Human trafficking and the scramble for political influence

Part of the political rhetoric regurgitated repeatedly since 2011 has been the expectation that the surge of African migrants heading towards Europe would decrease in the aftermath of the Arab Spring. Four years later, the human trafficking industry is still producing tragic tales, the most recent being the drowning of around 400 people, including children, who were attempting to reach Italy.

Sadly, even the pretence of humanitarian concern has ceased to materialise, as European leaders embark upon a racist political agenda that prioritises vote garnering and xenophobia. In 2013, Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat attempted to move from rhetoric to action; it was a political ploy that sought to repatriate 102 migrants back to Libya and was called off following a prohibition order issued by the European Court of Human Rights. The stance by the Labour leader on the Mediterranean island was none other than a repudiation of socialist values that once characterised the foundations of the party and, within a wider context, also reflects socialism’s fall from grace by pandering to racist ideology.

The latest tragedy also sparked a series of comments in the Maltese media which indicate clearly that the political tactic of alienation from the historical reality of colonial exploitation continues to rule a considerable portion of public opinion. “As if any country not on a suicide wish would voluntarily allow legal entry to whole populations of individuals who did not manage to build a decent society, although they were blessed with resourceful Africa,” commented one reader on a news website. “Every EU country, Malta included, blesses the sea barrier.” This demonstrates very little understanding, or even awareness, of the rape of Africa’s natural resources by the imperialist and colonial powers.

As is expected, political discourse on funding and “a fairer distribution of the burden of migration and asylum seekers within the EU”, as noted by Bulgarian Deputy Minister Rumen Alexandrov, quickly overshadows the plight suffered by migrants risking their lives as they undertake perilous journeys. According to the EU Commissioner on Migration, “The unprecedented influx of migrants at our borders… is unfortunately the new norm and we will need to adjust our responses accordingly.”

Responses in the form of squabbling over funds and further restrictive punitive measures against migrants will be well publicised. However, the EU will continue to ensure that the history of colonialism in Africa will be consigned to oblivion and the heavily Photoshopped and sanitised version will remain at the core of any spurious policy which cites “humanitarian concerns”. In more recent history, European support for NATO violence and the dissociation from its macabre aftermath — in Libya, for example — has also been omitted from the narrative. This ensures that that the EU continues to function as an entity that supports and participates in foreign intervention willingly while failing to acknowledge any responsibility for contributing to the wickedness of human trafficking.

The heavy, militarised approach, which includes isolation, incarceration and abuse, has become synonymous with the topic of migration, with secretly-filmed footage depicting the dehumanisation suffered by migrants in European detention centres. At a higher level, the degradation is a reflection of the authorities’ lenience with regard to abuse, as well as constituting a form of ongoing dominance that accentuates complicity and the willingness to exploit populations ravaged by previous colonial oppression and the imperialist doctrine of invasion in the name of democracy.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.