Mustafa did not see any future in his hometown Hargeisa in Somalia, only unemployment. He had heard fantastic stories about how easy it was to earn a fortune in Europe and decided to go there. The smugglers told him it was an easy trip and would take only a month.
“I was told that in Europe you find money everywhere, even in the streets. Anyone who passes you in the street will give you a few thousand dollars. A place where you can find money easily and can build your future. That’s why I travelled with smugglers.”
The trip from Somalia to Yemen was not as comfortable as the smugglers had promised. The sea was rough, the boat was taking in water and the sailors were brutal. In Yemen, he and his fellow travelers were taken to the Red Sea coast to catch a boat to Sudan. They missed the boat and Mustafa decided to return home because his mother was ill. Back home he worked in his mother’s shop but was still dreaming of Europe. After three months, when his mother had recovered, he left again
“I had great ambitions. A big dream to become a well-known, honored, respected, and wealthy man. My dream was bigger than just working in a shop. That’s why I decided to leave the country and the shop and started my second journey to Libya.”
This time he managed to get on board a boat to Sudan but the sea journey turned into a nightmare. They used up all food and water and had to drink sea water. In Sudan, smugglers drove them through the desert to Libya, where they were handed over to traffickers in the town of Kufra. They were detained and told to call their families for money. They were constantly beaten to force their families to pay quickly. They even had to pay for those who had died on the way.
After paying, Mustafa was driven through the desert to the coast in a petrol tank with inbuilt compartments for smuggling people. He had difficulties breathing and the truck was being driven at high speed with no concern for the people on board. When they arrived in Bani Walid close to the sea, Mustafa’s cousin became gravely sick after drinking petrol. Mustafa decided to take him to hospital in Tripoli. He got a lift, but halfway to Tripoli they were thrown out on the highway and he had to carry his cousin 40 kilometers to the hospital.
In Tripoli Mustafa was arrested and put into a detention centre for migrants. He did not want to abandon his dream of Europe and escaped to the coast, where he boarded a boat. They got lost at sea and the boat started to take in water. When the situation was getting desperate, they were rescued by a Libyan ship and he was taken back to detention. Mustafa had finally had enough and when he was offered repatriation he gladly accepted.
“My family were so happy to see me again because I came back alive and healthy, without any problems. They were excited and warmly welcomed me. I thought I’d never leave Libya. Never be out of Libya.”