Paul Willson Fantasy

The journey was dangerous. The price was high, more than a year’s wage. Sadio had now made it to Europe. Emotions swept over him. joy, relief, sadness, fear, confusion. Now he had made it, he nearly died. He was surrounded by people from many countries. Most of the people spoke Arabic, some spoke English, some spoke French, and some spoke other languages. Those in uniform spoke Spanish and they called this place Tenerife.

Sadio’s story began back home in Senegal. His family was poor. Everyone’s family was poor. His family was from a small town in the east of the country. They had a few cattle, and a small patch of land where they grew some crops. Some years they had a good harvest and were able to sell what they didn’t need. When the rain didn’t come the crops failed and they had to sell a cow to survive.

Sadio didn’t have much of an education. He went to his local school and learnt the basics. The school had the minimum for learning. The school children each had a small blackboard and chalk to write on. There were no books. He remembered now and again some white people from rich countries would come. Give them some notepads, books, pens, and pencils to help them at school. They would give money for food so the children could have lunch at school. They would help make repairs to the school. They helped teach. Then as soon as they arrived, they left with smiles on their faces, happy they made some poor African children’s lives better. Of course, as soon as the white people left the notepads, the books, the pens, and the pencils were sold, and the money was given to his parents to buy food.

When Sadio was 11 or 12 years old, he began to miss some days at school to help sell food at the market. When he was 15 years old, he stopped going completely. He had to look after the cattle and work in the fields. He missed school. He missed his friends. He liked learning. He would have liked to go to university to learn about agriculture and help his family farm, but his family was too poor. Instead, he hustled for money, scraping, and living the best he could.

Sadio was aware that there were politicians who were supposed to work for them, but he only saw them every few years. The politician who represented his village and his area was an old man. He lived in a large house with many servants. He had little interest in the people he was supposed to be responsible for. If you needed help you needed to pay him. Only the wealthy sought his help.

One day a man came to his village he said for a price he could take people to Europe where they would be given good jobs and a place to live. The man said the governments in Europe had to give them money, jobs, and a place to live. He said he could get them there for three thousand American dollars.

When Sadio got home, a family meeting was called. It was decided that Sadio would go to Europe. He would get a job and send money home for the benefit of the family. Cattle were sold, land was sold, and money was borrowed to get the three thousand American dollars.

Once the money was raised Sadio met the man with a few other men he recognised at the edge of the village and handed over the three thousand American dollars that his family sacrificed so much for. Sadio and the other men climbed into the back of a truck and Sadio left his village for the first time.

They travelled for hours. Now and again, they would get to an army checkpoint. The man, who called himself Abdul, seemed to recognise the officer at each checkpoint. Abdul and the officer would shake hands, laugh, and chat together and then before they would be on their way Abdul would always give the officer some money.

When night came, they would get to a camp where the men would be given some food, water, and a tent to sleep in. They were told if they weren’t up at dawn, they would get left behind.

They travelled for two days then they came to the desert. They were then handed over to some different men. Abdul was fearful of these men. They weren’t black like Abdul and Sadio. They had brown skin; all had beards and spoke Arabic which Sadio recognised from when he went to the mosque in his village. They all carried guns. Abdul handed over a lot of money to these men who didn’t look satisfied with what they got. Their leader slapped Abdul hard. Abdul said to Sadio and the other men,

“You will go with these men now. They will take you to Europe.”

And without even saying goodbye he got back in his truck and drove away.

Sadio and the other men from his village stood not knowing what to do. None of them spoke Arabic. Eventually, a man stood in front of them. His companions menacingly surrounded Sadio and the men from his village, guns pointing at them. The man then spoke in broken French,

“We will take you through the desert to Europe. You will do as we tell you. If you do not, we will leave you in the desert. If you are lucky, we will kill you first. Now get in the trucks!”

A sense of dread swept through Sadio as they were pushed into the trucks. Would he survive the trip? Would he die before he could support his family?

They travelled for a day until they reached a large camp. It was filled with men and some women speaking many languages. He recognised French, he guessed at English, the others he didn’t recognise. Their guide spoke to them,

“We will sleep here. Eat and drink what we give you. Do not take more than what we give you or we will take you into the desert and kill you.”

They sat down where they were instructed and ate. The women were taken somewhere else to eat. When night fell, they were told to sleep in the tents. In the tents, there were some mats to sleep on. Ten men were crammed inside. There was barely room to move. No one dared to complain.

