Migrant Smuggling Data and Research

the spike in irregular migration from Sri Lanka to Australia in 2012, as well as
the large number of Rohingya fleeing Bangladesh in 2015. These flows may be
influenced by policies of destination and source countries, as well as respective
economic, security and political situations and even technological advances
(McAuliffe and Jayasuriya, 2016; McAuliffe, 2016).
In the foreseeable future, several potential changes can be expected in
relation to migrant smuggling. The fees charged by migrant smugglers change,
depending on supply and demand factors, as well as restrictions imposed by
different countries. The flows to certain countries may be diverted to others,
depending in part on the relative tightening and loosening of irregular migration
policies. The favoured routes may change, which may also impact on migrant
smugglers’ profits. The structure of smuggling operations may evolve over time.
Regular research and intelligence gathering in source countries would
present policymakers with information on the evolving cost structures and
operations of migrant smugglers. This could be employed cost-effectively using
qualitative techniques, such as commissioning researchers to interview migrant
smugglers in local communities. Quantitative techniques may allow a greater
understanding as to the migrant smuggling market, however could be more
costly. Such information could equip policymakers with a greater understanding
of the migrant smuggling processes, but also present insights into how such
processes can be disrupted and as a result, hopefully protect migrants from
exploitation and abuse.
To sum up, this chapter suggests that three major aspects of migrant
smuggling need to be further investigated. First, while drivers of irregular
migration and migrant smuggling are studied, the literature examines largely
individual or household characteristics. Research that accounts for not only
individual characteristics of the smuggled migrant and the smuggler, but also
broader structures, such as political, economic, environmental and cultural
factors, including social networks and the role of social media, need to be
undertaken to develop a fuller understanding. Such research can combine both
quantitative and qualitative research approaches, involving multisited fieldwork
along major migrant smuggling routes connecting source, transit and destination
countries. Second, while the grey literature on smugglers and how they work
is abundant, systematic research is required to understand the perspectives of
smugglers – risks and benefits – situating them in a context where they live,
along with their connections with government authorities. Finally, the need
for research is paramount to understanding transnational links between the
smuggled migrants and their family members living back home in terms of social
and economic implications.
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8. South Asia