A student from Sub-Saharan Africa in Tunisia tells the BBC’s Africa Daily program that black Africans do not feel safe in Tunisia because they have become a “target” due to their skin color.
According to a woman who only wanted to be identified as Mary, some people’s homes have been “set on fire,” others “beaten up,” and some have received verbal insults.
There are even taxi drivers who refuse to transport black Africans, Mary continues.
According to Mary, the rise in racism comes after President Kais Saied said last week that illegal migration was a “plot” to cause a demographic change in Tunisia and accused “illegal hordes” of being behind the rising crime.
Dozens of migrants from Sub-Saharan Africa have been detained since, with Ivory Coast and Guinea claiming to be sending specially chartered planes to bring back their citizens.
“It’s as if you’re not welcome on your own continent,” Mary adds.
She claims to have Tunisian friends who have tried to help her, and she plans to stay in the country for a few more months to complete her studies.
