Queen is a survivor of a deadly migrant journey through Mediterranean. 22-year old Nigerian woman recounts her dangerous and long journey in search of better fortunes in Europe.
Queen before and after her dangerous journey. Photo: BBC
According to data of International Migrants Organization, Mediterranean is the deadliest route for migrants in the world. More than 1700 migrants have drowned in its waters since the beginning of the year. 22-year old Nigerian Queen is among those who were lucky enough to survive on that deadly journey.
She risked her life trying to help her family members caught in a difficult financial situation. This situation made her travel near 5000 km in search of better fortunes in Europe.
Queen comes from a small village in Nigeria’s Delta State. When she was 12, her father left the family, so she had to leave home when she was just 14 years old to get job in Lagos as a domestic helper to be able to earn some money to pay for the school. Last two years she’s been working as a hairdresser.
Queen before the journey
Photo: BBC
Photo: BBC
The real troubles in the family started in December 2014 when her brother Joshua who was the main wage earner since her father left them was involved in an accident that led to burning down a truck of a company he worked for at that time. “The truck caught fire and was totally destroyed,” recounts Queen. “The company blamed him for the accident and wanted him to pay eight million naira“. Her brother was jailed and family left without income.
Unable to support family with her wages, she decided to move to Europe in search of means for her family. She had to pay 25,000 naira to get to Agadez in Niger.
Then she headed to Tripoli, the Libyan capital. There is a possibility to meet Libyan rebels on route, who rob migrants with impunity.
Queen after the journey holding the photo with her brother Joshua standing against the burnt truck. Photo: BBC
However she was lucky enough not to meet them en route and in Tripoli she found a boat that left Libyan coast on 14 April with 85 people on board. Migrants usually have to pay from $700 to $7,000 to get on board; sometimes they have to wait up to a month or even more before the journey and are often mistreated by traffickers.
28 hours later they were rescued by Italian ship. The hours passed in the sea seemed to be eternity. It was cold and there were clothes, food and plastic bottles floating in Mediterranean waters – the probably belongings of those unlucky migrants who drowned, when their boats capsized. The worn-out boats of the traffickers also often leak so migrants have to bail water out of the boats with buckets.
Migrant deaths in the Mediterranean, 2014-2015.Source: IOM
After the most dangerous part of the journey Queen is alive and well now living at the Don Bosco Oasis Hotel near Syracuse in Italian Sicily and hopes to find a job as a hairdresser.
Just five days after Queen finished her journey, the boat full of migrants capsized. The worst tragedy in Mediterranean took lives of 800 people on Sunday 19 April.
Since the year 2000 at least 22,000 people have died crossing Mediterranean.
Since the year 2000 at least 22,000 people have died crossing Mediterranean.
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