Trafficking in Human Beings and Smuggling of Migrants

This chapter deals with the forms of transnational offense constituted by trafficking in human beings for the purpose of exploitation and by the smuggling of migrants and seeks to answer the following questions: - What criminal activities constitute trafficking in human beings and smuggling of migrants? Are there internationally accepted definitions that can be used? - How are these two criminal activities undertaken? Specifically, what are the characteristics of these illicit phenomena, of the criminals, and of the victims? What are the organized crime groups involved, and what form do their modi operandi take? What routes are most widely used? - What is the impact of these crimes? How many victims are there? Is it possible to estimate the number of victims and the turnover of traffickers and smugglers in different areas of the world? - What efforts have been made to combat these crimes at the national and international levels? Is there a strategy that can be used to tackle them? - What will happen in the near future in the field of trafficking in human beings and smuggling of migrants? Is it possible to foresee likely scenarios?