Migrant Smuggling Data and Research

Review of data on migrant smuggling
There is a dearth of data on migrant smuggling in general, and on migrant
smuggling relating to Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in particular. The
following represent some quotes relating to data on migrant smuggling:
• With respect to Bangladesh and Pakistan: “Most of the statistical
details regarding the concerned issues [migrant smuggling] are
speculative and not very reliable” (Mehdi, 2010:4).
• With respect to India: “At present no systematic data on irregular
migration is maintained either at the state or the national level”
(Saha, 2012:21).
• General quote: “The collection of updated and reliable statistical
data was a significant challenge.” (UNODC, 2013:8).
• General quote: “Taken together, a lack of conceptual clarity and
shortage of reliable data mean that it is virtually impossible to
provide accurate estimates of the scale of refugee smuggling”
Koser (2011:261).
While there is information on refugee numbers (which may include some
smuggled migrants), there appears to be no central location for statistical data on
the number of smuggled migrants, or the characteristics of smuggled migrants
from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. This is highlighted by UNODC
(2015), having to approach host governments to provide them with information
on the number of people detected attempting illegal entry into a country. The
reasons are understandable. First, all smuggled migrants are not identified by
any authority. Second, even among smuggled migrants who apply for asylum
(and hence are identified) or are caught, records need to be maintained and
shared publicly.
Applications to Eurostat may allow researchers to access information on
refusal rates for asylum applications (one being no travel documentation), which
provides an insight into the number of migrants smuggled, but does not provide
a reliable estimation. Australia does not appear to publicly release information
relating to people who were smuggled to Australia by sea or air, and neither do
other preferred destination countries, such as Canada and the United States.
The same is the case among labour migrants to Gulf States. Ad hoc information
appears in some UN reports, drawn from interviews on the ground and unknown
sources (UNHCR, 2015b). There is also some information relating to convicted
migrant smugglers, sourced through the University of Queensland’s Migrant
Smuggling Database (University of Queensland, 2016).
Migrant Smuggling Data and Research:
A global review of the emerging evidence base
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