North African countries seek assistance at the Tripoli conference to help stem the flow of refugees and migrants.
Representatives from 28 African and European countries met in Libya’s capital, Tripoli, to discuss ways to address irregular migration.
In his opening speech at the start of the Forum on Trans-Mediterranean Migration on Wednesday, Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah said countries “have a moral responsibility” to people “who cross the desert and the sea ” in hopes of reaching Europe.
The North African country is an important departure point for refugees and migrants, mainly from sub-Saharan African countries, who risk dangerous sea journeys in search of better lives. The United Nations has recorded more than 20,000 deaths and disappearances in the central Mediterranean since 2014, making it one of the most dangerous migrant crossings in the world.
In recent years, the European Union has stepped up efforts to reduce migration, including by providing equipment and financial support to the Libyan Coast Guard, a quasi-military organization linked to militias accused of abuses and other crimes.
As a result, many were stranded in Libya, often detained in conditions that rights groups describe as inhumane.
The International Organization for Migration said in May that there were more than 706,000 migrants in Libya at the start of the year, but Libyan authorities say the real number is more than two million.
“Libya found itself caught in pressure between [Europe’s] return of migrants and [their] desire to migrate”, said Dbeibah, calling for development projects in the countries of departure.
“We can only solve the migration crisis at the root, in the countries of departure,” he said.
Last week, Libyan authorities said that up to 80 percent of foreigners in the country are undocumented and that welcoming people hoping to reach Europe has become “unacceptable.”
“The time has come to resolve this problem,” said Interior Minister Imad Trabelsi, because “Libya cannot continue to pay its price.”
Libya, which is still struggling to recover from years of war and chaos following the NATO-backed overthrow of longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, has been criticized for its treatment of migrants and refugees. Accusations from human rights groups range from extortion to slavery, while smugglers and human traffickers have also taken advantage of the country’s unstable climate.
“I’m looking at Libya right now – it’s very, very dangerous,” Waly, a young Nigerian in Tripoli, told Al Jazeera.
“Our people go to sea [and] They want to cross the sea, so they want to stop us,” he said. “I’m thinking about moving on or going back.”
Reporting at the forum, Al Jazeera’s Malik Traina said “there is currently a sense of fear” among migrants in Libya. The country’s authorities, however, “want to strengthen the relationship between Africa and the EU to mitigate the migration problem,” he added.
Speaking to journalists, Dbeibah said that Libya does not have the resources to resolve the problem and called on richer countries to “provide the funds” in order to stem the influx of migrants.
Tunisian Prime Minister Ahmed Hachani also called on European countries at the Tripoli conference to increase financial aid to his country and others to help combat the flow of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa.
“More assistance must be provided to countries like Tunisia. The assistance provided is insufficient to solve the problem,” she said. “There are cities that have absorbed migrants beyond their capacity.”
Far-right Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told the conference that the situation could not be resolved without resolving the problem in the countries of origin.
He also denounced “criminal organizations” that “decide who has or does not have the right to live in our countries”, adding that “illegal migration is the enemy of legal migration”.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
