Libya

Libya: UN alarmed at reports of violence against sub-Saharan migrants

Date: 09/03/2011 - 09:40

The United Nations refugee agency today voiced alarm at increasing accounts of violence and discrimination in Libya against sub-Saharan Africans in both the rebel-held east and the Government-controlled west, including the reported rape of a 12-year-old girl.

4,000 Bangladeshi migrant workers sneak out of Libya

Date: 28/02/2011 - 10:59

Bangladesh, which has some 60,000 citizens working in Libya, said about 4,000 had reached the Tunisian and Egyptian borders, and 800 had been taken to Crete by their Chinese company.

“The government has not evacuated any Bangladeshi workers so far. But we have all preparations ready if the situation worsens,” Labour Minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said yesterday.
He said many workers had lost their passports as the documents had been kept by employers who had now disappeared.

African migrants in Libya targeted

Date: 28/02/2011 - 10:45

As nations evacuate their citizens from the violence gripping Libya, many African migrant workers are targeted because they are suspected of being mercenaries hired by Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader.

Dozens of workers from sub-Saharan Africa are feared killed, and hundreds are in hiding, as angry mobs of anti-government protesters hunt down "black African mercenaries," according to witnesses.

Safe haven for people fleeing bloodshed in Libya

Date: 28/02/2011 - 10:50

As the situation in Libya is worsening and the world is watching the atrocities of Gaddafi's regime, European governments are stepping up efforts to evacuate their citizens out of Lybia. The repression is brutal and just like British, Turkish, Egyptians and other foreigners needed rescuing, some Libyans and refugees from sub-Saharan countries, who are currently stranded in Libya, will need refuge from violence and human rights abuses.

At this historical moment, on our side of the Mediterranean, Europe needs to live up to its obligations to protect those fleeing from violence.

EU: Condemnation of Libya, but No Call for Sanctions or Travel Bans

Date: 22/02/2011 - 11:51

The conclusions of the just completed EU Council meeting on Foreign Affairs were released yesterday.  Not surprisingly, Libya was a major topic of discussion and there was condemnation of the Libyan government’s actions.  But there is a strong difference of opinion among member states regarding what else should be done.  Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb called for the imposition of sanctions against Gaddafi, his family, and Libyan government officials

Seeking safety, finding fear: Refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants in Libya and Malta

Date: 15/12/2010 - 06:05

Many thousand Somalis flee their war-torn country every year in search of safety. For those who reach Libya, indefinite detention, torture and other abuses await them. Many then embark on perilous sea journeys towards Europe. Those who survive often end up in Malta, where they face detention followed by isolation and poverty in cramped accommodation.

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European public service unions condemn EU cooperation agreement with Libya on migration

Date: 10/12/2010 - 17:04

At its Executive Committee meeting of 8-9/11/2010, EPSU expressed concerns over an agreement between the EU and Libya on migration cooperation that was struck on 4 October. The agreement addresses bilateral cooperation in the control of irregular migration, among other issues, including potential readmission of third-country nationals, who have transited through Libya on their way to Europe. It commits the EU to assist Tripoli in developing its patrolling capacities and covers assistance in screening migrants to identify those in need of international protection.

BANGLADESH: Our cheated workers in Libya

Date: 10/01/2010 - 09:53

It is quite clear that for all the steps taken or reassurances voiced regarding the safety of Bangladesh's workers abroad, they still remain prey to the whims of their employers as well as their recruiting agencies. The latest that we have on this front is the disconcerting news from Libya that 46 Bangladeshi workers there have been going without wages for the past six months. And how life can turn into a nightmare for men with no wages abroad can only be imagined.

Décembre 18: Centre international de plaidoyer et de ressources sur les droits humains des travailleurs migrants.

Décembre 18 est une ONG dotée du statut consultatif spécial auprès du Conseil économique et social des Nations Unies

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