Migrants as a profitable business model

Migrants who seek international protection in the European Union are usually reliant on smugglers to make their journey. This study involves a review of the statements of 124 witnesses who were questioned within the framework of an international criminal investigation into a criminal organisation involved in the people smuggling of African migrants to Europe, as conducted by the Netherlands Public Prosecution Service (in Dutch: Openbaar Ministerie, OM).

Analysis of the statements suggests that the treatment witnesses say they experienced in Libya qualifies not only as (violent) people smuggling, but also as human trafficking. What they experienced points to a gross violation of human dignity and integrity, with smugglers deliberately abusing the migrants’ vulnerable position for their own monetary gain.