Three Nigerian citizens stranded in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, are pleading with the Nigerian government for urgent intervention, alleging human rights violations, forced labour, and illegal seizure of their travel documents.
The stranded Nigerians—Obi John Ikechukwu from Enugu State, Olaitan Sekinat Tiamiyu from Ogun State, and Aisha Morenikeji from Oyo State—say they are enduring dire living conditions after being misled by travel agents who promised them employment opportunities abroad.
Olaitan, who spoke to SaharaReporters in a distress call, said she left Nigeria for Kyrgyzstan on March 10, 2025, after paying over ₦4 million to an agent who assured her of a teaching job with an $800 monthly salary.
But upon arrival, she was shocked to discover that no such job existed. Instead, she was told she had been brought in under a fake arrangement involving a football club—something she had never agreed to.
“What I met upon getting to Kyrgyzstan was totally different from what my agent promised. There was no teaching job. Instead, we were abandoned and left to fend for ourselves under harsh conditions,” she recounted.
Olaitan’s troubles escalated when she attempted to leave the country.
During her application for an exit visa, Kyrgyz immigration officials flagged her passport, allegedly due to a red alert placed on the travel agent involved.
Her passport was confiscated, and she was barred from leaving the country.
To make matters worse, she said she was forced into agricultural labour as a means to pay for her daily accommodation.
“They told me they wanted to help me earn money to cover my stay, but instead they threw me into hard farm labour. I’m paid just 1,000 Kyrgyz som, which isn’t even enough to survive. My health is deteriorating,” she said.
Olaitan added that she pays 700 som daily—around ₦12,600 or $7.93—for shelter, a cost she can no longer afford.
“We are suffering here without valid visas. I have done nothing wrong. I just want to go back home,” she pleaded.
Another Nigerian man, whose name was not disclosed, revealed that he was involved in a serious accident in March and is in urgent need of medical attention in Nigeria.
“I am in severe pain and can’t stay here any longer. I have no money for food or accommodation. Please, I need an exit visa to return home,” he said in a separate statement.
These alarming cases have highlighted the growing vulnerability of Nigerian migrants in lesser-known international destinations, especially those who travel through informal channels.
The affected individuals are now calling on the Nigerian government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Nigerian Embassy in Russia—which oversees Kyrgyzstan—to step in and secure their release and safe return home.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Abdur-Rahman Balogun, said the agency had not yet received any formal report on the situation.
“We are not aware of this, and we have not received any petitions,” Balogun told SaharaReporters on Thursday.
Meanwhile, human rights groups and migration experts are raising the alarm over the increasing exploitation of Nigerian citizens in countries with weak diplomatic or migration oversight.
They are urging the government to strengthen bilateral ties and deploy more proactive measures to protect Nigerians abroad.
Culled: Sahara Reporters
