A new investigative report
by BBC’s economic editor Paul Mason has unearthed the human rights violations
that illegal immigrants in Morocco undergo at the hands of security
authorities. It implicates the police and criminal gangs in violations ranging
from physical violence, exploitation and sexual violence.
The
documentary—which can be viewed here— was aired
on Wednesday 4th September and features interviews with several migrants who
are stuck in Morocco after being denied entrance into Europe. One of the
interviewees, a Cameroonian only identified as Amadou, narrated his ordeal
after he was caught along with others trying to scale the border fence
at Melilla—a Spanish border town—into Spain. “They landed with a helicopter and
started hurling stones at us; beating us with batons,” he explains.
Amadou and
his friends were then deported to Algeria—an act, which was in contravention of
the 1951 Geneva Convention that prohibits the deportation of people to
countries where there is no guarantee of their safety as well as without considering
their individual cases.
Another
interviewee, a Gambian called Ibrahim, recounted to Mason how the Spanish
coastguard handed him over to their Moroccan counterparts who subjected him to
physical assault. “The 35 of us were handed over to Moroccan cops who beat
us with batons before taking us to Oujda, across the border with Algeria,” he
narrates. Now stuck in Morocco, Ibrahim depends on a nearby mosque for food.
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| Things are looking up: Illegal immigrants resting after arriving at Spain's Canary Island of Tenerife. Many more have had their journey into Europe cut short by Moroccan and Spanish authorities (Image courtesy of www.boston.com) |
The
investigative trip also brought Mason into contact with Mustapha and Josui, two
Senegalese bricklayers who tried to gain entry into Spain, having transited
through Algeria, Mali and Niger. “We tried to jump over the border fence into
Melillia but the Spanish police arrested us,” they narrated.
Having made
it into Spanish territory, they expected to be allowed to claim asylum but
instead, they were turned over to the Moroccan authorities. “They beat us
everywhere while handcuffed behind our backs and even shot at us,” Mustapha explains.
Mason’s
investigative report also lays blame on the European Union (EU), which has provided Morocco with €1.6
billion to deter illegal immigrants from its territory. The financial support is part
of its ‘Enlargement
and European Neighbourhood Policy’ that
aims to improve the capacity of the North African kingdom in handling migration issues,
such as, border management. Morocco is a major source of migration into Europe with
the city of Tangier being a chief transit route.
A report by
Médecins Sans Frontiéres (MSF), titled Violence,
Vulnerability and Migration: Trapped at the Gates of Europe documents the increasing incidences of degrading
treatment, violence and abuse of migrants in Morocco. The report also reveals
the high levels of sexual violence against the Sub-Saharan migrant community in
the country.
The Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs has, however, reiterated that it adheres to the human rights of all immigrants while implementing its readmission procedures and border management. It states that the kingdom has become a country of destination for Sub-Saharan African migrants because of its joint border control efforts with European countries.
What are your thoughts? Is Morocco right to
cooperate with EU in stopping illegal immigrants from entering Europe through
it?
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