GENEVA, 12 May 2017
Every week, IRIN’s team of editors looks ahead at what’s on our humanitarian radar and curates a selection of the best reports, opinion, and journalism you may have missed:
Libya migrant crimes under the ICC spotlight
News of migrants drowning in the Mediterranean – most having set off from Libya in flimsy smugglers’ dinghies – has become numbingly routine. At least 245 peoplehave died or gone missing attempting the crossing in the last week alone, bringing the total who have succumbed to the route so far in 2017 above 1,300. That people are still attempting such dangerous journeys is a sign not only of how bad things are in their home countries but also in Libya, where IRIN and others have reported human trafficking, extortion, and forced prostitution (among other horrors). This week, International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda told the Security Council that the court was exploring the possibility of an investigation into migrant-related crimes. If you’re curious what that might look like in a court that doesn’t appear to get much done, stay tuned – we’re looking into it. Meanwhile, despite violent disputes over oil – Libya’s main source of income – the country is now pumping more of the stuff than it has since 2014. That’s a good sign, as is a recent meeting between two rival leaders. Just returned from the country, having visited migrant detention centres and lunched in Tripoli, UK Foreign Minister Boris Johnson writes in the Spectator that Libya “can have a great future. All it takes is political will and the courage to compromise.” Unfortunately, it’s a bit more complicated than that.
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