Bangladeshi survivor's first-hand account of Mediterranean migrant boat capsize

Ashik Mina, 28, is still haunted by the memories of the nightmarish journey he went through on the Mediterranean around three weeks ago.

"Whenever I close my eyes, I feel like I am drifting on an endless sea and people are shooting at me," said Ashik, who escaped death by sheer luck.

The 28-year-old is one of the survivors of a boat capsize in the Mediterranean Sea in the last month.

Ashik, of East Lakhanda village in Gopalganj's Maksudpur upazila, among others, was illegally heading towards Italy from Libya by boat.

Following a contract with a broker, Ashik left home on October 19 with the dream to reach Italy.

"First, we travelled from Bangladesh to Saudi Arabia, then to Egypt and from there to Libya. We stayed about a month in Bangladeshi houses in Libya," said Ashik while talking to The Daily Star on Sunday.

"On November 15, we started our sea journey from the Libyan coast. There were around 75 people in our boat. Five of them were Egyptian and the remaining were Bangladeshi," he said.

"Our boat started at around 8:30pm. Around one hour later, we saw a vessel of the Libyan Coast Guard. We were told that the brokers have underhand dealings with the coast guard who allows illegal migrant boats to pass," he said.

"We were unlucky that day. The coast guard started shooting at us. Within a few moments, the coast guard ship ploughed into our boat that capsized instantly. All of us jumped into the sea and everybody was trying to save their own lives," he said.

"I was drifting on the sea with a life jacket. About half an hour later, the coast guard rescued me. One of my hands and a leg were fractured. I was hospitalised under the supervision of IOM in Libya," he said.

"I underwent treatment for around 19 days and doctors performed a surgery on my leg. Then IOM officials made all the arrangements for me to return safely to Bangladesh. Finally, I returned home on December 5," he added.

"While drifting on the sea, I thought that I would never be able to see my mother again. I still cannot believe that I have returned home," said Ashik, who urged all to not take such a risky plan for reaching abroad.

Ashik Mina's mother, Rowshonara Begum, said, "My son has returned, Alhamdulillah! My endless gratitude to Allah. My son has come back from the clutches of death.

"We borrowed money, sold land, took loans and gave Tk 21 lakh to the brokers who promised to take my son safely to Italy," she added.

Ashik's cousin, Sohag Mina, said, "Like my cousin, many youths of our area give Tk 20 to 22 lakhs to go to Italy illegally. Many of them succeed, some fail while some die."

"This practice should be stopped. We want strict punishment for brokers," he said.

Talking to villagers, it was known that at least eight people from the area left home in the last month illegally.

One of them died and his body was returned. Ashik is one victim, but the remaining six youths are still traceless.