Emmanuel Achiri

Emmanuel has called northern Cyprus his home for seven years. In 2014, the Cameroonian-native arrived to the island to pursue a master’s degree in International Relations. As an international student in the TRNC, Emmanuel knows the complications of pursuing higher education on an island with such a complicated political situation first hand. For him, the existing conditions have created something of a breeding ground for human trafficking in the country; something to which international students in the north are especially vulnerable. 

“I think that the institutions perhaps are not doing enough to control human trafficking,” Emmanuel said, before adding that the issue does not receive the coverage it deserves.

Throughout history, Cyprus’ geopolitical location has often been described as a “blessing and a curse” by its inhabitants. The island is situated at a crossroads between three continents; Europe, Asia, and Africa, a fact that has undeniably contributed to its unique status as a melting pot for the surrounding region. That position has also made the island a hotspot for human trafficking, with the majority of the victims being pushed into prostitution or forced labour. 

The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’ lack of status as a state under international standards has meant that much of the problem takes place in the shadows. However, it is worth noting that the Republic of Cyprus in the south too has been consistently condemned for their non-compliance with the minimum standards required for eradicating human trafficking. 

For international students in the TRNC, many fall victims to human trafficking as the result of dubious agents, who often promise scholarships, accommodation or employment, only to be coerced into forced labour. 

“I​​nternational students are the most vulnerable because, you know, agents lie to them, they are deceived, they are misled,” Emmanuel says. “And then they come here and find that, okay, well, they are not where they expected to be. And as a result of that, they have to survive. So, some of them get into drugs, others employed and exploited by their employers. [Others are] exploited sexually as well. What can they say? What can they do?”

According to Emmanuel, the mechanisms in place to protect victims of human trafficking have failed to act adequately. But trafficking isn’t the only issue that international students face in the TRNC. Institutional discrimination, gender-based violence, racism, unfair labour conditions, and housing difficulties have all been problems plaguing the community for a long time. In 2018, a 28-year-old student from Nigeria named Kennedy Taomwabwa Dede was kidnapped and murdered in Famagusta. Dede, who was studying architecture at the time, was facing economic difficulties and began dealing drugs. After failing to pay off his suppliers, he was kidnapped by eight individuals and heavily beaten. He died of a cerebral haemorrhage.

The incident sparked outrage in the local community. It inspired Emmanuel and his peers to join forces and become advocates for the unheard voices of international students in the TRNC. In the following days, the group founded Voices Of International Students (VOIS) — a non-profit organization that aims to bring issues facing their community out of the shadows. Since then, VOIS has expanded their presence to the five biggest universities in the TRNC and established themselves as representatives for their community. 

“To be honest, I would say that society is not doing enough to integrate us as international students,” Emmanuel admits. According to him, xenophobic and racist attitudes on the island has made integration for foreigners like himself difficult. 

“It's not only towards international students, by the way, it's towards Turkish people from Turkey, towards Germans, Russians,” he stressed.  However, Emmanuel acknowledges that Cyprus’ complicated history might have at least some to do with the local's suspicious stance towards migrants. The island’s history of colonialism and subjugation by Turks, Greeks, the British, and many others might have contributed to Cypriots becoming fearful of other ethnicities. “I think that has a part in this behaviour, but it's still not an excuse for the xenophobic attitude.”

Black people experience the worst effects of racism. “In terms of my own personal experiences, the xenophobic attitudes towards black people are very high here,” Emmanuel explains. “I mean, there's no denying that.” In 2020, VOIS ran a survey asking international students in the TRNC about their experiences with racism and discrimination. It found that 88% of the respondents “had been victims of racism in the northern part of Cyprus.”

“That is extremely high,” Emmanuel says. “I, personally, have witnessed that as well. I went into a shop once and this guy told me he doesn't sell to black people. This was four years ago.”

More recently, Emmanuel explains he experienced difficulty finding accommodation as a black person. “Just last year, in 2020, I was moving. I went to this apartment to give them a call and say, I wanted the flat. The person said, ‘No, there are no rental apartments’. So okay, cool. Then I went back home, and I searched online, and I saw this flat is still on the list. I didn't know it was the same apartment. So, I wrote to them [...] and they said; ‘yes, come at this time tomorrow.’” 

The next day, Emmanuel went to view the flat with his Cypriot girlfriend, only to see it was the same flat he was told was unavailable just the day before. “Then, of course, I really got confrontational,” he says. What followed was a heated conversation, only for the owner to say, “it's a policy that they don't give apartments to black people.”

Emmanuel and his fellow activists have been working hard to open up the conversation on racism in the north. But according to him, there is little political will for society to face up to the issue — even when there is violence involved. 

“A couple of months ago, we started seeing Facebook pages created in the northern part of Cyprus, specifically targeting black students. You know, some of them were even saying, ‘we are calling on true Turkish Cypriots to join the police and other security services so that we can have licence to beat black students. Now, this is a dangerous turn. Of course, we brought this to the administrators; We brought this to the police [and to] other state public stakeholders, but there's really no political will to do anything about this.”

In another incident in June 2020, VOIS confronted the local left-wing newspaper “Afrika” for their insensitive use of an ape in their logo. Emmanuel says that even the name of the newspaper was racist because it insinuated that Cyprus is “not developed enough to be Europe. So, we are Africa.”

“​​And then the worst part about it is the symbol of Africa newspaper was a monkey. And we were saying, this is racist. And they were saying, ‘No, it's not racist. You're the ones overreacting’.”

The discussion sparked a public debate on racism in the TRNC, which led to Emmanuel and VOIS becoming open targets. “I, personally, was threatened several times. Seven death threats.” VOIS was initially sued by Sener Levent, the newspaper's Editor-in-chief, for defamation. What followed was backlash from other prominent left-wing figures in the Turkish-Cypriot community, increasing the pressure on the newspaper to change its logo. Just a week after announcing his lawsuit, Levent reversed course and changed the newspaper's name to Avrupa  (Turkish for ‘Europe’) and replaced the infamous ape with a donkey in its logo. 

The outcome represents a victory for African residents in the TRNC. However, for Emmanuel, it was a stark reminder of just how difficult conversations about discrimination can be in the breakaway state. 

“The whole conversation turned into, ‘You are agents of Turkey, you're trying to attack a progressive newspaper’,” he said. “The fact that you are a victim doesn't mean that you have sole ownership of victimhood. There are also [other] people who are victims. And anybody who challenges [...] progressive newspaper[s] or group[s] is automatically seen as an enemy of unification or federalism.”

According to Emmanuel, it’s another example of how real societal issues are dominated by the ongoing Cypriot problem. 

“My name is Emmanuel Achiri, I was born in Cameroon. I've been living in the northern part of Cyprus for seven years now, in the city of Famagusta. My main message to those watching, including policymakers to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, but also the Republic of Cyprus, European Union; Cyprus is unique. 

The uniqueness of Cyprus has always been the fact that it has been welcoming to foreigners, it is a boiling point for civilizations. And even though the Cyprus problem is a very important issue, the frozen conflict — it's been going on for years. And the stories of international students; [the] stories of those who are victims of human trafficking; the stories of those who are victims of xenophobia or racism, the stories of those who are or have been sex trafficked; the stories of those who are exploited in the workforce — these are all stories that are also important.

“They cannot always be overshadowed.”