BREAKING: RESEARCH EXPOSES REAL TRAFFICKERS FROM AFRICA TO EUROPE

Independent operators rather than criminal kingpins control routes that bring migrants into Europe from Africa, researchers said on Monday.

No fewer than 600,000 migrants have reached Italy, mostly from Libya, since 2014. Also, no fewer than 20,000 are estimated to have died attempting the crossing in the past four years, making it the deadliest border for migrants in the world.

“This is a far cry from how Mafia-like organisations operate, and a major departure from media reports claiming that shadowy kingpins monopolise certain routes.” Many entrusted their lives to smugglers who charge exorbitant prices to help them reach Europe. The study examined the findings of an 18-month investigation by Italian prosecutors into the 2013 migrant shipwreck off the coast of the Italian island of Lampedusa, in which more than 360 migrants died, most of them from Eritrea and Somalia. While conducting his research, Campana also analysed wiretapped telephone conversations, testimonies, interviews with police task force members, and smugglers’ backgrounds. Libya, where rival governments and armed factions are vying for power, is the most common departure point for migrants trying to reach Europe from Africa by sea. Campana said the people smuggling was not an organized operation with “independent and autonomous” smugglers at each stage. Successful smugglers need to build a good reputation among migrants in order to attract customers, he said. “Reputation is crucial in a competitive market, and the wiretaps show how much value smugglers place on their reputation,” Campana said. The smuggling and trafficking of people are often conflated, but a key difference is that traffickers transport people for the purposes of exploitation, such as forced labor and forced marriage. Campana said prosecutors had found no evidence of any involvement from the infamous Sicilian mafia in the Lampedusa disaster, in spite of Sicily being a key stage in the smuggling route. Instead, he said, 292 people from several countries were found to be tied to the Lampedusa smuggling ring. The network extended to Dubai, Israel, Canada, Turkey, Germany and the UK, and included those who kidnap for ransom in the deserts of Libya to Tripoli militiamen who take bribes to let migrants out of detention centers. Europol, Europe’s police agency, said people-smuggling generated up to six billion dollars in 2015, but profits dropped by about a third in 2016 after an EU deal with Turkey, a key jumping off point for those trying to reach Europe – cut the migration flow. (Reuters/NAN)

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2018/01/human-trafficking-lone-operators-dominate-people-smuggling-africa/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PAUL UNONGO FINALLY PAYS COW DEBT OWED FULANI BY TIV!!!

So eloquent, informative and full of wisdom... try and read through to the end: PAUL UNONGO FINALLY PAYS COW DEBT OWED FULANI BY TIV!! Read full text of speech below: SPEECH BY WANTAREGH PAUL IYORPUU UNONGO ON THE OCCASION OF THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION OF HIS EMINENCE, MUHAMMAD SA’AD ABUBAKAR AS THE SULTAN OF SOKOTO ON THE 31st OCTOBER, 2016 Protocols I am honoured to be part of this epoch making occasion in honour of a great man, a great leader, who sits on the throne of a line of great men and leaders. As a Tiv man, I come as a friend, a brother and a comrade. I come as a Northerner, for it is not immoral and subversive to suggest that our loyalties must first be to ourselves. I come with a strong belief and conviction in what our great Arewa stands for. And as a Nigerian, I come as a compatriot with all the faith in the non- negotiable indivisibility of the nation-state of Nigeria. I come with peace, I bring you goodwill, and I stretch forth my hand of fellowship and...
Read more

THE MANY HEALTH BENEFITS OF LOCUST BEANS (NUNE)

Image
By Oluwatoba Olaitan It is used for local seasoning of soups, from bitter-leaf soup, okra soup to fried pepper stew for local rice. Indeed, the fermented seeds of Parkia biglobosa or African locust bean tree are used in all parts of Nigeria and the West Coast of Africa for seasoning traditional soups. Commonly known in Yoruba as iru, or irugba, in Hausa as dawadawa, Nune in Tiv, and in lbo as daddawa, African locust beans when boiled and fermented is rich in lipid (29 per cent), protein (35 per cent), carbohydrate (16 per cent) essential vitamins and minerals such as calcium, fat, potassium, Vitamin C and phosphorus. Processing locust beans seeds is very crucial as it helps to boost its nutritional value, reduces its natural or synthetic compounds that hinder the absorption of nutrients, boosts its digestibility and enriches its unique flavour in order to boost the smell and taste of food. Local research has shown that locust bean helps to promote good sight and drives away hyperte...
Read more

NAPTIP ARRESTS CHILD TRAFFICKERS IN ANAMBRA

Image
NAPTIP Arrests 11 Child Traffickers In Anambra State …Rescues 3 Children The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has arrested 11 persons for suspected child trafficking, abduction and sale of children. They were arrested in different parts of Anambra state in a combined operation carried out with the support of the operatives of the Directorate of the State Services (DSS). The suspects comprising 8 women and 3 men were said to have belonged to a criminal syndicate that specialized in kidnapping and sale of babies across the country notably the States of the South-East, Lagos and Abuja. Three children whose ages range from 8 months to 4 years were recovered during the operation while scores of other children believed to have been trafficked by the gang are yet to be found. Among the children were a 2 - year old girl who was reportedly stolen from Lagos sometimes ago and another 4 - year old boy who was allegedly stolen from his parents in Gud...
Read more