Raids and detentions against immigrants intensified sfaxsecond most populous city Tunisia. Police lately hundreds of people were arrestedSometimes they enter the houses they live in. Between 500 and 700 forcibly evacuated for Libyan border since last sunday. They are trapped without a source. desert military district between the two countries. So far, most have not entered Libya, according to a source in the field. Among deported immigrants children and pregnant womenin addition to persons in a regular situation in Tunisia according to a complaint Human Rights Watch (WRW).
“We’re on the border between Tunisia And Libya, on the sea coast. They beat us. We have many wounded here. There are children who have not eaten for days and are forced to drink sea water.An Ivorian asylum seeker made a statement to the organization on Tuesday. The deportees come from several countries on the African continent: Cameroon, Guinea, Chad, Sudan, Senegal and other regions. Among them at least 29 children and 3 pregnant, according to people interviewed by HRW. There are also asylum seekers registered by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and students studying at the university.
Most of those forcibly deported were condemned violence by authorities. They also explain that the police destroyed almost all of their phones. “Abusing people and leaving them in the desert is not only inconceivable, but mass deportations violate international law,” said Lauren Seibert, refugee and immigration rights researcher at HRW.
shot and beaten
“Several people died or murdered Between 2 and 5 July in the border area, some were shot and others beaten by the Tunisian army or the national guard. “The deportees described how Libyan men carrying machetes or other weapons robbed some people and raped large numbers of women after they managed to cross into Libya in the separation zone or in search of food,” HRW said in a statement.
Some statements attributed to those affected but not confirmed NGOs and organizations advocating human rights have not been able to access this area. A dozen organizations in Tunisia issued a joint statement, asking Tunisian authorities “urgently” to allow non-governmental organizations access to the migrant group. emergency and health care What do you want.
Tension in the city months ago sfax had increased. These last days intensified after residents’ demonstrations and campaigns Even some revolts against immigrants led to conflicts and attacks against sub-Saharan peoples. local authorities a Tunisian is dead this week as a result of these conflicts. This port town is one of the main destinations for immigrants trying to cross the Mediterranean with boats from nearby beaches.
wave of racism
Tunisia has become a place unfriendly for immigrants. Especially after the President’s speech, Kais Said, In mid-February, he called for a “quick end” to the irregular migration he blamed. source of “violence and crimes”. The president went so far as to hold these people accountable for changing Tunisia’s “Arab and Muslim” demographic, making the country “African”. Said’s words came together. great economic and social crisis hit this country. Also with his popularity waning due to the authoritarian turn he took to maintain his power.
This presidential speech, stigmatized as racist unfounded and unfounded by organizations defending human rights inside and outside the country, left their mark on the lives of immigrants before and after. Many reported losing their jobs or having to leave their rented home for fear of retaliation from government employers or owners. In addition, several hundred people, out of fear, decided to pack their bags and return to their country. According to figures from the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, in the first six months of the year, about 3,500 migrants were detained in Tunisia on the pretext of entering the country irregularly.