‘Be wary of better life abroad’
Mr Francis Palmdeti, Head of Public Relations of the Ghana Immigration Service, has advised students to be wary of promises of better life abroad.
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He said many of those who ventured after those prospects ended up as domestic and sex slaves.
“Some risk being sedated and their body organs, mainly the kidney, removed.”
Mr Palmdeti was addressing a durbar of students of the Keta Senior High School on human trafficking and related risks.
The durbar formed part of a nationwide outreach programme to sensitise the public to the 2012 Immigration Amendment Act (Act 848), which focuses on migrant smuggling and human trafficking by criminal gangs. The durbar was organised in collaboration with the European Union (EU).
Mr Palmdeti warned students that they were the targets of such foreign job prospects because as young people, they were eager to seek better prospects abroad.
“We consider you students as the best ambassadors in spreading the message among your peers and the larger community,” he said, and advised students and young people who intend travelling abroad to seek the advice of experts before doing so.
Mr Amoateng Ennin, Assistant Superintendent of Immigration, said people who infringed Act 848 would be liable to pay GH¢15,000 as the maximum fine or serve 10 years imprisonment or both when found guilty.
Mr Eric Appiah, 45, a Ghanaian who survived a perilous journey to Europe through Libya, advised students to focus on pursuing their academic goals.
Ms Monica Abba Tawiah, 32, another victim who was rescued in June this year by GIS from Kuwait, where she had to work for 20 hours daily in domestic servitude, also shared her ordeal with the students.
Source: GNA