Migrant Smuggling Data and Research

Profile of smuggled migrants
Smuggled migrants from China are largely driven by economic
opportunities abroad. Migrants tend to originate from Eastern China, who are
from relatively wealthy backgrounds and able to afford high smuggling fees
(UNODC, 2013 and 2015). In particular, Fujian province remains a key point of
origin for Chinese migrants smuggled to Western destinations, including North
America and Europe (UNODC, 2015). While most Chinese smuggled migrants
detected by German authorities are between 20 and 49 years old, one third are
children nine years old and younger (UNODC, 2013). Smuggled Chinese migrants
apprehended in Canada, the United Kingdom and the Philippines also fall within
similar age ranges – that of between 18 and 40 years old (UNODC, 2015).
Smuggled North Koreans in China are driven to cross into China by major
political, environmental, food and health security problems. The majority of
smuggled or trafficked North Korean are women. Seventy-five per cent of
migrants from North Korea who arrived in the South between 2006 and 2011
were women (Song, 2013; UNODC, 2015). Approximately 80 per cent of smuggled
North Korean refugees who are now residing in South Korea originated from
regions bordering China, such as North Hamkyong and Ryanggang, reflecting the
very strict limits on internal movement within North Korea and the inability of
people from other regions to reach the border with China. Irregular migrants are
generally between the ages of 20 and 30 years old, which could be a reflection of
the physically demanding nature of border crossing, as well as youth aspirations
(UNODC, 2015). Some Korean-Chinese (ethnically Korean Chinese citizens)
pretend to be North Korean to access South Korean subsidies and citizenship.
Profile of migrant smugglers
Migrant smuggling out of China operates in a highly organized fashion.
Information on migrant smugglers in the region often revolves around their
modus operandi and relationship with migrants. Networks facilitating migrant
smuggling are well established. The smuggling of migrants to Europe involves
a combination of national groups and non-national networks (UNODC, 2012
and 2015). The Chinese migrant smuggling business is primarily dominated by
Chinese males between 20 and 50 years of age, involving three to four core
individuals (UNODC, 2013). Chinese women are also involved in the smuggling
trade. According to UNODC estimates in 2013, approximately one out of eight
Chinese smugglers are women. Literature suggests that the smuggling of Chinese
migrants to Western Europe involve highly organized groups who maintain a
significant degree of control and oversight over the operation (UNODC, 2015).
A study in 2010 suggests that Chinese smuggling organizations form at least
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10. North-East Asia