“Most don’t know what happens on the journey,” Teklebrhane said. “No one in Eritrea knows the obstacles on the way.”
In 2021, 1,496 people were reported dead or missing on the Central Mediterranean compared to 955 in 2020. Despite access to data on the casualties on the Central Mediterranean, many refugees and migrants report a possibility of more casualties while crossing the Sahara Desert and in the hands of traffickers. For fear of retraumatization, survivors are hesitant to recount their experiences and what they witnessed during their journey, while many erroneously provide limited information of their experiences and what they witnessed
"I thought that all accidents happen at sea and a capsizing ship is the only problem to face on such a journey. The accidents are back there in the Sahara. The Sahara is full of Eritrean bodies.” Says Tekleberhan.
Like many Eritreans who had left before him, he was unwilling to serve an indefinite military service and made the difficult decision to embark on a dangerous journey that he knew little about with the hope to start a new life and be able to provide for his family.
“You feel something when you leave your country, you are leaving your family, relatives, and your country, so you don't feel good.”
Leaving Eritrea, with only the clothes on his back, his only knowledge was of the deaths at sea on the Mediterranean, but he had never heard of the dangers along the land route.
"I thought that all accidents happen at sea and a capsizing ship is the only problem to face on such a journey. The accidents are back there in the Sahara. The Sahara is full of Eritrean bodies.”
In Libya, death was constantly in the air. There was hunger, disease, and lack of medical attention while in captivity. Teklebrhan described the places he was held as ‘Houses of Death’ and ‘Human Stores’ where every day a body had to be moved. He made friends with fellow Eritreans in captivity and moved the bodies of many of them who did not receive a decent burial. Nobody knew how long they would live. Every day was a gift.
“I never thought it would happen to me.” He says, his thoughts and emotions flooding his features.
“All you think is securing money for your release. You can’t think of anything else.”
One day, when he and others attempted to cross the sea, their boat was intercepted by the Libyan coast guards who returned them to Libya and placed them in a detention centre in the coastal city of Zuwara. After eight months, he voluntarily registered for what he thought was an evacuation flight. Little did he know that the flight was to send him and others back to Eritrea. This only dawned on him when it was too late and he was already on the plane.
“I was so sad; I cried a lot. We all cried so much.”
Upon arrival in Eritrea, he was detained for two days and set free. Caught between a rock and a hard place, he chose not to go and see his family. He was consumed by feelings of shame, failure, and guilt. Over USD 10,000 had been spent to release him from traffickers. He could not return home. How could he face his family? He chose to stay in Asmara at a friend’s home.
After consultations with his brother in Germany, he left Eritrea once more for Ethiopia. In Ethiopia, he sought asylum and stayed at a refugee camp for 45 days. Thereafter, with the support of his brother in Germany and activists in Italy, he applied for resettlement to Sweden and his case was accepted.
“When I heard that I had been accepted, my happiness knew no limits.”
Today as Telklebrhan settles in his new home country, he hopes to find a job soon to support his family back in Eritrea. But his happiness is tempered by the knowledge that so many friends did not make it out of Libya. Some died in the hands of traffickers and many others languish in places he describes as ‘Houses of Death’ and ‘Human Stores.’
“I lost many friends who died. Even though I am here, I do not enjoy it. I am lucky to be here thanks to UNHCR, but what about my brothers?”
“Now, here in Sweden I am doing well. Still, I did not go out much, I go shopping near my home. It’s a good city. Everything about them, their politeness, they see you without any difference. I appreciate it. It's a wonderful place.”
