Migrants injured on Black Friday in Nador near the border with Melilla told their adventure, their life and why they tried to enter the Spanish enclave. In their testimonies, these men, mostly Sudanese, explain that they have arrived from Algeria and they send a message to King Mohammed VI.
“The bats we brought back were not intended for the Moroccan soldiers, we had taken them for the Spaniards because they use tear gas”said a migrant currently being treated at El Hassani hospital in Nador.
He is one of 76 men hospitalized in this hospital following the deadly stampede on Friday June 24, which took place at the Melilla border fence, where migrants walked on each other, trampled on each other, and where some lost their lives there.
“I saw one of the men from the Moroccan authorities, he was being beaten up and I couldn’t do anything”testified one of the migrants, his arm in plaster, still traumatized by the events of last Friday.
“There are old people, who know the roads, who know how it goes with the fence. It was our first time”he explained, referring to the smugglers.
“We saw them, they entered a Spanish police government institution and we followed them. They did it on purpose to be followed, and we ended up piling on top of each other.”he continued.
And describe: “There were several of them, who climbed on my back, I was 3 meters high, and there were others who were higher. They all wanted to go up. In the end, the Moroccan security forces were forced to take us down because we were in a bad state, you understand, there were a large number of wounded, people who were in crisis and other dead ” .
Another Sudanese migrant explains that they were more than 1000 people, hidden in a mountain, among them were different nationalities including Senegalese and Chadians.
“The Moroccan authorities came, and yes, we clashed. Some of us were injured, and the Moroccan agents were also injured. They gave us 24 hours to vacate the premises. We either had to go or go to the fence and chose the fence”he explained.
Finally, a third sent a message to King Mohammed VI, explaining that he and other Sudanese migrants came from Algeria, where they were repeatedly persecuted and robbed.
He explains that his was to go to Europe, despite a peaceful life he leads in Morocco since he arrived and where he moved freely between cities. He said he felt safe since arriving in Morocco. “We are treated well and we feel at home”, did he declare.
After this tragic episode that he experienced, the Sudanese, seems to no longer want to try the experience of illegal migration to Europe. “First, we are Sudanese migrants and I speak for my Sudanese brothers who are in Beni Mellal and Oujda. I would like our message to reach King Mohammed VI personally so that he can find a solution for us”.
“We are homeless, we spend our days on the streets. We don’t bother anyone.” did he declare. He goes on to say that they would like “Any solution, we would like him to address us in a speech. We are ready to hear everything from him”.
And to add: “We are not a criminal gang, and have no weapons. Morocco does not allow the carrying of weapons and we have never seen any. The only edged weapons we had were normal knives that we use in the forest for vegetables and such. We did not use them against anyone”.
Finally, he explains that if they live in the woods on the outskirts it is because they do not want to clutter the cities and disturb the citizens, but because they want to be able to live with dignity too, and no longer have to live in isolation.
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