Track Ghanaians sold into slavery – Aning to government

Security analyst, Dr. Kwesi Aning, has charged the government of Ghana to do all it can to rescue some three Ghanaians allegedly sold into slavery in Libya.

His call comes in the wake of disclosures by the returning Ghanaian migrants from Libya that they were sold into servitude by their fellow Ghanaians.

About one hundred and twenty-seven (127) Ghanaian migrants returned from Libya with one in a critical condition.

The migrants were brought in by two flights, Air Libya and Afriqiya Airways after they were rescued from detention centres in Libya following reports of slave trade of migrants in the country.

“What I found myself in Libya; I wouldn’t wish for even my worst enemy, we were sold like bread by our own fellow Ghanaians. And it was a very disheartening experience,” a visibly distressed returnee told Starr News Eric Mawuena Egbeta Wednesday night at the Kotoka International Airport.

“We went through the desert and some of us disappeared without a trace and others were shot and killed, luckily for some of us, we were able to escape and were arrested and brought to the deportation centre,” he added wearily.

About 127 Ghanaian migrants returned from the civil war-afflicted North African country.

This was after footage of men being auctioned off as slaves in Libya was met with outrage with UN’s Secretary-General calling on the international community to “unite in fighting this scourge.”

The horrible images show some migrants being sold for $400 while others are tortured to death by individuals in Libyan military wears.

Commenting on the dreadful development Thursday on Morning Starr, Dr. Aning said tracing the Ghanaians sold into slavery by their fellows in Libya is non-negotiable.

“The three Ghanaians who are said to have been sold must be found. It is very crucial. We’ll have to do anything possible to trace our dear ones who have been sold into slavery in Libya,” he told Morning Starr host Francis Abban.

He said the situation in Libya is a major problem that the African Union (AU) alone cannot solve thus requiring collaboration with the UN and the EU.

Dr. Aning who is also the Director of Academic Affairs and Research at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Centre (KAIPTC) further called for the need to aggressively sensitise people on the risks involved in traveling to Europe via the desert.