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Vol. 81/No. 47 December 18, 2017
NY protest hits slave auctions, abuse of migrants
in Africa
BY PETER THIERJUNG
NEW YORK — More than 250 Africans, many young and mostly workers, turned
out for a Nov. 28 protest outside the Libyan Mission to the United
Nations here, organized by leaders of local associations of immigrants
from Mali, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Gabon and other African
countries.
They were responding to the outrage coursing through African communities
here after a recent CNN-TV exposé on the abuse of migrants by human
traffickers in Libya and other parts of northern Africa. The report
included undercover videos of West Africans being sold at auction in Libya.
Hundreds of African immigrants mounted a similar protest in Paris. Some
carried signs saying, “Put an end to the slavery and concentration camps
in Libya,” and chanted, “Free our brothers!”
More than 700,000 migrants from across Africa are now in Libya, a recent
United Nations report says. They seek to escape devastating social and
economic conditions on the continent. The vast majority are looking to
migrate to Europe, risking death by drowning in the Mediterranean Sea
and abuse at the hands of the smugglers, including beatings, kidnapping
and enslavement.
Coordinated efforts by Europe’s capitalist rulers have made the voyage
more difficult, and the numbers of migrants massed in Libya has swelled.
Since smugglers can’t profit from getting them across, they’ve turned to
the slave auctions to raise money.
Spokespeople for the official Libyan government have denounced these
auctions. However, the government, recognized by Washington and other
imperialist rulers, has little control over conditions in the country.
Libyan officials have set up an Anti-Illegal Immigration Agency and
appeal for help from African governments to deport migrants back to
where they fled from.
“The practical solution is to address the real reasons that drive people
to leave their home countries, treat them and develop final solutions
for them,” Libya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Protest participants were united in demanding an end to the slave
auctions, for respect for the rights of migrants, and to assert the
dignity of all Africans.
As they rallied, protesters engaged in lively discussions about what to
do about the economic and political crisis in Africa today and the
migration it spawns. Many were happy to see books by Thomas Sankara and
leaders of the Socialist Workers Party, as well as the Militant, brought
by SWP members who joined them in the protest.
Thomas Sankara was the leader of Burkina Faso’s popular revolutionary
government from 1983 to 1987, when he was assassinated and the
revolution overturned. Many from Africa look to Sankara’s
anti-imperialist and revolutionary course, and his identification with
revolutionary Cuba, as relevant today in Africa and for workers around
the world.
Some thought the protest should have focused instead on the social and
economic disaster across Africa imposed by the imperialist powers — from
Washington to Paris, Rome and Madrid. Others were attracted to demands
to cancel the African countries’ debt to the imperialist powers, and
using that capital toward meeting the needs of the toiling populations
across the continent.
A few saw the condemnation of Libya by capitalist governments across
Africa as an attempt to divert attention from their own disastrous
policies, which reinforce the crisis imposed by a legacy of colonial
rule and imperialist exploitation and help fuel the migration of
hundreds of thousands toward Europe.
Participants grabbed up eight copies of books with Thomas Sankara’s
speeches. Several exchanged details and said they would get the books
when they had the money.
Related articles:
Thousands protest in DC for ‘No deportations!’
Tel Aviv pushes African refugees to leave
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