EU Accused of Enabling Migrant Slave Trade in Africa

The European Union faces criticism for allegedly contributing to the ongoing migrant slave trade in Africa, sparking debates over human rights and immigration policies.

A coalition of humanitarian organizations has claimed that sub-Saharan African migrants in Tunisia are being captured and sold to Libyan traffickers, with the process allegedly aided by agreements involving the European Union and Italy. According to a report released on Tuesday, these migrants are detained by authorities, confined in detention centers, and subsequently sold for as little as $12 each.

The report, titled “State Trafficking: Expulsion and Sale of Migrants from Tunisia to Libya,” is the result of extensive research conducted over several months in North Africa’s makeshift camps and desert detention facilities. It features testimonies from 30 individuals originating from countries like Cameroon, Chad, Sudan, Guinea, and Ivory Coast, who described their experiences being transferred from Tunisia to Libya between June 2023 and November 2024.

“They sold us to the Libyans, literally buying and selling like objects—as if we were slaves,” one migrant expressed in the report.

The report claims that the EU and Italy, through agreements with the Tunisian government designed to reduce migration and stop boats from crossing the Mediterranean, are “enabling” the capture and sale of these migrants.

Since 2017, Rome has reportedly invested close to $90 million in training and equipping Tunisia’s border guards. These efforts have been credited with substantially reducing the number of migrants arriving in Italy, resulting in a reported 59% decrease in crossings from North Africa.

The study underscores the grave violations of human rights caused by these policies. It claims that migrants in Tunisian cities are being rounded up and sent to detention centers near the Libyan border, where they are allegedly sold to Libyan militias. Women reportedly fetch higher prices, sometimes as much as $90, due to their exploitation for sexual slavery. Additionally, the report documents cases of torture, sexual violence, and forced labor.

The European Commission has not yet responded to the report, which was submitted to the bloc’s parliament by a group of left-wing legislators criticizing the EU’s involvement in these human rights violations.

Spanish MEP Estrella Galan described it as a shocking display of negligence that European funds are being used to aid human trafficking between Tunisia and Libya, where lives are reduced to mere commodities worth only €12 to €90, according to the Telegraph.

The report urges increased examination of the EU’s migration policies and their impact on human rights, highlighting that existing agreements focus more on curbing immigration than protecting human rights, which results in widespread abuses.