The International
Organisation for Migration on Friday said thousands of Nigerian migrant girls
brought to Italy were in great danger of being forced into prostitution in
Europe.
The number
of female Nigerians, many of them minors, often naive about their fate at the
hands of traffickers, arrived by sea in Italy surged over the past three years
from 1,454 in 2014 to 11,000 in 2016.
The
organisation’s spokesman, Flavio Di Giacomo, said at a news briefing in Geneva
that some 4,000 Nigerian girls had arrived so far in 2017.
The UN
agency had said that based on data collected at landing sites, it was estimated
that 80 per cent of the girls were “potential victims” of trafficking as sex
workers.
According to
Giacomo, the girls are often told the trip is free.
“These
girls, who are increasingly younger every year, are brought to Italy and to
Europe for sexual exploitation.
“They are
taken by traffickers and then they are forced to be prostitutes in the streets
in Italy.
“And
sometimes, as far as we know, these girls are also sent to other European
countries such as Spain, Germany, France, and Austria.
“Many of the
Nigerian girls are from poor families in Edo, who are psychologically
manipulated during a voodoo ritual before leaving,’’ Di Giacomo said.
According to
him, they are accompanied by a madam-linked to the traffickers on the long
journey through Niger and Libya.
“The
increasing number of minors arriving really do not have any idea even what
prostitution is, what sex is.
“But, many
of them understand the real purpose of this journey because many times they are
forced to prostitute themselves in Niger, in Libya especially, in brothels
there.
“So they
understand they are not going to work as hairdressers.
“IOM
officials try to intercept the Nigerian girls at landing points and inform them
about the prostitution ring and their right to protection,’’ Di Giacomo said.
He said that
the agency which had helped those who decided to flee the networks reported the
cases of 425 girls in 2016 to police.
“A few days
ago, we had the story of this young girl, a 17-year-old girl.
“She has
been told she was going to work at a hair salon; she didn’t have any idea she
was going to be forced to prostitute herself.
“It was only
when she arrived she found out that it was not real.
“The job was
a lie and she was forced to become a prostitute, which was the only way to pay
off the debt of the journey.
“She was
forced to be out on the streets for 12 hours a day.’’
NAN
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