived by sea in Europe and half of them landed
on Italian shores, 48% in Greece (174 thousand arrivals), while in Spain they
were just 8,826. (ISMU Foundation, 2016)
There’s
a big problem of complex among some young Africans and that problem is majorly
in thinking faculty; that, going abroad is a greener pasture. That’ not true.
So I put to you, there is no greener pasture anywhere like your home- country
and where you come from. Until we get this into our skull about it, the
Mediterranean Sea will never seized to be death trap, and is recording
increasing number of dead of young Africans swallowed in droves on the rough
high sea. I just do not know what is pursuing them abroad. Take it
or leave it, any young person that is unable to make it at home, cannot or will
find it equally difficult making it abroad. You see, to live or reside in
abroad requires hard work, and most job opportunities for irregular are cheap
manual labor that you wouldn’t ordinarily do in your country. So
what’s the point?
Do
you know why do young people risk their lives at all cost to traveling abroad
without a destination, permits or money in pocket at arrival? To arrive in a
foreign land without where to sleep, food to eat could be traumatic, and
starting a life in street as if one is a psycho- man could be another thing
entirely? I have seen people in work in Africa, selling their
properties to gather money to travel abroad with the hope of getting a better
job, which they never. I have seen parents selling their compounds and collecting
loans from bank to fund their daughter to travel abroad in anticipation of
return on investment, which usually result in the girl’s death of HIV/AIDS. I
have seen where Men traveled with children in pretense as theirs, only to sell these
children for a token. Imagine what people do for money? What is more wickedness
than this? So you can tell me what is it I have not seen or heard? But that is
just the picture.
Back
to the point I asked, why young Africans want to travel abroad by all means? Or
will you blame this young people in totality for their actions? Wanting
to leave this country in droves? To my mind is where there is hunger there is
likely hood of migration. Where there is poverty and joblessness there is
likely hood of migration. Where there is war and conflict, inequality and bad
governance there is likely hood of migration. And this entire likely hood is in
Africa and I don’t know why Africa. To me, migration in its self is not
criminal per se, but when it is irregular, it can be viewed illegal by the
entering country and as security threat. Most times at borders
migrants are arrested, roughed handled, tortured and killed, while so many are
languishing in jailed criminally in Asia, Europe and America. This migrants are
usually maltreated may be because they are from Africa and is out of racial
discrimination and Xenophobia. But funny enough, even most of those African
youths that are arrested and detained in jail themselves have refused to
identify with their identities and reject their Government interventions in
returning them back in their various African Countries for reintegration. That
too goes to show you the rooted mentality we have that greener pasture is not
in Africa by African. It is such is pity!
But
to those irregular migrants whose have found their way into Europe, Asia and
America from Africa, they are currently into modern day slavery. Ask
me why? Their condition there is not better than when there were in Africa.
They see good life but cannot access it. But the truth of the matter is that,
Americans, Europeans, Asians enjoys such migrants and recognizes the
potentials, which they absorb and provide available labor jobs to them. These
jobs are jobs that do not have dignity nor add value to them.
You
see migration most at times result into trafficking and don’t just happen. It
is an organized crime. It starts when someone is desirous and apprehensive to
move abroad. You will meet or will be approached, introduced by and to those
into Visa racketing. Some of them go into poor local communities, led by family
members, known people and community members who lure vulnerable youths with
promising annotations of job opportunities in Europe, Asia and America. These
opportunities never existed nor will exist. Young girls are taken out of
African abroad to serve as sex toolkits in prostitution.
These
young Africans girls are exploited sexually to sleep with all kind of animals
for experiment. These girls are mostly under 20 years old and are traded
for commercial sex to over 30 men daily, without protection. So I ask you, who
are these old men paying for these girls to be brought into Europe, Asia and
America? And I will tell you they are not Africans. African is only used as the
kingpin for the trade. And is senseless, shameful and heartless to humanity,
they will pay for it one day.
It
dream of Africa that would one day see her
youth tapping from the expertise of
Africa and began a new process of leadership where we will find that greener
pasture right here in Africa.
By:
Saidina Alieu Jarjou
Alias Dr.ABS Taal Jr.
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