logo
episode-header-image
Mar 2023
24m 17s

Migrants

Bbc World Service
About this episode

A wooden boat lies broken and wrecked off the coast of Italy after it hit rocks and sank. On board were around 200 people, mostly migrants from countries including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria, Iraq and Iran. Many died. The boat had set sail from Turkey and was attempting to cross seas in rough weather on a journey described as the deadliest migration route on the planet. The disaster has again prompted debate about what is being done to address the issue. Hosts James Reynolds and Krupa Padhy hear stories of people who have made similar journeys.

Up next
Today
Adeju Thompson: Taking fashion label Lagos Space Programme to the world
Adeju Thompson, the founder and creative director behind the Nigerian fashion label Lagos Space Programme, attempts to establish the label on the global fashion scene. Lagos Space Programme blends Yoruba heritage (notably Adire dyeing) with queer and futurist aesthetics, taking i ... Show More
26m 29s
Yesterday
Bonus: Lives Less Ordinary presents, Hold Fast!
The incredible true story of how The Avontuur was locked down at sea for 188 days during the Covid-19 pandemic, with 15 people on board. The journey begins for ship’s cook Giulia Baccosi when she accepts a last-minute job aboard the sailing cargo ship The Avontuur. She tells the ... Show More
24m 55s
Aug 23
Mud wrestling and tent pegging: Africa’s unusual sports
We take a look at some of the more unusual sports practiced on the African continent. Kelvin Kimathi recently travelled to Uganda where a muddy version of entertainment wrestling is becoming increasingly popular. Marcia Veiga discovered Capoeira Angola whilst finding a way to con ... Show More
26m 21s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2014
Surviving the Most Lethal Route in the World
One boat, two families; trying to escape war in Syria, desperate to start a new life in Europe. In October 2013, dozens of migrants aboard that boat died, as it travelled across the Mediterranean Sea. But some eventually made it to Malta. What happened next? 
50m 3s
Aug 2023
The Story of an NGO Rescue Ship That Saved 50 Migrants Stranded in the Mediterranean Sea
The number of migrants and refugees who are dying at sea while crossing the mediterranean is at a four year high.  Nearly 2,000 people are confirmed to have died in the medditeran thus far in 2023, although the real number is likely higher. In one tragedy alone, about 600 people ... Show More
26m 11s
Jul 2023
How hundreds of migrants drowned on Greece’s watch
On June 14, a ship with as many as 750 migrants aboard from countries including Pakistan and Syria sank off the Greek coast. Hundreds of people died. We hear about what happened and about a Post investigation that suggests this was a preventable tragedy.  Read more: Today on “Pos ... Show More
21m 32s
Apr 2022
Is Rwanda really the solution to Britain’s migrant issue?
Rescued from the choppy seas of the English Channel or landing on the windswept beaches of the east of England, over the last three years thousands of people in small inflatable dinghies have made the perilous crossing from France. As dozens died making the journey, the UK deploy ... Show More
28 m
Oct 2022
Migrant shipwreck tragedy highlights dangers of Mediterranean crossing
The back-to-back shipwrecks of migrant boats off Greece that left at least 22 people dead in a week has once again put the spotlight on the dangers of the Mediterranean migration route to Europe. 
5m 35s
Jan 2023
How are those who fled Somalia’s civil war coping with their trauma?
We hear a lot in the news about the treacherous journeys people take to escape conflict, violence, poverty and political instability. Thousands have drowned trying to cross the Mediterranean sea from the coasts of Libya and Tunisia.Many fleeing countries on the African continent, ... Show More
15m 57s
Jul 2015
A Mediterranean Rescue
In one of the largest operations of its kind, thousands of migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan Africa, were pulled off cramped, unseaworthy boats in the Mediterranean in June. Gabriel Gatehouse has had rare access to the operation. He follows two young men as they try to find a new ... Show More
28 m
Jul 2023
Why are people risking the journey across the Mediterranean?
This week the BBC’s James Copnall has been in Calabria, southern Italy, to report on the rising number of migrants arriving by sea. The number of people arriving has more than doubled compared to this time last year. Sadly, not everyone makes it to European shores. There have bee ... Show More
22m 27s