Migrants flee Tunisia after president's 'racist hate speech'

Mariama Bangoura has just returned to her home country of Guinea from Tunisia after fleeing xenophobic attacks.

"They sent us out of our houses it is deplorable. At 10 p.m. they would knock on your door and send you outside of your room. We can't buy bread in the shops and in the markets, they chase us away," she told DW.

Despite appearing tired and haggard, Bangoura said she was happy and "proud to be back at home."

She is one of several migrants from sub-Saharan Africa who had to flee Tunisia amid rising tensions sparked by comments made in a speech by Tunisian President Kais Saied.

What did the president say?

Saied said that migrants were behind most crime in Tunisia and ordered officials to take "urgent measures" to tackle irregular migration.

His remarks fueled a spate of sackings, evictions and attacks against African migrants in Tunisia.

Rights groups were quick to condemn his comments.

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) said it had documented human rights violations including arbitrary arrests and detentions, assaults, evictions and dismissals in the weeks following Saied's remarks.

Amnesty International (AI) said it had interviewed 20 people in Tunisia, including five asylum seekers and 15 undocumented migrants from Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, Guinea and Ivory Coast.

All 20 interviewees said they had been attacked by mobs and, in at least three cases, police officers were present but failed to intervene, the rights organization said.

The African Union (AU) described Saied's comment as "racist hate speech" and postponed a planned conference which had been penciled in for Tunis this month.

Tunisia defends crackdown

The Tunisian leader said his crackdown on illegal migrants was aimed at fighting human trafficking but opposition parties claimed it was designed to distract people from Tunisia's economic woes.

Migrants have described the actions of the Tunisian authorities as offensive and inappropriate.

Ibrahima Diallo, a Guinean who fled Tunisia, told DW he witnessed attacks perpetrated by Tunisians on Black people.

"When the president gave a racial hate speech against Black migrants, the population started interfering and attacking Blacks, mostly women. They grab their telephones from them, beat them," Diallo said. "I witnessed many attacks."

Unexpected repatriation 

Guinea was the first sub-Saharan country to start repatriating its nationals from Tunisia following the clampdown on migrants.

Guinea's Foreign Minister Morysanda Kouyate accompanied the first planeload of Guinean returnees.

One of the passengers, Mohamed Cisse, described his gratitude to the Guinean government. 

"Really, they have helped us, we were in a distress. This is a big relief," Cisse said. 

The embassies of Ivory Coast and Mali provided emergency accommodation for dozens of their citizens evicted from their homes, including young children.

The first flight from Tunis landed in Mali last weekend with 135 Malians on board. Among them was Korotoumi Diakite.

''We had enough problems with both the police and the population," he explained. "Students were attacked for no reason. We're getting arrested for just being Black."

Another Malian, Mahamadou Diarisso — who had been based in Tunisia since 2021 — said it was a stopover as he hoped to reach Italy.

He told DW that he was also affected by the violent attacks on Black migrants and had to leave his apartment. 

"I slept on the street in Tunis for two weeks before we were repatriated," he said.

Among those fleeing the country are dozens of fee-paying or scholarship students who were enrolled in Tunisian universities and in the country legally.

Africa cannot be divided

Guinea's junta leader, Mamady Doumbouya, described what is happening in Tunisia as unacceptable and not normal.

"In the name of the people of Guinea, I am expressing our position, our vision on the situation in Tunisia, for us it is unacceptable and not normal in 2023," Doumbouya said.

"We are pan-Africanists, and we stand by it. Africa is not a continent that can be divided," he added.

As the wave of migrants returning to their homelands grows, Doumbouya and Guinean officials have promised to help them resettle.

"I want to tell you that our brothers that are still there ... we will search for you," said the leader. Addressing those who returned he said, "Finally you are now home — and there is no place like home," he said.

Edited by: Keith Walker