Current_Trends_and_Related_Challenges_web

Migrant Smuggling in Asia
The groups involved in the smuggling of Sri
Lankan migrants to Australia are thought to
employ a great number of agents and sub-agents
throughout Sri Lanka who advertise smuggling
ventures and present — often false — information
on Australia’s immigration and asylum system.
The groups often target specific villages and even
conduct visits to homes to recruit migrants. 196 A
2013 publication pointed to the involvement of
corrupt government officials and members of the
Sri Lankan military in the smuggling of migrants. 197
Some sources refer to networks involved in the
smuggling of Sri Lankan nationals into Indonesia
as transnational organizations that maintain a
smuggling infrastructure across multiple countries
in the region. 198 Other research conducted into
the smuggling of migrants from Sri Lanka found
networks operating along the route from Sri
Lanka via South-East Asia to Australia to be less
organized than, for instance, Afghan and Iranian
smugglers operating in South-East Asia. 199
3.7.3 Smuggling networks in Europe and North
America
The great distances and complex travelling
arrangements involved in the smuggling of
migrants from South Asia to destinations in
Europe require sophisticated and professional
smuggling networks with access to high-quality
fraudulent travel and identity documents. For
these reasons, the groups and networks involved
in the smuggling of Sri Lankan migrants to Europe
are highly organized, sophisticated and effective
in their activities. 200 The 2009 research into the
smuggling of Indian migrants from Tamil Nadu
State to Europe similarly found that the groups
involved are highly professional and organized
and achieve remarkable ‘success’ rates. 201
Indian smuggling organizations tend to maintain
some level of involvement throughout the
smuggling process to Western Europe and
engage local groups and individuals along the
way. The groups involved in the smuggling of
Indian nationals appear to specialize in services
to Indian and other South Asian migrants rather
than smuggling a wider range of nationalities. 202
However, there are also reports in which Indian
smuggling networks have cooperated with
groups that smuggle Afghan, Chinese, Iraqi and
Vietnamese nationals into and across Europe, and
in some instances these groups subcontracted
one another or outsourced some of their services
to networks that were more established along
certain routes. 203
The smuggling networks that organize the
smuggling of South Asian migrants through West
Africa work in conjunction with smugglers based
in South Asia who transfer the migrants to them
and deliver some of the money paid by smuggled
migrants to their West African counterparts.
The smuggling networks in West Africa provide
transport, accommodation and food to migrants,
often throughout the entire journey to North
Africa and Europe. 204
Local operations, such as transport within or
between individual countries, tend to be carried
out by groups and individuals who organize and
drive vehicles or take responsibility for other
means of transportation. 205 These groups and
individuals are usually remunerated only for their
specific tasks and have no further involvement
with the main organizers and organizations that
oversee the entire smuggling process from Sri
Lanka to Western Europe. These arrangements
also achieve a degree of anonymity and immunity
that shields the main organizers and directors
of the smuggling ventures from detection and
penetration by law enforcement agencies. 206
Observations on groups involved in the smuggling
of Sri Lankan migrants to Canada mirror those
made in Europe. Canadian authorities point out
that smugglers operate in loose networks that are
less structured and less hierarchical than other
organized crime groups. It was also found that
there is little to no loyalty to specific groups and
networks and that individual operators switch
between different, competing groups if and when
opportunities arise. The main organizers and
directors employ local groups and individuals
to carry out specific tasks and functions along
the smuggling route from Sri Lanka to Canada.
According to the Canadian authorities, Sri Lankan
organizers generally engage the ‘lowest bidder’
to perform specialized functions within the
network. 207
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