Africa-Press – Gambia. A Gambian migration advocate has raised alarm over Niumi Jinack in the North Bank Region (NBR), warning that the island has increasingly become a major departure point for irregular migration by sea, commonly referred to as the “backway.”
Speaking in an interview on Saturday, Ebrima Drammeh, founder of the Ebrima Migrants Situation Foundation, attributed the trend to a long-held belief that security personnel do not operate in the village, a perception he said has been exploited by traffickers and migration agents.
Niumi Jinack is historically associated with a local myth that any security officer who enters the island to arrest someone is followed by misfortune. According to Drammeh, some security personnel have even acknowledged to him that the area is considered a no-go zone, a situation he said has created a safe haven for irregular migration activities.
Drammeh said he recently visited Jinack following reports that a boat that departed from the island carrying about 190 people is presumed to have sunk at sea, with no survivors confirmed.
“The people I met in Jinack number between 3,000 and 4,000, and most of them are foreigners, including women and children. I witnessed this myself. They are all trying to get onto boats to embark on irregular migration journeys,” he said.
He added that most of the migration agents operating in the area are Senegalese. During his visit, he observed at least five boats being prepared for departure. “I was in the village on Wednesday, and by Thursday, a boat had already left,” he noted.
Drammeh further stated that The Gambia has increasingly become a transit route for direct sea crossings to Spain. “People now have lunch and dinner in their homes and then embark on this journey without interruption,” he said.
He disclosed that he is currently seeking information on a boat that left Jinack on December 5, noting that 22 days have passed without any communication regarding its whereabouts.
Highlighting the human cost of irregular migration, Drammeh recalled that 27 Gambians recently died after a boat capsized in the Libyan Sea. He also said that four days ago, a boat from Senegal picked up migrants from Jinack before capsizing at sea while carrying more than 200 people, with only 33 survivors.
“This is something that is happening every day,” he warned, calling for urgent action to address the situation.
Source: Kerr Fatou Online Media House
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