Latest incident of migrants at sea raises concerns
ACHPR alarmed at third incident
THE GAMIBIA: The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights’ (ACHPR) has issued a statement drawing attention to the latest death of almost 25 migrants including children following the sinking of their boat between the archipelago of the Comoros and the island of Mayotte.
According to the information received by the ACHPR, as well as the accounts of survivors, the boat, which was carrying around 30 migrants, including seven women, two children and two infants, capsized as a result of deliberate manoeuvres by migrant traffickers and smugglers who had organised the crossing.
In September, 30 lifeless bodies were discovered in a boat off the coast of Dakar, in the Republic of Senegal.
Before running aground, the pirogue was apparently lost at sea for several days with its occupants, who are presumed to have been migrants heading for Europe.
A further incident, earlier in September, involved the sinking of an overloaded pirogue carrying more than 100 migrants off the coast of Mbour, south of Dakar, in the Republic of Senegal. While some of the migrants were rescued by fishermen, at least 29 died and a number more were reported missing and presumed dead. The accident also left many injured.
The ACHPR has noted the ‘African Guiding Principles on the Human Rights of All Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers’ (2023), in particular Principle 37 relating to the cooperation of Member States of the African Union for the protection of migrants, in particular through the creation of corridors and safe migration routes to allow the free movement of persons as well as the prevention and repression of smuggling of migrants by land, sea and air.
Following this latest tragedy, the ACHPR once again expresses its deep concern at the continuing disappearances of migrants in various circumstances, due in particular to the resurgence of irregular migration flows and the use of the most perilous migration routes, and remains convinced that improving the lot of migrants and preventing these dramatic situations requires the development of regular channels for legal migration, and that migration management policies and practices should be based on respect for the human rights of all migrants.
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