[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 115 (Tuesday, July 10, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H6017-H6019]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONDEMNING SLAVE AUCTIONS OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES IN LIBYA
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
agree to the resolution (H. Res. 644) strongly condemning the slave
auctions of migrants and refugees in Libya, and for other purposes, as
amended.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 644
Whereas Libya has become the primary transit hub for
migrants and refugees attempting to reach Southern Europe;
Whereas in December 2016, the United Nations Office of the
High Commissioner for Human Rights reported that many
migrants and refugees in Libya are forced to work without pay
as farm laborers, domestic workers, construction workers, and
rubbish collectors;
Whereas beginning in 2017, multiple news and international
organizations began reporting on the existence of slave
auctions of migrants and refugees in Libya;
Whereas the Department of State's Trafficking in Persons
Report 2017 for Libya stated that migrants held in detention
centers controlled by both Libya's Department to Combat
Irregular Migration (DCIM) and non-state armed groups are
subject to severe abuse, rampant sexual violence, forced
labor, and other human rights abuses;
Whereas on February 12, 2018, the United Nations Secretary-
General reported to the United Nations Security Council that
the humanitarian situation in Libya had recently deteriorated
further, and that ``Refugees and migrants continued to be
subjected to violence, forced labor, and other grave
violations and abuses.'';
Whereas the Presidency Council of the Government of
National Accord affirmed the depravity of slavery and human
trafficking and initiated an investigation into such acts
within Libya;
Whereas a September 2017, report from the United Nations
International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) determined
that unaccompanied children who crossed the Mediterranean
from Libya suffered enslavement, violence, and sexual abuse
at the hands of smugglers and traffickers;
Whereas in November 2017, a joint European Union-African
Union-United Nations Task Force was established to protect
migrants along migration routes to, from, and in Libya;
Whereas since December 2017, the International Organization
for Migration has facilitated the return of more than 15,000
migrants to their homes from Libya through a voluntary
humanitarian program, and the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees has evacuated more than 1,300
refugees from Libya as of March 2018;
Whereas the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in Libya in 2011 led to
significant political turmoil and insecurity within the
country;
Whereas in December 2017, the Libyan Political Agreement
was reaffirmed as the internationally-supported framework for
creating a unified Libyan government;
Whereas, despite this agreement, the prolonged and
continuing absence of a unified Libyan government has
resulted in a power vacuum in which human trafficking and
smuggling have emerged as a lucrative trade and funds
obtained from the transfer, sale, and exploitation of
migrants are used to fund armed militias competing for
territory, influence, and control of institutions; and
Whereas the United States has repeatedly condemned slavery,
involuntary servitude, and other elements of trafficking as a
grave violation of human rights and a matter of pressing
international concern: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) strongly condemns slave auctions and the exploitation
of migrants and refugees as forced laborers in Libya;
(2) calls upon all parties to the conflict in Libya,
including parties to the Libyan Political Agreement, to--
(A) investigate and eradicate slave auctions and forced
labor involving migrants and refugees;
(B) hold those identified in the investigation accountable
in courts of law;
(C) manage migration flows and migrant detention centers in
a humane manner; and
(D) investigate how funds earned through the transfer,
sale, and exploitation of migrants are used and the extent to
which such profits are fueling and prolonging Libya's civil
conflict;
(3) calls upon the United Nations to--
(A) investigate allegations of the slave trade and other
forced labor in Libya;
(B) advocate that all parties to the conflict in Libya,
including parties to the Libyan Political Agreement, allow
the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to
regularly monitor and publicly report on the situation of all
refugees and migrants in Libya, including those in detention
centers; and
(C) expand sanctions under United Nations Security Council
Resolution 2174 (2014) against individuals and entities
responsible for slave auctions and forced labor of migrants
and refugees in Libya;
(4) calls upon the Secretary of State and the Administrator
of the United States Agency for International Development to
ensure that any strategies, programs, or other efforts to
address the political and security situation in Libya
appropriately address the vulnerabilities faced by migrants
and refugees; and
(5) urges the Secretary of State to ensure that the country
narrative for Libya in the annual Trafficking in Persons
Report fully and accurately reflects the scope of trafficking
in persons in that country, including any complicity by
parties to the Libyan Political Agreement or other
governmental entities, as required by section 110 of the
Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107).
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
General Leave
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks
and to include any extraneous material in the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, let me start by thanking Congresswoman Bass, the ranking
member of our subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human
Rights, and International Organizations. I thank her for authoring this
important resolution, because modern-day slavery continues to devastate
the lives of tens of millions of human beings around the world. The
perpetrators of these dastardly, disgusting acts prey on the
defenseless. They prey on those without power, including preying on
young children.
{time} 1700
I think many of us have had an opportunity or a responsibility to
work with survivors of human trafficking in our districts. I can tell
you that one of the things that it taught me was the horror of
trafficking lies not in statistics; it lies in stolen lives.
