On October 3, European parliamentary assistant and former migrant Ibrahima Lo was invited by the Municipality of Milan to commemorate the 11th anniversary of the tragic shipwreck off the coast of Lampedusa.

"October 3, 2013, is a day we will never forget, but similar tragedies continue to occur daily as men, women, and children drown at sea, met with almost general indifference," said Lo in an interview with ANSA on the eve of the anniversary, which marked the death of 368 people.

Lo, a young Senegalese man, was invited to remember the lives lost in the sea massacre. He arrived in Italy at the age of 16, after enduring a dangerous desert crossing and torture in Libyan camps.

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'There's a silent war in the sea; we don't hear the noise'

"The sea has become a battleground between those who save lives and those who want to let people die. There are no missiles or tanks in the sea, but there is a silent war we don't hear, while those about to die cry out the names of their loved ones," said the former migrant, who arrived in Italy at the age of 16 from Senegal after crossing the desert and being tortured in Libyan camps.

Lo drew a sharp contrast between the swift rescue of wealthy passengers from the sinking superyacht Bayesan and the neglect faced by migrants fleeing hunger, poverty, terrorism, and climate change. "The privileged are rescued, but those fleeing for survival are left to die or forgotten at sea," he said.

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A return to sea with Mediterranea Saving Humans

Lo recently returned to the Mediterranean with the NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans. "I was saved by the sea and always dreamed of coming back as a rescuer," he said. "Helping men, women, and children fleeing Libyan camps, where they suffer inhumane violence, is my way of tearing down the walls that lead to death at sea."

From August 23 to 25, Lo participated in a mission that rescued 182 people, most from Syria and some from Bangladesh. "We heard shouts of joy as we approached boats on the verge of sinking. It brought back memories of my own journey, but I was shocked that nothing has improved since then -- conditions have only worsened," he recalled, noting the growing size of Libyan detention camps and the increasing power of the mafia controlling them.

"What struck me in particular were the stories of a Syrian man who was still terrified of being captured, and a young man who expressed the desire to become a Mediterranea volunteer to save others. Syrian minors have grown up with bombs and know only the war they are fleeing," Lo said.

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Solving root causes to tackle irregular migration

According to the European parliamentary assistant, who has also written two books about his experience as a migrant, "to fight illegal immigration, we must solve the root problems, not fund Libya, Tunisia, or build centers in Albania. Why don't we talk about funding dictators or the multinationals that starve African countries, exploiting their resources and forcing people to leave? We young Africans want a continent with a better future, the right to migrate, and the right to stay."

This summer, Lo met Pope Francis and shared his concerns: "I told him that while technology like artificial intelligence advances, humanity has regressed. We should have learned from the past, but the EU is allowing human rights violations. You can't achieve peace by financing weapons and war."

Lo continues his "struggle of practice and theory": rescuing migrants where the shipwrecks occur and raising awareness about their plight. "Migrants are not numbers," he concluded. "They are people with painful stories and wounds on both their bodies and souls."

Author: Valentina Maresca

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