₦airaland Forum

@Naija Politico

Trafficking in human person is a criminal offence in our laws and greatly frowned at by the United Nations.

It was recently discovered by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) that about 20,000 Nigerian girls are trapped in different parts of Mali, though efforts are being made to rescue them.

This statement was made known in an interview on Saturday, in Abuja, by Mrs Julie Okah-Donli, the Director- General of NAPTIP, who said that the victims were trapped in different parts of Mali, basically for prostitution.

The trafficked victims were discovered after NAPTIP sent a fact-finding mission to Mali last December, following some security reports, Okah-Donli further said.

”We sent a fact-finding mission to Mali last month and the mission came with a report that, about 20,000 Nigerian girls had been trafficked to different parts of Mali.

“Many of the girls said that they were deceived that, they were being taken to ” “Malisia”, making it sound like Malaysia, to work in hotels, restaurants, hairdressing salons and some other jobs.

“Some of the girls arrived there in their school uniforms, meaning that they were kidnapped on their way to or from school,” she asserted.

The living condition of this girl’s was horrible as some of the girls were sold for as high as #600,000 and were made to service mainly miners, NAPTIP boss said.

“There are over one million Nigerians residents in Mali, out of which about 20,000 are trapped into forced prostitution.

“The conditions are horrible; they are kept in shanties in the thick of the forest where they cannot escape and with the “madames” watching over them.

“Their job, mainly, is to service miners from other parts of Africa who are predominant in Northern Mali.

“They are bought for N600, 000 and they are made to pay back N1.8million or N2million within six months before regaining freedom and also becoming madams.” she said.

The Nigerian authorities were collaborating with their Malian counter parts as well as the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), to rescue and rehabilitate the victims, most of whom were eager to return, she assured Nigerians.

Ahe puts it thus; “most of the girls are desirous of returning home and we are working with the IOM, the Malian government and the Nigerian Embassy in Mali to see how we can repatriate them.

“Our plan is to rehabilitate them immediately they return home, we will have rehabilitation programme on ground before they are repatriated.”

She further urged Nigerians to be extremely vigilant as trafficking of the girl child increased over by 500 girls daily.

“Trafficking increases by at least, 500 girls daily, they bring them in their hundreds and now, they waybill them through well known motor parks in Cotonou.

“It also cuts across all 36 states of Nigeria and happens all over the world. It is no longer about the Edo girls being trafficked to Italy.

“I urge Nigerians to be alert and sensitive about their surroundings; they should report suspicious movements to the authorities, especially at our border posts.” she concluded.

Source: https://naijapolitico.com.ng/20000-nigerian-girls-trafficked-to-mali-to-be-rescued-naptip/

The nairaland High Council has advised me to pass a secret message for the weekend.

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