These crimes are common for one reason: they are profitable and
people get away with it. The International Labor Organization estimates
that there is $150 billion in illegal profit made from forced labor
each year, making human trafficking the third most valuable criminal
enterprise on the planet and providing fuel to violent extremist
organizations.
Unfortunately, Libya has become a major center of human trafficking.
The country continues to be a fractured and failed state. There is no
government to control its territory. This vacuum, when combined with
Libya's proximity to Europe, has made Libya the primary transit hub for
migrants from sub-Saharan Africa attempting to reach Europe.
Various bad actors, including extremist groups, have taken advantage,
profiting from the unrest by mercilessly preying on migrants and
refugees from some of the poorest and most war-torn countries in the
world. News reports tell of people being forced to work without pay;
others have shown people being sold at slave auctions in Libya.
The resolution before us today rightfully condemns these dehumanizing
acts and calls on all parties in Libya to investigate these crimes and
to hold perpetrators accountable. It urges the United Nations to
investigate and to impose sanctions against those responsible for these
abuses, and it calls for greater access for the U.N. High Commissioner
for Human Rights to monitor and publicly report on refugees and
migrants in Libya.
Finally, the resolution calls on the administration to address these
issues in a strategy to tackle Libya's political and security
challenges, and to ensure
[[Page H6018]]
that the Department of State's annual Trafficking in Persons Report
fully reflects the situation in Libya.
The Government of National Accord in Tripoli has made some
encouraging steps toward investigating some of these crimes, but all
parties, nationally and internationally, must do more to stop this
exploitation.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan
resolution, which puts the House on record as standing against modern-
day slavery and other forms of human trafficking in Libya.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this measure.
I thank the ranking member of the Africa, Global Health, Global Human
Rights, and International Organizations Subcommittee, Ms. Karen Bass of
California, for her hard work on this legislation.
For several years, Libya has been a hub for African migration to
Europe, with an estimated 700,000 to 1 million refugees and migrants
currently in the country.
Last year, I was shocked and horrified to see multiple news reports
documenting the existence of slave auctions in Libya, where these
migrants and refugees were put up for sale. It is unbelievable that, in
the year 2018, we could still have slavery anywhere in the world, just
absolutely unbelievable.
Since then, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights found that
many migrants who enter Libya are forced to work for no pay. This is
also unacceptable. We cannot accept a world where human beings are
auctioned off, treated like property. It is unbelievable. These are
some of the most vulnerable people in the world, and we cannot stand by
as they are mistreated.
This resolution strongly condemns slave auctions and the exploitation
of migrants and refugees as forced laborers in Libya. It also calls
upon all parties to the conflict in Libya to investigate and eradicate
slave auctions and forced labor involving migrants and refugees, to
hold those identified in the investigation accountable in courts of
law, and to examine the extent to which profits earned through the
exploitation of these migrants may be fueling conflict in Libya.
Importantly, the measure also calls upon the United Nations to
investigate this slave trade and forced labor in Libya and expand U.N.
Security Council sanctions against individuals and entities responsible
for this atrocity. The international community must hold accountable
those who are responsible for these heinous crimes.
It is also important that we have full information so that we can
address this issue and understand what we are dealing with. That is why
it is so important that this resolution also urges the Secretary of
State to ensure that Libya is fully and accurately covered in the
annual Trafficking in Persons Report. This measure sends a clear
message. By passing it today, we say, unequivocally, that we will not
stand for this inhumanity.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan measure,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 5 minutes to
the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Bass), the very distinguished
ranking member of the Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and
International Organizations Subcommittee of the Foreign Affairs
Committee.
Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 644,
strongly condemning the slave auctions of migrants and refugees in
Libya, and for other purposes.
In November 2017, CNN broke a story about modern-day slavery in Libya
with a grainy video that shows an auctioneer standing in front of a
group of young men shouting: ``Big strong boys for farm work. 400, 700,
800.'' The video left people shocked and sparked protests outside of
Libyan Embassies here in the U.S. and across Africa and Europe.
In April 2017, the U.N. Migration Agency, the International
Organization for Migration, gathered evidence and issued a warning
about slave markets in Libya. While there were warning signs from
various organizations that migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers were
suffering abuse, it took actual video evidence for the world to pay
attention.
Libya has become a primary transit hub for migrants and refugees
attempting to reach Southern Europe by sea, and various organizations
estimate that there are between 400,000 and 1 million migrants and
refugees in the country. Refugees and migrants are routinely subjected
to grave human rights abuses committed by Libyan officials and security
forces, as well as armed groups and criminal gangs who are often
working in close cooperation and to mutual financial advantage.
How did we get here and what is the solution to this crisis?
Refugees and migrants in Libya are exposed to horrendous human rights
violations in a country where institutions have been weakened by years
of conflict and political division. The end of Qadhafi's regime in 2011
led to significant political turmoil and insecurity within Libya. Since
then, there has been no effective government in place in the country.
Today, three governments, divided along geographical and ideological
lines, combine for power, each with limited control over parts of the
country. The collapse of government and security institutions has made
the trafficking in refugees a lucrative business.
