African Migrants in Egypt: Poverty, Violations, Racism, and No Rights

The tragic story of the Chadian citizen Alfred Camus sheds light on the crisis of African refugees in Egypt and their suffering from numerous difficulties in livelihood, as well as various violations that reach the point of threatening their personal safety and psychological well-being.

On May 24, 2023, Camus announced his arrival in Rwanda after being forcibly deported from Egypt following his detention on charges of lacking residency or asylum permits.

Camus had been living in Egypt for 10 years as an asylum seeker and was heading the International Refugee Rights Initiative (IRRI) in Egypt.

The last thing the Chadian refugee shared before his arrest and deportation were images and videos of a protest organized by African refugees in Egypt in front of the office of the Commissioner for Refugees Affairs, demanding protection, care, and resettlement.

This specific act may have been the main reason for Camus’ persecution and deportation from Cairo, especially since close sources to him stated to the local “Mada Masr” website that Camus “upset the authorities earlier when he requested a permit for a demonstration in front of the refugee commissioner’s office, demanding the rights of Africans.”

While Camus has been expelled from the country, thousands of Africans continue to endure difficult living conditions and human rights crises.

 

High Numbers

The geographical location of Egypt at the crossroads of three continents (Africa, Asia, and Europe) has made it a major destination for many African migrants, especially those fleeing civil wars, extreme poverty, and suffering in their own countries.

In this context, many consider Egypt as a gateway to Europe through the Mediterranean Sea and irregular migration boats.

There is no precise and clear enumeration of migrants and refugees in Egypt, especially Africans.

On October 12, 2021, the head of the regime, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, announced that the number of refugees is estimated at around 6 million people.

However, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced in its latest statistics released in June 2022 that the number of registered refugees from various countries is approximately 290,000.

These are individuals who possess official documentation and legitimate asylum permits.

On August 11, 2022, the National Coordinating Committee for Combating and Preventing Irregular Migration and Human Trafficking (a government entity) published a statement regarding the number of refugees.

It stated that experts in refugee affairs agree there is an exaggeration in the displayed numbers, which they consider to be “manipulated” in order to obtain international assistance and aid.

The statement mentioned that the majority of refugees in Egypt are from countries such as Syria, followed by Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Yemen, and Somalia.

It clarified that the Egyptian government’s figures regarding the number of refugees indicate a clear manipulation, where a mix-up occurs between migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.

According to the law, officially recognized refugees are those who have registered their names with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

 

Forced Deportation

In recent years, African refugees, specifically, had witnessed a number of unfortunate incidents, including one that occurred on December 28, 2021, when authorities forcibly deported 25 Eritrean refugees who had sought refuge in Egypt to escape prolonged compulsory military conscription in their own country.

At that time, Amnesty International announced that security forces had deported the Eritreans from Cairo International Airport to the capital, Asmara, thereby exposing them to the risk of enforced disappearance, imprisonment, torture, and severe mistreatment that sometimes leads to death.

This prompted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Egypt to publish a reminder on its Facebook page, emphasizing that the fundamental principle of the 1951 Refugee Convention is non-refoulement, which prohibits the forced return of refugees to a country where their lives and freedoms are at serious risk.

The UNHCR stated that among the rights enjoyed by refugees under the 1951 Convention are the right to freedom of movement (Article 26), the right to non- refoulement (Article 33), and the right not to be punished for illegal entry into signatory countries (Article 31). All states are obligated to adhere to these standards as part of general international law.

However, the Egyptian regime authorities did not comply with these rules and appeals, as they continued with deportation operations of Eritrean refugees throughout the entire year.

On August 7, 2022, the Egypt Refugees website shed light on what it described as “severe violations” against Eritrean refugees and asylum seekers by deporting them to their home country in violation of international conventions that Egypt has signed.

The website documented 70 cases of forced deportation of Eritrean refugees from Cairo to Asmara, including children, women, and sick individuals, through five separate trips despite the confirmed dangers to their lives.

 

Rape

On December 3, 2022, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that they had received over 2,300 distress calls due to gender-based violence against more than 2,300 registered refugees in Egypt.

The UNHCR confirmed that rape is the most common form of sexual and gender-based violence and that individuals coming from Africa are particularly vulnerable to that.

