WAITING FOR THE SUN. WHEN EVERY MEETING CARRIES LOSS
Human rights organisations warn of the deteriorating situation of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in Libya and the worrying reduction of civic space
We, activists and members of civil society organisations working on ongoing human rights violations against migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in Libya, express our deep concern about the general climate of impunity and lack of accountability in the country. This volatile situation is further hampered by the reduction of civic space, especially in light of the criminalisation of activists and the ongoing crackdown on civil society organisations.
Detention centres
In the last six years, since the Italy-Libya Memorandum of Understanding was signed, almost 185,000 people have been intercepted at sea by the so-called Libyan Coast Guard and returned to detention centres in Libya. In these centres, which are in the hands of violent militias, they are at high risk of being subjected to mistreatment, forced labour, rape, torture and human trafficking. A recent research conducted by Tilburg University concluded that at least 200,000 refugees (mostly from Eritrea) were enslaved and trafficked to Libya in the period 2017-2021.
The OHCHR report Unsafe and Undignified: The forced expulsion of migrants from Libya, as well as the June 2022 report of the Independent Fact-Finding Mission on Libya, found evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the specific case of migrant detention centres.
Since 2021, some of the 'official' detention facilities have been run by the Stabilisation Support Authority (SSA), which, according to Amnesty International, is a 'state-funded militia that operates with impunity' and also intercepts migrants at sea.
In its latest report of 30 January 2023, the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Libya stated that 'arbitrary detention in Libya has become pervasive as a tool of repression and political control' and that 'the Libyan authorities must take decisive steps to provide justice and reparation to the vast number of victims suffering from long-standing violations of human rights and international humanitarian law'.
Externalisation policies, delays and refoulement
The EU and its member states continue to further develop externalisation policies and seek to contain migration by all possible means. They do this by equipping and supporting the so-called 'Libyan Coast Guard', which intercepted and returned 24,684 people to Libya in 2022 and almost 3,046 in 2023. Evidence shows how some of these interceptions are facilitated by Frontex through aircraft and drones.
The International Organisation for Migration reports that in the entire year 2022, 525 people died and 848 went missing on the central Mediterranean route. It is likely that these numbers are much higher due to the total lack of information on the numerous shipwrecks along this route. As reported by Alarm Phone, rejections by merchant ships are also frequent.
The situation at the land borders is also extremely worrying: according to official statistics reported by theOHCHR, 'in 2019 and 2020, at least 7,500 migrants were deported from Libya's external land borders', most of them Egyptians, Sudanese and Chadians. More recently, forced returns to Niger, Sudan and Chad have increased. Furthermore, boat departures of Egyptians from east of Libya are increasing: in 2022, Egyptians were the second nationality of migrants arriving in Italy (after Tunisians), while in 2021, more than 26,500 Egyptians were apprehended at the Libyan border. Also very worrying is the situation of asylum seekers and refugees inside Libya, registered with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and victims of arbitrary detention and deportation, as well as the lack of a legislative framework for the protection of migrant workers in the country. Hundreds of migrants are expelled by Libyan forces to be starved or kidnapped by gangs who then demand a ransom. In January 2023, 600 migrants held in the Al Kufra facility controlled by the Department for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM) were expelled by the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF). This number included Sudanese asylum seekers registered with the UNHCR. Many are believed to have died in the desert and most are missing.
At the same time, the EU pledged to 'further strengthen Libya's capacity to prevent irregular departures', as stated in the Action Plan for the Central Mediterranean, and to provide EUR 45 million to Libya and Tunisia to strengthen border management, including by supporting the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centres (MRCCs) and the 'Border Guard Training Academy in Libya'. The EU also pledged to 'explore ways to improve the migrant disembarkation process in Libya', as outlined in the 12-point MOCADEM Action Dossier on Libya.
