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Libyen: Eine Krise in der Krise

04.06.2020
Erst der Bürgerkrieg, dann Corona: In Libyen spielt sich derzeit eine Krise in der Krise ab, die das Potenzial für eine - noch massivere - humanitäre Krise birgt. Besonders betroffen sind die besonders Schutzbedürftigen.

Themengebiete:

Libya: Crisis Within a Crisis - Mohammed Testimony
Giulio Piscitelli
Mohammed, from Mali has lived in Libya since 2015. He wants to return to Mali but says at the moment hasn't enough money. He arrived in the country to escape the conflict and to find work to sustain him and his family. Since he arrived in Libya he has found work as a labourer for the municipality, but due to the low payment, he also collects scrap metals in the dump close to the entrance of the city to earn more money. He receives 1 Libyan Dinar (€0.64) for each 1kg of metal he collects.

In Libyen spielen sich mehrere besorgniserregende Entwicklungen gleichzeitig ab: Die Eskalation des bewaffneten Konflikts, die Ankunft des Coronavirus, der Zusammenbruch des Gesundheitssystems und die Begrenzung humanitärer Hilfe durch aktuelle Reisebeschränkungen. Kurzum: Eine Krise in der Krise, die das Potenzial für eine – noch massivere – humanitäre Katastrophe birgt.

Mohammed aus Mali ist nach Libyen geflüchtet - in der Hoffnung auf eine bessere Zukunft. Neben seinem Job als Hilfsarbeiter sammelt er nun in der Nähe des Stadteingangs Altmetalle, um Geld dazu zu verdienen - für 0.64 Euro pro 1kg. Was er auch sucht, ist Hoffnung.

Erst der Bürgerkrieg, dann Corona

Laut IOM leben zwischen 700.000 und einer Million Migrant:innen in Libyen - der Großteil von ihnen wie Mohammed unter schrecklichen Lebensbedingungen. Sie sind der beständigen Gefahr ausgesetzt, willkürlich eingesperrt, gefoltert oder getötet zu werden. Rund 1.500 Vertriebene, Asylsuchende und Migrant:innen werden landesweit in den offiziellen Lagern willkürlich festgehalten (Stand: 26. März). Die Bedingungen sind katastrophal, erst kürzlich wurden 30 Inhaftierte ermordet, mindestens elf verletzt.

Libyen ist kein sicherer Ort. Wir fordern ein Ende der willkürlichen Inhaftierung: Unsere Geschäftsführerin Laura Leyser hat eine wichtige Botschaft an die österreichische Bundesregierung. Nehmen Sie sich eine Minute Zeit zum Zuhören:

Video Libyen: Krise in der Krise

Am 28. Mai wurden die ersten Fälle von COVID-19 in Libyen offiziell bestätigt - mittlerweile sind es 156, darunter drei Tote (Quelle: WHO, 2. Juni). Durch die ohnehin bereits katastrophale Gesundheitsversorgung und die kaum vorhandenen Testmöglichkeiten befürchten wir enorme Dunkelziffern. In den Gesundheitseinrichtungen, die noch geöffnet haben, mangelt es an qualifiziertem Personal, Medikamenten und Schutzausrüstungen. Die katastrophale Situation wird durch die Ausgangssperren und den anhaltenden Konflikt verschärft.

Wie Mohammed haben uns weitere Migrant:innen einen Einblick in ihr Leben gegeben. Was sie erlebt haben und welche Hoffnungen, Sorgen und Ängste sie haben, erfahren Sie in der Slideshow:

Libya: Crisis Within a Crisis - Mrs Awaia Testimony
Giulio Piscitelli
Mrs Awaia and her two daughters sit on a mattress on the floor of their precarious accomodation in the area of Gargaresh, on the outskirts of Tripoli. Mrs. Awaja lives with her two daughters in a small unfinished house. The three have lived in Libya since 2018 after they fled war in their home country. They say once they arrived in Libya they were detained in a clandestine place of detention until a ransom was paid to their captors by friends. They say the facility was run by militia men linked to traffickers. At the moment, Mrs. Awaia survives thanks to the economical help of some friends, but lives in constant fear for her safety and in particular for the safety of her daughters who she says are at risk to be kidnapped, raped and tortured for ransom.
Libya: Crisis Within a Crisis - Abdulbashir Testimony
Giulio Piscitelli
Abdulbashir, 28-years-old from Mountain Marra in Darfur, Sudan. He says he arrived in Libya three years ago and spent almost two and half years in prisons for migrants. He has been detained in Gharyan Detention Centre, survived to the bombing of Tajoura Detention Centre in July 2019, and was eventually detained in Tariq Al Siqqa detention cetnre in Tripoli until a few months ago. During one of these detentions, he says a guard broke his right arm with a stick. During his first year in Libya, he tried to reach Europe by boat but was intercepted by the Libyan coastguard and forced back to detention. Now he says he has lost hope to leave Libya safely. In spite of everything that has happened to him, he says at the moment Libya is safer than Darfur.
Libya: Crisis Within a Crisis
Giulio Piscitelli
A Nigerian woman plays with her baby, born in Libya, outside the church of San Francis in Tripoli where the African community gathers for Friday mass. She says she has been living in Libya for more than four years as her husband found a job. Despite the difficult situation, they say at the moment they don’t think to leave the country. Migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in Libya are exposed to life-threating risks, including arbitrary arrest and detention in inhumane conditions, human trafficking, abuse and exploitation.
Libya: Crisis Within a Crisis
Giulio Piscitelli
View from Tripoli waterfront at sunset. Over one year since the start of the conflict in Libya on 4 April 2019, fighting continues to rage with a recent intensification of ground clashes, aerial attacks and indiscriminate shelling. Hundreds of people have been killed – among them dozens of civilians, including children. In the first three months of 2020 alone, UNSMIL recorded 126 civilian casualties, 63 deaths and 63 injured the due to indiscriminate attacks in civilian-populated areas in Tripoli and its surroundings. Among the victims there were migrants and refugees. Tens of thousands of Libyan families have been displaced, dozens of civilians and health workers have been killed, health facilities have been damaged or destroyed, and the most vulnerable population, migrants, refugees and asylum seekers have been caught in the crossfire, left with virtually no way out from Libya. Currently the only option out of Libya is via the sea. All borders are closed and all repatriation, resettlement and evacuation departures are suspended. In the past three months, thousands of people have tried to flee Libya across the Central Mediterranean. In April alone, more than 900 people attempted to reach Europe, of whom more than 400 were intercepted and returned by the EU-supported Libyan coast guard (LCG), back to Libya. Notably, on 9 April, 280 people who could not be disembarked and remained stranded on the coast guard vessel overnight, due to intense shelling around the port of Tripoli.