The UNHCR accused the Sisi regime of failing to protect refugees and asylum seekers from widespread sexual violence.

They mentioned that the situation is not limited to the lack of protection for refugee women and girls in Egypt who are at risk of sexual violence, but also pointed out that the authorities seem unconcerned about investigating rape cases and bringing the perpetrators to justice.

On October 17, 2017, Thomson Reuters Foundation, based in Canada, published a report on the situation of African refugees in Egypt and stated that Cairo, where more than a third of refugees in Egypt live, is one of the most dangerous cities in the world for women.

It further noted that crime rates and rape against refugees, especially those with dark skin, are higher in impoverished neighborhoods where many refugees and asylum seekers reside.

 

Police Complicity

The Egyptian police’s negligence in addressing cases of harassment against African refugees has been documented by Human Rights Watch in a report published on November 24, 2022, entitled: Egypt: Sexually Abused Refugees Find No Justice.

The international organization stated that it documented 11 cases of sexual violence in Egypt between 2016 and 2022, involving refugees and asylum seekers from Sudan and Yemen, including a young girl.

In another report released by the organization on December 27, 2022, it confirmed that the Egyptian police arrested 24 Sudanese refugees and asylum seekers, including well-known community activists, from their homes, cafes, the streets, and community centers in Nasr City, Cairo.

A notable account in the Human Rights Watch report is the testimony of a persecuted African refugee who said: “The police transferred us to a security facility about 30 minutes away from Nasr City and forced us to unload boxes from large trucks into warehouses where they used batons to beat us.”

He added: “One of the police officers told me: ‘You lazy Sudanese, you should work because you cause a lot of problems and noise in Egypt.’”

The organization noted that the authorities did not provide any compensation to those refugees, who mentioned that the boxes they were tasked with transporting were labeled “Long Live Egypt,” referring to a program in which the military distributes material goods in impoverished areas.

It is worth mentioning that on May 14, 2022, activists from the Sudanese refugee community in Egypt staged protests in front of the headquarters of the UN Refugee Agency and the Sudanese embassy due to the violations they are facing at the hands of the Egyptian authorities.

Three Sudanese activists informed Amnesty International that they were occasionally detained for nearly eight hours at the headquarters without any external communication and were threatened with deportation if they continued to mobilize community protests in front of the agency’s office or reported the violations to the agency.

They stated that the security apparatus attempted to recruit them as informants about the activities of the Sudanese community, but they refused.

 

Stark Reality

Commenting on the situation of African refugees in Egypt, Egyptian human rights lawyer Karim el-Yaqoubi said: “They are the most vulnerable group among all refugees residing on Egyptian soil. They are subject to various violations by some individuals in society and the loss of their rights by the police and the responsible authorities.”

He further told Al-Estiklal that “in order for us to have a better understanding of the crisis faced by African refugees in Egypt, we must know their legal and social status. They can be categorized into three groups: the first group considers Egypt as a transit route to Europe, seeking a quick and problem-free residency. The second group is listed under the UN Refugee Agency, while the last group arrived without the right to residency and cannot return to their home countries. Unfortunately, this group is the largest in number.”

He continued: “What cannot be overlooked is that they all deserve humane and dignified treatment, respecting their humanity and dignity, and taking their circumstances into better consideration. For example, many African refugees are unable to access the educational system.

“Legal employment is also impossible for them, but the most dangerous is the significant security concerns they face, especially sexual and verbal harassment against women, racism, and gender-based violence.”

El-Yaqoubi stated: “The most challenging issue for Africans specifically is the process of resettlement, which often involves significant delays. New arrivals have to wait for at least two years to conduct their first interview with the refugee agency.”

He explained: “If they are recognized as refugees, it takes at least a year and a half to resettle them. So, we’re talking about nearly three and a half years of living in turmoil for the African refugees, and this point is the cause of all the protests that occur.”

El-Yaqoubi concluded, saying: “There are also other problems related to integration. They are different from Syrian, Yemeni, and Iraqi refugees, firstly because language complicates their situation, and secondly, the fundamental differences in customs and traditions make their integration difficult. In the end, the law remains their last stronghold, in addition to the humanitarian aspects that should be considered alongside them.”