 In the morning Sadio noticed some of the women were being brought back from the desert by some of the bearded men. The bearded men were laughing. The women were covering their faces, tears and shame in their eyes. They didn’t, did they? Once they were back in camp the men got out of their jeep, rolled out their mats and prayed.

After prayers and breakfast, they got back into the lorries, and they continued their journey. Now and again they would come to an army checkpoint, laugh with the soldiers and money was exchanged. There was not even an attempt to hide it. Sadio supposed that there was no one to see so what was the point of hiding it?

Night times were like the first. They ate dinner and were crammed into tents to sleep. They were treated no better than livestock. The women were kept separate. They were, again, taken into the desert. The same tears and shame in their eyes when they returned.

One morning they were all made to line up. In front of them stood some bearded men with one of their travelling companions kneeling on the floor, bruised, bloodied, and terrified.

“This man has been caught stealing water.” They announced. “Do we not treat you well enough? Do you need to steal from us?” No one dared to answer. “On this occasion, we will be merciful.” Looking down at the man, “You may go, please leave the camp.”

The other bearded men laughed. There was an evil intent in their eyes. The kneeling companion was forcibly pulled to his feet and half walked; half dragged to the edge of the camp. Once he got to the edge of the camp he was hit, kicked, and pushed into the desert. Some of the bearded men shot into the ground near the man making him run. When he got far enough away, the bearded men raised their guns and fired at the man who collapsed when he was hit by the bullets. Again, the bearded men laughed. No one checked if he was dead or alive.

After breakfast, they went on their way. The women travelled in the front with the drivers. It was like they were the driver’s property.

After three or four days they stopped, and everyone was told to get out of the lorry.

“It is twenty kilometres to the sea.” They were told. “Go there on foot. A boat will be waiting for you. It will leave in two days with or without you for Europe. It is hot, I recommend that you travel during the night. The lights of the town will guide you. Avoid the police or they will put you in jail. Tell them we took you across the desert, we will find you and kill you.”

With that, the bearded men got back into the lorries and left.

Getting into the town was easy. There weren’t many police in the town, and it was easy to hide from them. Sadio stole food and drank water wherever he could find it.

After two days, Sadio found the boat. It didn’t look very safe, but this was his only opportunity to get to Europe. Sadio sat on the deck. Others found room below deck. They set sail and travelled for a short while then the boat stopped. The boat moved side to side with the waves.

The man sailing the boat looked calm. He smoked a cigarette. What was he waiting for? Soon the sound of an engine could be heard. A smaller boat pulled alongside and tied up to the larger boat. The man snapped angrily in Arabic to someone in the smaller boat. The man then turned to the passengers and said in broken English and French,

“I can’t take you to Europe, so we need someone to sail this boat. Whoever volunteers to sail the boat will be paid 2000 Euros when you reach Europe.”

There was a rush to volunteer, but Sadio got there first. The man taught Sadio how to start and stop the boat and which direction to sail in. He then gave Sadio what looked like a gun,

“If you have any problems fire this into the sky. Helicopters and boats will come and take you to Europe.”

With that, the man got into the smaller boat and left. Sadio hadn’t even seen the sea until the day before, now he was sailing a boat!

With everyone on deck enviously watching Sadio, he started the boat and sailed in the direction he was told. They sailed for hours. Night fell and they continued to sail. Sometime during the morning there were shouts and screams below deck. Water had started to seep into the boat. The more the water that seeped into the boat the lower in water the boat got. Soon the people below deck moved to above. The more people that came above deck the more the boat leant to the side.

Panicking, Sadio fired the gun into the air. Then the boat leant too far over and began to sink. The people below deck were trapped. Their screams were silenced by the sea. Those above deck fell into the water.

Those in the water were panicking. Many couldn’t swim, and some drowned. They grabbed anything they could get their hands on. Bits of wreckage from the boat, each other. Sadio found a bit of wood to hold on to. Like the others he was afraid. They floated in the water for what felt like hours. A few of the ones in the water decided to swim in the direction they thought they were heading.

One of the people in the water started shouting. Sadio looked up wearily. In the distance was what looked like a boat. Sadio couldn’t be sure. After a while, its shape became clearer. It was a boat. Sadio began waving with one arm, the other holding onto his float. Too tired to shout.

