Senegal’s Macky Sall calls on West Africa to repatriate trafficked citizens from Libya

President Macky Sall of Senegal has called on ECOWAS member states to facilitate the repatriation of its citizens being trafficked in Libya.

Mr. Sall made the call at the Second Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament in Abuja on Tuesday.

Libya has been a transit and destination country for men and women from sub-Saharan Africa and Asia trafficked for the purposes of forced labour and commercial sexual exploitation.

The president, however, emphasised that it was pertinent for member countries to enhance collaboration toward the fight against illegal migration, human trafficking and modernised slavery.

He further called on all African governments to put measures in place to ensure perpetrators of such acts were brought to book.

“It is a pure form of violation of human rights that should not go unpunished; these acts should be brought before the international court to dismantle clandestine networks.

“The African Union should sanction such illegal trade of people and the President of the ECOWAS Court should engage in coordinated action to repatriate without further delay, African citizens in Libya.

“Senegal, in its struggle against such clandestine acts, has repatriated 2, 480 citizens from Libya.”

He also said that governments would address the issues of human trafficking at the forthcoming fifth African Union – European Union summit holding in Abidjan from Nov. 29 to 30.

Sall also called on member states and all ECOWAS institutions to facilitate the implementation of protocols that would remove barriers to integration and enhance development.

“Existence of abnormal practices at the borders which is an aggravated form of corruption goes against the community texts.

“The common market should become a reality and work more to lift all these obstacles.

“When we talk about development, we should be in the forefront; we cannot continue to count on foreigners and apply decisions that do with community development.”

Source: https://www.today.ng/news/africa/35111/senegals-macky-sall-calls-west-africa-repatriate-trafficked-citizens-libya