Don’t fall victim to human traffickers, beware of tempting job advert – Nneji

By Sunday Ani
The Team Lead, The Migrant Project (TMP), Nigeria, Mrs. Amaka Nneji has urged Nigerians, particularly the youths, to avoid falling into the hands of human traffickers, who use numerous tricks to trap their victims, including publishing advertisements for mouthwatering and irresistible job offers in foreign countries.
Mrs. Nneji described human trafficking as taking a person from one location to another with the intent to force or exploit him or her; a development she said had become a commonplace occurrence in Nigeria.
She decried the high rate of human trafficking, particularly in Nigeria, where she said almost 1.4 million victims were living under coercion and exploitation, going by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
She revealed the five common signs to look out for in order to avoid falling victim to human traffickers. Listing the five signs, she said: “Human traffickers often publish advertisements for lucrative and attractive sounding job offers in foreign countries.
“They often work together with family or community members of the victim, or people of authority to sell them.
“They, sometimes, use romantic gestures to attract the victims, especially girls and women, to follow them on the journey. Women often end up as sex workers or get involved in other illegal activities as a result of their irregular migrant status.”
Still on the signs, she said it is organised primarily by women in Nigeria. “Many of the traffickers have been victims. Women who fulfill the pact are free to earn a living on their own, and often find it difficult to work in Europe, which most often is unrelated to the trafficking business,” she said.
She identified the booming business of baby factories as another monster that propel the traffickers to go after women and girls, who are often held captive to deliver babies that are eventually sold illegally to adoptive parents, forced into child labour, trafficked into prostitution, or, as several reports suggest, ritually killed. “Baby factories are more common in the Southeastern part of Nigeria, where security operatives have carried out several raids, including an operation in 2019 when 19 pregnant girls and four children were rescued,” she added.
She cited a case of Yetunbe Abraham, who was tricked by a close relative with an offer in Germany, but eventually ended in Libya, where she was forced into prostitution for six years, just to be able to make enough money for her traffickers.
Mrs. Nneji, who has been leading the campaign against irregular migration for over four years in Nigeria, noted that apart from the United Kingdom, Italy is host to the seconds largest group of Nigerians and also the most important destination for Nigerian victims of trafficking.
She quoted the IOM as saying that victims of human traffickers were predominantly from Edo State, with its capital, Benin City, identified as the main point for prostitution related emigration.
She advised intending emigrants to always conduct painstaking and careful scrutiny of any travel opportunity abroad to avoid falling prey to human traffickers.
“Is someone helping you go to Europe? Get informed to protect yourself from trafficking. Consult any of The Migrant Project’s counselors for proper information and advice,” she added.