In pursuit of their dream of a better life in Europe, five Bangladeshis left their homeland but fell victim to traffickers' fraud, ending up in Libya, where they were trapped by a human trafficking ring and endured brutal torture before finally returning home.
On Friday at 5:30am, these five individuals arrived in Bangladesh from Algeria on a Turkish Airlines flight.
The victims of human trafficking are Mostakim Sarkar from Dhaka, Mozammel Haque from Sherpur, Jihad Fakir from Madaripur, Roman Howlader, and Yasin Howlader.
The victims reported that members of a human trafficking ring held them captive in Tripoli, Libya, and subjected them to extreme torture.
The traffickers forced them to contact their families in Bangladesh to demand ransom.
Once the ransom was paid, they were put on a boat to cross the Mediterranean to Italy.
However, their boat broke down at sea, and the Tunisian coast guard rescued them.
Later, they were taken to the Algerian border, where they were imprisoned for illegal entry.
Eventually, with the help of the Wage Earners' Welfare Board under the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment and the Bangladesh Embassy in Algeria, they were repatriated by Brac, a non-governmental organization.
Inspector Shah Alam Mridha of the Armed Police Battalion (APB ) at the airport said: "Bangladeshis who attempt to reach Europe face extreme torture and oppression. We always support Brac in their efforts to bring back victims of human trafficking."
Madaripur’s Yasin Howlader, who survived the ordeal in the Mediterranean, said: "I was held captive by the mafia in Libya. My family had to borrow money, mortgage land, and take loans from relatives to pay a total ransom of Tk25.8 lakh to the traffickers. Now, my family has nothing left."
Aziz Ahmed, Senior Manager of Brac’s Migration Program, said: "For the repatriation of these five Bangladeshi human trafficking survivors, we collaborated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Wage Earners' Welfare Board, and the U.S.-based Trafficking-in-Persons (TIP) Hero Network. Earlier, in October 2024, another eight trafficking victims were brought back to Bangladesh with the assistance of Brac and the TIP Hero Network."