Libya is not a safe place for the disembarkation of migrants, and despite numerous acknowledgements of this fact by UN bodies and the Council of Europe and numerous denunciations of the agreements, the EU remains silent. On 6 February 2023, Italy handed over the first of the five patrol boats promised(within the EUTF budget) to the Libyan Coast Guard, in the presence of European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Várhelyi.
It is clear that the way in which the EU and some EU Member States cooperate with the Libyan authorities in the field of migration further hampers the stabilisation process in Libya. Moreover, it fosters a cycle of violence linked to interception and detention that strengthens local militias and human traffickers who profit from the lives of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.
The undersigned organisations call for:
The EU and its Member States to commit to.
- Ensure that any agreement or cooperation between Libya and the EU and its member states is consistent with international and EU law.
- Ensure transparency and disclosure of the monitoring and follow-up mechanisms adopted by the EU to ensure the safety of migrants at sea, at disembarkation points and in detention centres.
- Encourage and pressure the Libyan authorities to open serious investigations into human rights violations and implement recommendations received from the UN Fact-Finding Mission.
- Stop providing material and financial support to increase Libya's capacity to intercept people at sea and/or at land borders, as this deteriorates the rights of migrants and refugees, increases push-backs at sea and violence against them.
- Ensure transparency and accountability in the use of EU and Member States' budgets for border management projects in Libya.
- Focus Member States' and EU foreign policy on supporting the peace and stability process in Libya and reduce the excessive focus on border management.
- Emphasise that Libya cannot be considered a safe haven for the disembarkation of migrants rescued at sea and implement an EU search and rescue (SAR) operation in the central Mediterranean.
- Strengthen safe and legal routes for migration to the EU.
- Put pressure on the Libyan authorities to fully respect guarantees of the right to freedom of association, in particular to
- end the extensive and systematic campaign of arbitrary investigations and arrests of bloggers, members of local civil society organisations (CSOs) and Libyan staff of international NGOs;
- allow Libyan CSOs to interact freely with UN agencies and international NGOs without prior security clearance; cease all forms of reprisals against members of Libyan civil society who communicate with the international community on the human rights situation in the country
- allow Libyan CSOs to visit detention facilities for migrants without prior security clearance; and
- freeze any decision to suspend or dissolve Libyan CSOs without a prior judicial ruling; such rulings must be made with full respect for due process rights.
List of signatories:
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Human rights organisations warn of the deteriorating situation of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in Libya and the worrying shrinking civic space
We, activists and members of civil society organisations working on ongoing human rights violations against migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in Libya, express our deep concern regarding the general climate of impunity and lack of accountability in the country. This volatile situation is further hampered by the shrinking of civic space, especially in light of through the criminalisation of activists and the crackdown on civil society organisations.
Detention centres
In the last 6 years, since the Italy-Libya Memorandum of Understanding was signed, almost 185,000 people have been intercepted at sea by the so-called Libyan Coast Guard and brought back to detention centres in Libya. In these centres, which are at the hands of violent militias, they are at high risk of being subjected to mistreatments, forced labour, rape, torture and trafficking. A recent research carried out by Tilburg University concluded that at least 200,000 refugees (mostly from Eritrea) have been enslaved and trafficked in Libya between 2017-2021.
The OHCHR Report Unsafe and Undignified: The forced expulsion of migrants from Libya, as well as the June 2022 report from the Independent Fact-Finding Mission on Libya, found evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the specific case of migrants' detention centres.
Since 2021, some of the 'official' detention facilities are being run by the Stabilisation Support Authority (SSA), which, according to Amnesty International, is a 'a state-funded militia that operates with impunity' and who also intercepts migrants at sea.
In its latest report dated 30 January 2023, the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Libya said that "arbitrary detention in Libya has become pervasive as a tool of political repression and control", and that "Libyan authorities must take decisive steps to provide justice and redress to the vast number of victims suffering from long-standing violations of human rights and international humanitarian law".