The boat was huge. It moved as close as it could. Life jackets were thrown overboard. There was a massive scramble to grab a life jacket. Sadio managed to get one and he put it on. With the life jacket, Sadio found it easier to float.

A ladder came down and each of the survivors with their last remaining strength climbed onto the boat. Once onboard they were given water, a little to eat and a towel. All the survivors sat on deck in silence. Contemplating how lucky they were to survive the horror they experienced.

The crew on the boat searched for further survivors. All the crew wore a uniform, but Sadio didn’t understand them. When night fell the search stopped and the boat changed direction. By morning they arrived in port.

They were all taken off the boat and to a waiting warehouse with a Red Cross sign and taken out of the hot sun. In the warehouse, there was a bed. Everyone was given a change of clothes and the opportunity to wash. When they had changed, they were all taken to an area where they were given a meal.

After the meal, they all went back to their beds. Some slept, some sat quietly, some talked. One by one what looked like doctors came to check on them all. Later, Sadio saw some of the other survivors point at Sadio. Sadio began to worry.

A lady with whom Sadio looked like a police officer approached him,

“Hello.” The lady said kindly in a strange accent that showed she wasn’t speaking her first language. Then, “Bonjour” when she got no answer.

“Bonjour,” replied Sadio.

In very accented French the lady spoke to Sadio,

“What is your name?”

Sadio didn’t answer. Afraid to talk. The police can’t be trusted. He had no money so silence would save him.

When the lady still got no answer, she looked disappointed and politely asked,

“Would mind coming with these officers?”

The officers helped Sadio to his feet and was taken to an office in the warehouse, too weak and tired, to resist.

He was given a chair to sit on next to a desk. A man behind the desk began asking him questions in the same language as the crew on the boat. The lady who spoke to him before translated,

“We need you to tell us the circumstances of how the boat sank,” the lady began. “Please answer the questions. If you don’t, you will cause a lot of problems for yourself. Will you help us?”

Sadio gently nodded. The lady smiled and the officers looked satisfied.

“Firstly, could you please tell us your name?”

“Sadio.”

“Nice to meet you, Sadio. Where are you from Sadio?”

“Senegal.”

“Can you tell us how you came to be here, Sadio?”

“I travelled through the desert then went by boat.”

“Did anyone guide you through the desert?”

Silence

“Did you pay anyone to guide you?”

Silence. The questions were now getting more dangerous.

“What route through the desert did you take?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where were you travelling to?”

“Europe.”

“Where in Europe?”

“Anywhere where I can find work and send money home.”

The others in the room sighed. It was a story they heard many times.

“Who owned the boat that sank, Sadio?”

“I don’t know.”

“Who was sailing the boat when it sank?”

Silence.

“The others who we saved say it was you, Sadio. Enough of them have said so to make it believable.” The lady now looked more serious. “Unless there is anything you can tell us, Sadio, we will have to assume the boat is yours and you will have to take responsibility for the deaths who couldn’t be saved. This means you will go to prison and then be sent back to Senegal. Can you tell us anymore Sadio?”

“I can’t,” said Sadio, panic welling up inside him at the thought of going back to Senegal. “If I say anything they will kill me and my family.”

“Who will, Sadio?”

Silence

“Basta,” said the officer in charge. He then began talking in a formal voice. The lady then translated.

“Sadio, you are being charged with the deaths of the others on the boat, People trafficking and illegally entering Spain. You will appear in front of a judge tomorrow then you will go to prison where you will stay awaiting trial.”

Sadio’s heart sank. He didn’t mind prison but the idea of going back to Senegal was the worst. He would disgrace his family.

Sadio was taken away to a secure room with a bed, a table, and a chair.

When he had left. The senior officer who charged Sadio sank into his chair with a depressed look on his face,

“It is the same story over and over again. We know his family paid criminals to guide him and they paid terrorists to guide them through the desert and give them an unseaworthy boat to come here. Those arseholes didn’t care if they lived or died, and they threaten them enough to keep them silent. Unless they tell us where, how, and who all we can do is charge the poor bastard who volunteers to sail the boat.”

A sad silence filled the room. There was no pleasure in charging Sadio. They knew full well he was more of a victim than a perpetrator.

The following day Sadio was formally charged in front of a judge and stood trial a few months later. He was sentenced to 10 years in jail and returned to Senegal and disgraced his family.