Addressing Migrant Smuggling in the European Union. Challenges for a Non-Criminalized, Coordinated and Effective Response

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18543/ced.2588
Keywords: smuggling, organised criminal groups, hotspots, Europol, Eurojust

Abstract

Migrant smuggling is a highly complex criminal phenomenon. Clearly cross-border in nature, smuggling frequently involves the participation of organized criminal groups. A coherent approach to these activities requires a clear and correctly implemented regulation, in the case of the EU the reference regulation is the ‘Facilitators’ package’. In the present contribution several controversies that this framework entails will be pointed out, especially the excessive criminalization and the neglect of the human rights perspective. Furthermore, the eradication of smuggling requires the sum of efforts and coordinated action of different actors such as national authorities and European agencies. In this paper some actions carried out by Europol in the Mediterranean will be studied. Focusing on the role of this law enforcement agency in the hotspots, the contribution of the information gathered and the benefits for Eurojust will be evaluated.

Received: 31 July 2022
Accepted: 10 October 2022

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Author Biography

Mirentxu Jordana Santiago, Univeristat de Girona, Spain

PhD in International Relations and European Integration from the University Autònoma de Barcelona. She is graduated in law from the University Autònoma de Barcelona and master in European Integration at the University Institute of European Studies. Nowadays, she is an assistant professor in Public International Law and European Union Law at the University of Girona. Her current research interests are chiefly focused on the cooperation against criminal matters in the European Union and tasks conferred to the EU agencies. She is also interested in the external action of the European Union and Human Rights protection.

Published
2022-12-13
How to Cite
Jordana Santiago, Mirentxu. 2022. “Addressing Migrant Smuggling in the European Union. Challenges for a Non-Criminalized, Coordinated and Effective Response”. Deusto Journal of European Studies, no. 06 (December), 165-88. https://doi.org/10.18543/ced.2588.
Issue
No. 06 (2022): SPECIAL ISSUE. The EU Migration, Border Management and Asylum Reform in the Aftermath of the «Refugee Crisis»: Towards an Effective Enforcement
Section
Articles

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