Externalisation policies, pullbacks and pushbacks
The EU and its Member States continue to further develop externalisation policies and try to contain migration by all possible means. They do so by equipping and supporting the so-called 'Libyan Coast Guard', who intercepted and returned 24,684 people to Libya in 2022, and almost 3,046 so far in 2023. Evidence shows how some of these interceptions are facilitated by Frontex through aircrafts and drones.
The International Organisation for Migration reports that in the whole year 2022, 525 people died and 848 went missing in the Central Mediterranean route. These numbers are likely to be much higher due to the complete absence of information regarding many shipwrecks taking place along this route. As reported by Alarm Phone, pushbacks by merchant vessels are also common.
The situation at land borders is also extremely worrying: according to official statistics reported by OHCHR, 'in 2019 and 2020, at least 7,500 migrants have been expelled from Libya's external land borders', most of them Egyptians, Sudanese and Chadians. More recently, forced returns have increased to Niger, Sudan and Chad. Also, boat departures of Egyptians from the East of Libya are on the rise: in 2022, Egyptians were the second nationality of migrants arriving in Italy (after Tunisians), while in 2021, more than 26,500 Egyptians were stopped at the Libyan border. The situation of asylum seekers and refugees inside Libya who are registered with the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, and are also victims of arbitrary detention and deportation, is very concerning as well, as is the lack of a legislative framework for the protection of migrant workers in the country. Hundreds of migrants are expelled by Libyan forces to get starved or kidnapped by ransom gangs. In January 2023, 600 migrants detained in Al Kufra facility controlled by the Department for Combating Illegal Immigration (DCIM) were expelled by the Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF). This number included Sudanese asylum seekers registered at the UNHCR. Many are believed to have died in the desert and most went missing.
At the same time, the European Union is committed to further "strengthen capacity of Libya to prevent irregular departures", as stated in the Action Plan on the Central Mediterranean, and to disburse EUR 45 million to Libya and Tunisia to strengthen border management, including supporting Maritime Rescue Coordination Centres (MRCC) and the "training academy for border guards in Libya". The EU is also committed to "explore ways to improve process to disembark migrants in Libya", as stated in the 12-point MOCADEM Action file on Libya.
Libya is not a safe place for disembarkation for migrants, and despite the numerous acknowledgements of this fact by UN bodies and the Council of Europe, and the many denunciations of agreements, the EU remains silent. On 6 February 2023, Italy handed over the first of the five announced patrol vessels to the Libyan Coast Guard (under EUTF budget), in the presence of European Neighbourhood and Enlargement Commissioner Várhelyi.
It is clear that the way the EU and some EU Member States collaborate with Libyan authorities in the field of migration is further hindering the stabilisation process in Libya. It also fosters a cycle of violence linked to interception and detention which strengthens local militias and human traffickers who are making money out of the lives of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.
We, the undersigned organisations, ask that:
The EU and its Member States:
- Ensure that any agreements or cooperation between Libya and the EU and its Member States are consistent with international and EU Law.
- Esure transparency and disclosure of the monitoring and follow-up mechanisms adopted by EU to ensure the safety and security of migrants at sea, at disembarkation points and detention centres.
- Encourage and pressure Libyan authorities to open serious investigations into human rights violations and to implement the UN Fact Finding Mission's recommendations.
- Stop providing material and financial support to increase Libya's capacity to intercept people at sea and/or land borders as it deteriorates the rights of migrants and refugees, increases pushbacks at sea and violence against them.
- Guarantee the transparency and accountability regarding the use of EU and Member States' budget for border management projects in Libya.
- Focus Member States' and the EU's foreign policy on supporting the peace and stability process in Libya, and reduce the excessive focus on border management.
- Stress that Libya cannot be considered a Place of Safety for the disembarkation of migrants rescued at sea and put in place an EU Search and Rescue (SAR) operation in the Central Mediterranean; as well as to respect their duty of Search and Rescue.
- Reinforce safe and legal pathways for migration to the EU.
- Press Libyan authorities to fully respect the guarantees of the right to freedom of association, notably to:
List of signatories:
