African immigrants drift toward Latin America
BUENOS AIRES: Stowed away on cargo ships and unsure where their dangerous journeys will take them, increasing numbers of African immigrants are arriving in Latin America as European countries tighten border controls.
Some head to Mexico and Guatemala as a stepping stone to the United States, others land in the ports of Argentina and Brazil. Though many arrive in Latin America by chance, once in the region they find governments that are more welcoming than in Europe.
"One night I went to the seaport. I was thinking I was going to Europe. Later I found out I was in Argentina," said Sierra Leone immigrant Ibrahim Abdoul Rahman, a former child soldier who said he escaped his country's civil war by sneaking onto a cargo ship for a 35-day voyage.
In Brazil, Africans are now the largest refugee group, representing 65 percent of all asylum seekers, according to the Brazil's national committee for refugees.
"We're seeing a steep increase in the number of Africans coming to the country and seeking asylum," said Carolina Podesta, of the Argentine office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
This is still low compared to the tens of thousands of immigrants who make the journey to Europe each year, but Africans are expected to come to Latin America in increasing numbers.
"It's a search for new destinations," Podesta said, adding that many were being pushed by tougher European immigration and security policies put in place after September 11, 2001.
"We're seeing a stable trend and it's still growing."
For many, their journey starts by dodging port controls in Africa and then surviving on water and biscuits for weeks.
"We've seen cases where they arrive hidden inside the rudder of a ship," said Fernando Manzanares, Argentina's immigration director. "Imagine what it's like to cross the Atlantic hidden in such a small space, trying to evade the crew."
Millions of Europeans arrived in South America aboard ships in the 19th century escaping poverty and war, while Africans arrived on slave ships to work on Brazil's vast sugar cane plantations.
