THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
Hundreds of people of African descent and their supporters marched through the streets of Cologne on Monday evening to express their anger and outrage at the widespread human rights violation of African migrants in Libya.
Speakers lament the racist treatment of Africans in North Africa pointing out that the CNN video footage of migrant auctioning was the tip of the iceberg of what Africans are going through in the region.
Protesters called for an immediate stop to the enslavement of African refugees in Libya and the release of migrants detained in the Arab nation and their repatriation to their home countries. They also called for an end to European collaboration with Libya on migration as this has brought suffering to African migrants.
In a public statement, the organizers of the Cologne demonstration said the action calls for an end to inhumane living conditions of African refugees worldwide.
Black organisations from Europe to the US have been reacting to the CNN video report and protests have been held place in Paris, Geneva, Brussels and Berlin. More than 500 protesters turned out on Saturday in the German capital city to register their disgust at the African enslavement in Libya. The Cologne demonstration was the second major event on the issue in Germany.
A big protest march is planned for London on 9 December.
Austin Ohaegbu