This resolution condemns slave auctions and the exploitation of
migrants and refugees as forced laborers in Libya. It also calls upon
all parties to the conflict, including parties to the Libyan Political
Agreement, to investigate and eradicate the slave auctions and to
manage migration flows and migrant detention centers in a humane
manner.
I want to also mention that the Congressional Black Caucus was at the
head of this effort. We immediately called upon the Libyan Ambassador
to come to the Hill to explain what was happening in the country and
how the government intended to respond.
I have to say that she was very open in stating that the country
needs the help of the international community to address this crisis.
And she explained to us that she was aware that there were parts of her
country that basically were not governed by any of the three
governments and that they needed international assistance to manage
this.
These auctions exposed the interconnected and complex nature of this
crisis. Any solution to this problem will require a holistic and
comprehensive strategy for Libya and the sending countries across
Africa that promotes democratic governance, rule of law, respect for
human rights, and creating economic opportunities.
The United States must remain focused and continue to promote U.S.
values at home and around the world. This includes speaking out
publicly when we see human rights abuses.
The bottom line is that slavery is a crime against humanity, and we
cannot sit idly by while people around the world are exploited. I join
my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in support of this bipartisan
resolution strongly condemning the slave auctions of migrants and
refugees in Libya.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
In closing, the United States cannot stand by as human beings are
auctioned off, forced to work for no pay, and treated without dignity
or respect. Congress must speak out and condemn this horrific situation
in Libya.
Mr. Speaker, I support this measure. I urge my colleagues to do the
same, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of
my time.
In closing, I thank the author of this measure. I thank
Representative Karen Bass for her work on this resolution. She is the
ranking member of our Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global
Human Rights, and International Organizations. I also thank Ranking
Member Engel for his work on this resolution.
The world was shocked by the videos of the slave auctions in Libya.
The videos are proof that slavery and human
[[Page H6019]]
trafficking exist, despite efforts to eradicate these evils. The
resolution before us now shines a light on this human trafficking in
Libya.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan
resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 644, which
strongly condemns ongoing slave auctions in Libya of migrants and
refugees.
Mr. Speaker, it is critical that we swiftly and unequivocally condemn
these acts of unspeakable cruelty that have no place in the civilized
world.
According to reports, an estimated 150,000 people--refugees fleeing
conflict and economic migrants in search of better opportunities in
Europe--cross Libya's borders each year.
But a clampdown by the Libyan Coast Guard meant fewer boats made it
out to sea, leaving the smugglers with a backlog of would-be passengers
on their hands.
With estimates of 400,000 to almost one million people now stranded
in Libya, smugglers have become masters and the migrants and refugees
have become slaves who are sold for as little as $400 each.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to share with this chamber the story of a
young man named Victory, a 21-year-old Nigerian who fled his village
and spent a year and four months--and his life savings--trying to reach
Europe.
Victory made it as far as Libya, where he says he and other refugees
were held in grim living conditions, deprived of food, abused, and
mistreated by their captors.
When his funds ran out, Victory was sold as a day laborer by his
smugglers; after weeks of being forced to work, Victory was told the
money he had been bought for was not enough.
He was returned to his smugglers, only to be re-sold several more
times--the smugglers also demanded ransom payments from Victory's
family before eventually releasing him.
We know of at least 9 sites in which these horrors reportedly are
commonplace.
The open sale of humans into slavery exposed in Libya in 2017 shocked
the world.
United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley denounced the practice, saying
``there are few greater violations of human rights and human dignity
than this.''
However, without a capable government in the country, the practice
has continued unabated while media interest ebbed.
Mr. Speaker, it is contrary to the values of this nation to stand by
and watch these atrocities continue.
H. Res. 644 denounces the trafficking of--and violence against--
innocent migrants in Libya, and proposes several concrete measures to a
lasting infrastructure that upholds basic human rights for migrants in
Libya.
First, the resolution calls on the Libyan government to investigate
and end the slave auctions, as well as provide for humane management of
migration flows.
Second, the resolution calls upon the United Nations to investigate
the allegations of forced labor and demands that Libyan authorities to
allow the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to regularly monitor
and publicly report on the situation of refugees and migrants in Libya,
and impose sanctions against Libya if the nation fails to end forced
labor.
Third, the resolution calls upon the African Union to conduct an
independent investigation of forced labor in Libya, to assist migrants
who wish to return to their homelands, and to impose sanctions against
Libya should the forced labor continue.
Fourth, the resolution highlights the importance of adequately
staffing, funding, and supporting the United States State Department
and the Agency for International Development to provide humanitarian
assistance for migrants and to develop a comprehensive strategy to
address the political and security situation in Libya including issues
related to migrants and refugees in detention centers.
I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for H. Res. 644 and
standing true to our nation's commitment to advancing human rights in
Libya, and around the world.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Collins of New York). The question is on
the motion offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that
the House suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 644),
as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
The title of the resolution was amended so as to read: ``Resolution
strongly condemning slave auctions and the exploitation of migrants and
refugees as forced laborers in Libya, and for other purposes.''.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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