By Biran Gaye
Dozens of sub-Saharan migrants and refugees are living in heartbreaking conditions in Tunisia, facing severe difficulties in accessing basic necessities as local police continue to raid their residences and curtail their movement.
“The migrants between Sfax and Al Amra along the coast are living in tragic conditions, facing severe difficulties in accessing essential water for drinking or washing, which exposes them to diseases resulting from poor hygiene and dehydration,” Refugees In Libya, a non-governmental organisation, says in a statement seen by Foroyaa.
In a video shared by the organisation on X formerly Twitter, these migrants and refugees could be seen in an open area with their makeshift residences. In it, they look agitated toward some people seemingly approaching their residence.
According to the organisation, these people live in the open under olive trees, without any protection from harsh weather conditions, whether it be the scorching summer sun or the bitter cold of winter, making their daily lives a continuous battle for survival.
“The Tunisian National Guard actively pursues the migrants within markets, preventing them from obtaining daily necessities like vegetables or even basic services such as recharging their mobile phones at cafes,” it reveals.
They are reportedly restricted in their movements, with all forms of transportation, both private and public, being prohibited from carrying them.
The Libyan-based organisation said if any of them are caught, they are immediately returned to the borders with Algeria or Libya, adding that the number of migrants includes more than 200 children and over 150 women, all of whom suffer from inadequate care and lack of protection, increasing their vulnerability and exposing them to further risks. Young people form the majority of the migrants who face the same challenges and difficulties in an unsafe environment.
According to Refugees In Libya, the common nationalities among the migrants in these areas include Sub-Saharan Africans, as well as Sudanese, Somalis, Ethiopians, and Eritreans, who flee difficult conditions in their home countries, only to find themselves facing new and tragic challenges on Tunisian soil.
Coupled with these harsh conditions, the migrants suffer from ongoing exploitation by some local residents and smugglers, including forced labour at meager wages or without pay and financial extortion by smugglers who exploit their need to cross into Europe.
Due to economic, climate, political, and social crises in the global south, Tunisia has emerged as a key transit point for sub-Saharan African migrants and asylum seekers aiming to reach Europe. Caught between Tunisia’s attempts to leverage migration to pressure the European Union (EU) on the one hand and the EU’s securitization of migration on the other, sub-Saharan African migrants find themselves trapped in a complex web of challenges.
In early 2023, Tunisia’s authoritarian president, Kais Saied, delivered a speech loaded with “great replacement” conspiracy, echoing sentiments embraced by the European far right. This triggered a surge in violent racism toward Black sub-Saharan Africans living in the country and a corresponding increase in Tunisia-based migrants seeking refuge in Europe.
In July 2023, the EU and Tunisia signed a memorandum of understanding featuring a macro financial assistance loan of 900 million euros ($980 million), contingent upon an International Monetary Fund (IMF) program. This included budgetary support of 150 million euros ($160 million) for 2023, the bolstering of economic and trade ties, the promotion of green energy initiatives, the fostering of people-to-people projects, and the allocation of an aid package ($115 million of the $160 million) to combat irregular migration.
Tunisian authorities have reportedly failed to develop a comprehensive strategy to manage, much less curb, the inflow of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa. Instead, they have resorted to inconsistent policies, repressive measures, and short-term tactics emanating from a security mindset and primarily centered on mass expulsions of migrants and asylum seekers to remote rural or border regions.
