European governments ‘complicit’ in the torture of refugees in Libya
Bid to stem flow of migrants leaves them stuck in camps where corruption is rife, Amnesty says
In prison they would hit us often. I saw many dying because they fell sick or were beaten. Guards were Libyan, they used to beat everybody without any reason OUSMAN Gambian refugee
European governments are complicit in the torture of tens of thousands of migrants detained in appalling conditions in Libya, according to rights group Amnesty International.
Up to 20,000 people are being held in overcrowded, unsanitary detention camps where they are at the mercy of corrupt authorities, people smugglers and armed groups, it said in a new report, Libya’s Dark Web of Collusion.
Amnesty said governments have been “fully aware” of the abuse and were complicit by acting to stop sea crossings across the Mediterranean that led to the deaths of least 5,000 people last year trying to reach Europe.
The findings come as European leaders face intense domestic political pressure to stem the flow of migrants.
Italy struck a deal in February with Fayez Al Serraj, the head of Libya’s UN-backed government in Tripoli, to slash the number of migrants reaching its shores in return for funding for his administration.
It was one of several measures introduced by EU member states since last year, which included training the Libyan coastguard to intercept migrant boats, striking deals to increase border controls and backing the organisation that runs the camps, said Amnesty.
The group said the moves had led to “mass, arbitrary and indefinite” detention of migrants that exposed them to serious human rights violations including torture, said the report.
“Hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants trapped in Libya are at the mercy of Libyan authorities, militias, armed groups and smugglers often working seamlessly together for financial gain,” said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International’s Europe director.
The Libyan government in 2012 set up the Tripoli-based department for combating illegal migration, which controls 33 detention centres, but has limited oversight. Many were only nominally under the control of the DCIM with local militias often in charge, Amnesty reported.
It found that a lack of funding placed a huge strain on the centres with some little more than warehouses or old factories, illserved to hold refugees. Windows were sealed to prevent escape, leaving little ventilation. Detainees received mainly bread and water, the report said. Food could be withheld unless a ransom was paid, Amnesty said. Some were allowed to call their families, but then tortured while on the phone.
Ousman, 18, from Gambia, said: “In prison they would hit us often. I saw many people dying in prison, either because they fell sick or were beaten. Guards were Libyan, they used to beat everybody without any reason.”
Detainees interviewed by the group said that guards released them if they were able to pay.
Amnesty said that some of the detainees were passed on to smugglers who colluded with the Libyan coastguard to escape to international waters.
It also claimed that a boat donated by Italy in April was used by the Libyan coastguard in a reckless escape attempt, in which 50 people died.
The controls on migration have sparked a thriving slave trade fuelled by a supply of African migrants who are unable to leave the country.
Secretly recorded footage of a slave market emerged last month, prompting France to demand action by the Libyan government or face international sanctions.