Mogadishu (KAAB TV) – In a concerning development, the number of Somalis being trafficked into Europe has witnessed a sharp increase, with recent cases involving serious visa exploitation by using Somali government diplomatic and service passports, Kaab TV has learned.
This surge can be attributed to the exploitation of visas intended for government officials and employees, highlighting a significant loophole in the Somali passport and the criteria by certain European countries to prevent potential traffickers within the government.
According to interviews and travel documents obtained from local travel agents in Mogadishu and Nairobi, Kenya, more than 10 persons have been successfully trafficked since January via the visa exploitation scheme.
Abduqadir Diriqsey, a travel agent based in Mogadishu, shed light on the issue, emphasizing that “Somali service passport and diplomatic passport holders are easier to be trafficked because visas are issued quickly and without further scrutiny,” he told Kaab TV.
He further revealed that Italy has become the primary entry point for Somalis seeking to migrate to Europe, after which they disperse into other countries, most notably Finland, Germany, and Holland.
Due to its close ties with Mogadishu, Italy processes visas for Somali government service and diplomatic passport holders. The Ministry of Information and the Somali National University have been described as main base of the visa exploitation.
Pay as you go
A Nairobi-based trafficker, who only provided initials as ‘Guled’ confirmed that they have been charging a cost ranging between $8,000 to $10,000 to smuggle one person.
“He or she must have a diplomatic passport of service passport. We do not require them to prove for their positions but we only need the document. Then everything will be fine,”
“They pay us as they go,” he admits.
In its global report 2022, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNOCD) said number of people trafficked last year increased in the Sub-Saharan Africa as people are forced to flee and often in economic need, displaced populations are easily targeted by traffickers.
“Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are convicting fewer traffickers and detecting fewer victims than rest of the world. At the same time, victims from these regions are identified in more destination countries than people from elsewhere, suggesting a weak criminal justice response may be incentivizing traffickers to operate nationally and transnationally from these regions,” the report added.
The cases of visa exploitation and human trafficking have raised concerns among authorities and security agencies. The victims, mostly young men, might include individuals with a record of criminality.
In one recent case, a group of Somalis were discovered in Italy after being smuggled into the country using visas meant for government officials and employees. Italian authorities arrested several individuals suspected of involvement in the trafficking ring, which exploited the loopholes in the visa issuance process.
Similarly, Finland and Germany have witnessed an alarming increase in the number of trafficked Somalis. A report by the Horn Observer in April found how traffickers tricked and exploited a Finnish Foreign Ministry program that saw Somali government officials and employees invited into Finland for a conference. Some have now vanished and never went back home.
But human rights groups are concerned that some of the victims trafficked are women who are subjected to hazardous conditions by their smugglers who exploit their vulnerability.
The rise in visa exploitation and human trafficking has prompted European nations to reassess their immigration procedures and strengthen border controls. Efforts are underway to enhance scrutiny and verification processes for visa applications, particularly those originating from countries prone to such exploitation.
The plight of trafficked Somalis underscores the urgent need for comprehensive solutions to address visa exploitation and human trafficking. It also sheds light on the lack of employment opportunities for youth in Somalia.