Recently, footage of African migrants being sold into slavery in Libya has been circulating, alerting us to the existence of a type of inhumane treatment many of us believed had been abolished. These are whole human beings being sold for as little as $400.

This disgusting realization has had many people wondering what we can do to make it stop. Libya is the last stopping point on the continent before migrating the treacherous Mediterranean to Europe. According to CNN, in recent years, Libya has been flooded by migrants hoping to travel to Europe. The United Nations estimates there are now between 700,000 and a million migrants in the country. Those who have crossed the Mediterranean have shared stories about beatings, kidnappings, and enslavement.

This has lead the East African country of Rwanda to step up and help those being affected. A statement was released last week by the Rwandan foreign ministry confirming that it stands in solidarity with its “African brothers and sisters still held in captivity.” Rwanda has offered refuge to around 30,000 African migrants who are being exploited and living in slave-like conditions in Libya.

"Rwanda, like the rest of the world, was horrified by the images of the tragedy currently unfolding in Libya, where African men, women, and children who were on the road to exile, have been held and turned into slaves," the statement reads. "Given Rwanda's political philosophy and our own history, we cannot remain silent when human beings are being mistreated and auctioned off like cattle."

Rwanda is notorious for the gruesome four-year Civil War which left 800,000 Rwandans killed and even more maimed. Rwanda was at the center of one of the largest refugee crises of the 20th century and two million fled the nation to neighboring countries. Still, the country is looking to help.

In order for real change to be made, Libya needs the help of the world right now. It is important that we not simply be idle spectators as people are being treated like animals. Last Friday, Dimitris Avramopoulos, the European Commissioner for Migration, described the footage of slave auctions as "shocking," saying the EU was working with international partners in the country and added that the migration crisis was "not only the responsibility of the European Union but the responsibility of the whole world."

As efforts continue to be made to end this awful reality, help from Rwanda is only the beginning.

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