Dreams and desperation: The hidden costs of illegal migration

Rauf Lawal, a renowned barber hailing from Ogun State, Nigeria, shared his harrowing tale of his journey to Libya.

Never having the desire to travel abroad, Lawal was enticed by the promise of financial prosperity in Libya.

Without informing his loved ones, Lawal embarked on this journey, unaware that it might be his final farewell.

He made his way to Abeokuta to catch a bus to Kano, where he was packed into an overcrowded bus headed for Niger Republic.

One of the most distressing aspects of this journey was the occurrence of suffocation and death within the cramped confines of trucks.

Shockingly, these fatalities often went unnoticed until the vehicles reached their destination in Libya.

Furthermore, many migrants tragically lost their lives by falling out of these packed trucks. Disturbingly, it is not uncommon for migrants to stumble upon lifeless bodies scattered along their path.

Reports have emerged of hundreds of corpses discovered in the vast expanse of the Sahara desert.

However, due to the absence of roads and the sheer size of the desert, the actual number of fatalities is believed to be significantly higher.

The unforgiving sand of the desert swallows many migrants’ remains, leaving them forever lost and unaccounted for.

More horrors were revealed when Lawal recounted a chilling incident that took place during their journey from Niger to Saba.   

Stranded in the scorching desert due to a vehicle breakdown, Lawal and a group consisting of two Nigerian women and the driver were forced to push the immobilised vehicle.  

However, the driver callously ignored the pleas of the women, citing their gender and the intense heat as reasons for exemption.

Shockingly, the driver resorted to an act of unspeakable violence, fatally stabbing both women.    

He made reference to Adejoke who embarked on a perilous journey from Nigeria to Libya in search of a better life.

Little did he know that his dreams would soon turn into a nightmare.Upon reaching Libya, Adejoke discovered that the country was in a state of extreme instability, with no unified government to provide security and order.

Migrants like him were frequently arrested and thrown into detention centers, which were controlled by militias and armed groups. 

These groups saw migrants as an easy source of income and exploited them in various ways.Adejoke himself experienced the horrors of captivity and torture in one of these detention centres.

The militia would regularly contact his parents, demanding money that they simply couldn’t afford to pay. After enduring two years of unimaginable suffering, Adejoke finally managed to escape.The conditions in these detention centers were beyond deplorable. 

Severe shortages of food and water plagued the migrants, who were also subjected to regular beatings, rape, and even murder. Some unfortunate souls died due to starvation and poor health. The overcrowding was so severe that migrants were forced to sleep while standing.

If the detention centres became too full or if migrants were unable to pay their smugglers, they faced the horrifying risk of being sold in slave markets and forced into labour.

Many women, in particular, fell victim to the cruel fate of sex slavery. or if migrants are unable to pay their smugglers, they face the risk of being sold in slave markets and forced into labor.