Dire Plight of Senegal's Boat People

Experts from over 50 European and African countries have just met in Dakar (Senegal) to discuss a common plan to fight clandestine immigration by simultaneously introducing stronger penalties and encouraging young Africans to stay in their own countries.

The desperate need to find a solution to this problem was highlighted by the images of thousands of exhausted and thirsty immigrants who had washed up on the shores of the Canary Isles while others had been lost at sea or arrested as they attempted to embark in small boats in Senegal. In one instance, it was even reported that a boat had washed up on the Brazilian coast with the mummified corpses of starved migrants still on board.

We understand that in recent months there has been a dramatic increase in the number of young African boat people taking to the sea in dugout canoes while the number of stowaways found on board commercial vessels (general cargo ships, container ships, etc.) has dropped very considerably since the application of the ISM Code.

With the closure of the Moroccan and Mauritanian borders, migrants from the surrounding countries join the hundreds of young Senegalese in search of a better life in what they imagine to be an Eldorado, i.e. Europe.

This vision of wealth and comfort is reinforced by the funds sent to the families that stayed behind along with the high-status possessions and proud tales of success of those who return. Migrants are perceived as heroes (or martyrs) fighting to improve the lives of their next of kin. Their departures are frequently encouraged by their families who will often make considerable financial sacrifices to pay for their passage in the hope that they will be able to provide a much-needed supplement to the family income.

And of course, there are always those who have a vested interest in encouraging the exodus of young people. People-smugglers charge approximately FCFA 800,000 (approximately Euros 1,219.60) for an eight-day crossing in a dugout with at least 30 people on board.

Having no official passports or identity cards, the migrants hope that even if they are arrested by the Spanish police, they will manage to escape during the transfer to a detention centre and find casual work either in Spain or in another European country.

It is hoped that the experts united in Dakar will succeed in agreeing on concrete measures for adoption at the Euro-African summit meeting on illegal immigration to be held in Rabat on 10 and 11 July 2006.

30 Oct 2007 - 09:56:59