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Congresswoman Karen Bass

Representing the 37th District of California

Rep. Bass, Congressional Black Caucus Meets With Libyan Ambassador Regarding Recent Slave Auction

December 8, 2017
Press Release
WASHINGTON – Today, Members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) – led by CBC Foreign Affairs and National Security Task Force co-chair Congressmember Karen Bass (D-CA-37) – met with Libyan Ambassador Wafa Bughaighis to discuss a recent report from CNN International that included video documentation of a slave auction in the North African country.

“We met with the Ambassador out of the profound concern that in this day and age, people are being sold as property,” said Rep. Bass, Second Vice Chair of the CBC. “The international community must operate on the assumption that we don’t need further proof, what we need is to stop it. The Ambassador has agreed to provide us a detailed update on the specifics of the Libyan investigation and will continue to work with us transparently to respond to the migrant and refugee situation. I look forward to the much-needed progress on this issue.”

You can view photos from the meeting here.

The meeting follows a letter sent by the CBC to Ambassador Buhaighis demanding an immediate investigation into the existence of slave auctions and forced labor and the introduction of a resolution in Congress calling on the Trump Administration to develop strategies to rapidly respond to the migrant and refugee situation in Libya. The resolution also demands that the government of Libya conduct an immediate investigation into the slave auctions taking place in the country.

Issues: 
U.S.-Africa Policy