Buhari Reacts To ‘Libya Slave Trade’, Promises To Evacuate Nigerians

President Muhammadu Buhari has described as appalling and unacceptable, the alleged slave trade in Libya.

The President in a statement on Tuesday vowed to evacuate all Nigerians in the North-African nation, adding that his administration will do everything in its power to protect Nigerian citizens wherever they might be.

Mr. Buhari is currently in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire for the 5th African Union-European Union Summit, slated for November 29th and 30th.

 

The situation in Libya, of people being sold into slavery, is appalling and unacceptable. We will do everything to protect our citizens wherever they might be.

— Muhammadu Buhari (@MBuhari) November 29, 2017

We have also started bringing back home all Nigerians stranded in Libya and elsewhere. We will ensure they all return home safely and are rehabilitated.

— Muhammadu Buhari (@MBuhari) November 29, 2017

Meanwhile, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is currently chairing a meeting on the humanitarian situation in Libya and the Sahel.

In attendance are the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, Attorney General Abubakar Malami, and heads of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, and National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA.

“This is a matter the President is very concerned about. We have all the relevant agencies on board. A lot has already been done, and we will continue working to deal with the situation,” Osinbajo said.

Media reports about alleged migrant slave markets in Libya have resulted in strong reactions across the continent, especially in West Africa where most African migrants originate.

Journalists working for CNN discovered several such slave markets in the country’s interior, proving what experts had feared for a long time: hundreds of African refugees and migrants passing through the country are being bought and sold in modern-day slave markets.

According to reports, the trade works by preying on the tens of thousands of vulnerable people who risk everything to get to Libya’s coast and then across the Mediterranean into Europe – a route that’s been described as the deadliest route on earth.

Libya is the main gateway for people attempting to reach Europe by sea, with more than 150,000 people making the crossing in each of the past three years.