International Organization for Migration (Geneva)
23 June 2009
press release
Geneva — A new IOM report on the irregular migration of men from the Horn and East Africa to South Africa finds that increasing numbers of smuggled migrants, particularly from Ethiopia and Somalia, are routinely deceived, abused, exploited and stigmatized by various parties from the moment they leave their homes until they reach South Africa, where they may settle or travel further afield to Europe, the USA or Australia.
The report, entitled "In Pursuit of the Southern Dream: Victims of Necessity", is based on in-depth interviews carried out by IOM with some 800 individuals, including migrants, community representatives, state officials, members of the civil society and the private sector in seven source, transit and destination countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Republic of South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia).
It shows that male migrants regularly suffer from human rights violations at the hand of their smugglers, local criminals, and allegedly, of officials who should be protecting them. Theses include harassment, beatings, robberies, and in some cases rape.
Contrary to the international Smuggling Protocol, which seeks to criminalize smuggling activities while offering protection to smuggled migrants, the report says that various countries continue to detain and convict smuggled migrants while failing to convict smugglers, who continue to enjoy from near total impunity.
Furthermore, the report adds that some of the factors facilitating human smuggling are corruption of state officials as well as weak overall border management.
According to the report, up to 20,000 Ethiopians and Somalis male migrants are smuggled every year from the Horn of Africa to the Republic of South Africa, although some will not make safely it to South Africa. On average, they will pay up to US$ 2,000 for the journey, although fees can be higher if migrants fly part of the way or are directly flown to South African.
However, an overwhelming majority of male migrants are smuggled overland or by sea, especially Somalis who sail on rickety boats from the Somali capital Mogadishu or the southern port of Kismayo to Mombasa (Kenya), Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania) or Mocimboa (Mozambique) and then unto South Africa.
The report notes that few migrants take the direct land route through Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique and that most will use convoluted itineraries through Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda before arriving in South Africa.
It notes that migrants are increasingly transported in large numbers and at great risks in airless containers, especially between Tanzania and Malawi, within Malawi and from Malawi into Mozambique.
As for the reasons for the increase in the number of male migrants smuggled from the Horn and East Africa to South Africa, the report cites political instability, insecurity and endemic poverty as the main drivers, with adverse climatic conditions, including droughts and floods, playing in increasing role in pushing people to migrate.
Despite the xenophobic flare up of 2008, the report states that South Africa remains attractive for migrants from East Africa and the Horn, in contrast to the northern route to Europe, through Libya and the eastern Gulf of Aden route through Bossaso to Yemen.
According to the report, exposure to considerable criminal violence and prejudice in South Africa appears to be the price many migrants accept to pay for new lives of perceived opportunities. For some, South Africa is simply a step in a journey they hope will ultimately take them to Europe, the USA or Australia.
The report recommends that irregular migrants should be provided with adequate protection in line with international law and should not be perceived as perpetrators of criminal acts. Furthermore, legislation should seek to penalize those who organize and benefit from human smuggling, with more attention being paid to allegations of official corruption. Finally, a multilateral regional coordinated response addressing the issues of migrants' rights and protection as well as border management is also required to reduce the magnitude and the human impact of the problem.
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In my opinion, most of the youth that are migrating are not poor in their native country, e.g., Ethiopia. If they were, they couldn't be able to get thousands of Birr to pay for their dangerous journey. The root cause for this is not poverty, but being over ambitious. They don't want to create business in their country; they don't want be employed in their country. Instead they try to politicize everything. Imagine, an illiterate Ethiopian woman can earn 300br a month if she wants to be hired as a house maid, but they knowingly or unknowingly prefer to go to the Sudan and Arab states and you find them crying for what is happenning on them there. Who is to blame for this? Same true for the men. The youth in Addis are simply money mongers without working. Many Ethiopians go to Kenya and get registered as refugees there and come back to wait untill UNHCR processes their journey for the US and Europe. After some time, you come to know they have left for Canada, US or Europe. for Somali and Eritrea the reasons can be true but for Ethiopians, it is totally different.