A Community Event: Raising awareness about the dangers
One of the main reasons that drives young Somalis to embark on the perilous journey to Libya has been lack of proper information. The smugglers hide the truth about the horrible treatment that awaits irregular travellers in Libya and young Somalis who have managed to reach Europe tell fairy tales about their wonderful life there. This is beginning to change with awareness-raising campaigns targeting young people and informing them about the real risks. Victims of smuggling play a key role in these campaigns.
This video shows one such event organised by the National Youth Organisation of Somaliland. The President of the organization says:
“At today’s event, those who have experienced the reality of irregular travel come out in front of the people and tell them about the hardships they faced. This event will complement earlier efforts to raise awareness by letting people learn about the reality of travelling irregularly.”
The audience listened attentively to the horrific stories of brutal treatment at the hands of traffickers in Libya and distress at sea. It is still too early to say whether this campaign has contributed to a decrease in the number of young Somalis going to Libya. But listening to the audience it certainly reached its most immediate goal – to support a discussion within the community about this problem.
“The most important thing for me was to meet someone who told about his experience of travelling with smugglers. We share his pain and will raise awareness about the topic among the youth.
Today’s event was wonderful! It provided the youth with encouragement, raised awareness and acted as a lesson for life.”