Ahmed Shaaban (Cairo, Tunisia)
The International Organization for Migration announced yesterday that it had facilitated the deportation of about 400 migrants of sub-Saharan African nationalities who were “stranded” in Tunisia during the past days.
The organization explained in a statement that, during the past three days, it facilitated the “safe and dignified” return flights of 392 migrants stranded in Tunisia to their countries of origin.
In 2023, the organization helped 2,557 migrants voluntarily return from Tunisia to their countries of origin, representing a 45% increase compared to 2022.
Illegal immigration continues to plague Tunisia, in light of the continuing economic and financial crisis it is experiencing, in addition to the problem of climate change, and the drought and water scarcity it has caused.
Tunisian political analyst Munther Thabet said that irregular migration is troubling Tunisia, because it represents pressure from deep Africa and sub-Saharan Africa, and this crisis affects the European Union and Italy in the first place, and also Libya in terms of the security and demographic dimension. Tunisia has been able to prevent about 6 million migrants from leaving. Crossing to southern Europe.
Thabet told Al-Ittihad that the problem lies in the temporary status of migrants who cross the Tunisian border, which may be prolonged, and therefore there is an urgent need to protect the borders and find the appropriate mechanism to deport those who want to leave, as there is a problem related to the cost of deportation and accommodation, and health care expenses. Tunisia does not want to be an international station for those crossing from deep Africa. He pointed out that the relationship between Tunisia and the European Union witnessed tension during October 2023 due to immigration, although it wants its relationship to be friendly with the Union, and cooperation between them meets the challenges affecting Europe from a demographic and security standpoint, given that terrorist organizations are based on the African coast, noting that There is a Tunisian agreement with the European Union, especially Italy, and a memorandum of understanding signed on irregular migration.
A few days ago, security forces in Sfax uncovered a criminal network specialized in human trafficking. Tunisian security authorities arrested a group of members of the network and issued prison orders against them.
For his part, Tunisian political analyst Othman Haj Omar considered that stopping the flow and addressing the issue of immigration in Tunisia requires a security solution related to resisting and dismantling the smuggling networks that operate with huge amounts of money, and opening the file of the deep social and economic causes of illegal immigration, taking into account the cultural aspect. Because not everyone who migrates is in a state of poverty, pointing out that confronting networks specialized in human trafficking crimes is very costly. Hajj Omar told Al-Ittihad that there are other reasons for irregular migration related to freedom, democracy and loss of confidence in the internal situation in some African countries that suffer from instability and the absence of popular justice, warning that irregular migration could lead to violent demographic and cultural transformations. Stressing that the issue of migration is international, and should be addressed by a global conference.
#International #Immigration #Africans #deported #Tunisia #countries