"A facilitator of illegal immigration". Look, this isn't complex #r4today. Yes, they are both run by gangs, but there is a difference between "trafficking" and "smuggling", which might not be important to some, but damn sure is to those affected. 1/
Smugglers tend to take an upfront fee and facilitate entry. Traffickers often exploit people after they have transported them. The changes of trafficked victims not knowing where they are heading is also far higher. 2/
In no way defending either, both prey on vulnerable asylum seekers, but conflating the two confuses an already layered and complex issue. It also won't be tackled by closing routes, penalising victims or picking up individuals. 3/
In both smuggling and traffificking the main people tend to be removed from actual operations, and has been seen with prosecutions of asylum seekers who have been forced to steer boats, often you end up only prosecuting victims of gangs. 4/
Any genuine solution for tackling both smuggling and trafficking has to start with putting asylum seekers needs first and ensuring better access to the UK'S asylum system. Anything else just ensures a never ending cycle, inevitably with traffickers actually benefiting the most 5/
"trafficking".
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
