TUNISI (TUNISIA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Tunisian President Kais Saied met with the Director-General of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Amy Pope, to reiterate Tunisia’s firm position on irregular migration and express concerns over growing human trafficking networks across the region.
At the start of the meeting, President Saied made clear that Tunisia refuses to act as a transit or host country for irregular migrants, describing the surge in migration as anything but spontaneous. “No one can believe that thousands of people, including women, pregnant mothers, and those carrying infants, would travel thousands of kilometres on foot only to be directed to specific cities in Tunisia, such as Jebeniana and El Amra, without prior criminal coordination,” the President said, pointing to what he described as organized human trafficking and organ trade networks.
In a statement released by the Presidency, Saied emphasized that no sovereign state could accept any part of its territory operating outside the rule of law. He underlined that while Tunisia has treated migrants with respect to humanitarian law and moral values, especially during recent evacuations of migrant camps, the country cannot bear the burden of international failures alone.
“These migrants were no less vulnerable before, but the magnitude of this phenomenon has increased dramatically,” Saied said, attributing the root causes of displacement to systemic global economic injustices. “If they are now seeking safe havens, it is because they are victims of an unjust global economic system — a system that Tunisia itself suffers from.”
Tunisian Foreign Minister Mohammed Al-Nafti echoed these sentiments during separate talks with Pope. He highlighted “relative progress” in a national initiative aimed at encouraging voluntary returns of irregular migrants and reaffirmed Tunisia’s readiness to assist in repatriation efforts in line with its humanitarian commitments.
Pope, in turn, commended Tunisia and the broader international community for their efforts in managing migration flows. She acknowledged “tangible progress” in IOM’s cooperation with Tunis, particularly in initiatives aiming to regulate migration through legal and humane channels.
-Photo IPA Agency-
(ITALPRESS).
