The African Diaspora Congress (ADC), a coalition of African and African Diaspora groups worldwide, has called on United Nations (UN) Human Rights Commission, the Governments of Morocco and Spain as well as the African Union (AU) to urgently investigate the mistreatments and deaths of at least 23 African men at the Melilla-Morocco border on June 24, 2022.
The coalition in a statement by Prof Apollos O Nwauwa, its Secretary General, said that the investigation should ascertain the truth of the horrific and repulsive incident involving Spanish and Moroccan security agents, make the report public, and hold the perpetrators accountable, stressing that the “African Diaspora and the global community cannot afford to stand aloof and watch the persistent mistreatment of peoples of African descent in different parts of the world.”
Full text of the statement reads:
PRESS RELEASE
ADC CONDEMNS THE RECENT MISTREATMENTS AND DEATHS OF AFRICAN MIGRANTS AT THE SPANISH/MOROCCAN BORDER OF MELILLA, NORTH AFRICA
We have received the horrific report, repulsive videos and photos of the mistreatments and deaths of at least 23 African men at the Melilla-Morocco border on June 24, 2022. As the reports further showed, these African migrants were alleged to have been slaughtered by the combined forces of the Spanish and Moroccan security agents as they attempted to cross the border into Spain.
The African Diaspora Congress (ADC), a coalition of African and African Diaspora groups worldwide, is appalled and strongly condemns this troubling incident. We hereby call on the UN Human Rights Commission, the Governments of Morocco and Spain as well as the African Union (AU) to investigate this matter as a matter of urgency to ascertain the truth, make the report public, and hold the perpetrators accountable. African Diaspora and the global community cannot afford to stand aloof and watch the persistent mistreatment of peoples of African descent in different parts of the world. The recent reprehensible experiences of Africans at European borders as they fled the war in Ukraine serves as a reminder of the continuing disregards of the rights and dignity of black people globally.
Despite the respect and benevolence accorded to refugees worldwide, African refugees/migrants continue to be treated with contempt and ignominy, especially by many nations in Europe and the Americas. The fact is often ignored that African migrants consist of different categories including economic migrants looking for better life for themselves and their families, refugees fleeing from war-torn areas, and those displaced by terrorist activities. Why is it that when it comes to Africans, it is usually too easy to
abandon the terms of the Geneva Convention of 1951 on Refugees, which outlines the rights of the displaced, as well as the legal obligations of nations and states to protect them? Yet, we are quick to condemn discrimination, mistreatments, and deaths when they occur elsewhere.
If it is confirmed that Spain enabled the death of these migrants, the global community and organizations must ensure that the country is held responsible. The same goes for Morocco. Observers see Morocco as one of the more stable and progressive economies in Africa and, therefore, do not expect an African country such as Morocco to be implicated in this horrific act against fellow Africans. ADC demands urgent investigations of this incident to expose the perpetrators and hold them accountable for this
despicable act in line with international law and conventions.
We urge Morocco and Spain as well as world organizations to give this matter the urgent attention that it deserves. Enough of these recurrent violations of human right and dignity when it comes to Africans!
Sincerely,
Prof Apollos O Nwauwa, PhD
Secretary General, ADC
