kidnapping and extortionate detention are a normalised part of the exploitation People on the move
A new Briefing highlights patterns of severe violations faced by refugees and migrants, and labour trafficking from Thailand to Malaysia is on the rise.
The Mixed Migration Centre’s 4Mi project gathers hundreds of interviews with refugees and migrants on the move every month and has developed extensive data sets across several migratory routes. This data indicates that kidnapping and extortionate detention have become a normalized part of the criminal exploitation of refugees and migrants on the move.
A newly published briefing paper offers a deep exploration of experiences from the Horn of Africa, using interviews with and surveys of refugees and migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia to illustrate the role of kidnapping and extortionate detention in mixed migration flows along three routes out of the region. Other issues discussed include how social media is both a boon and a menace to those on the move; the impunity enjoyed by perpetrators; and how the distinction between migrant smuggling and human trafficking is blurred by these types of crime and exploitation.
Kidnapping for ransom and extortionate detention are risks faced – to widely varying degrees – by refugees and migrants on all three routes out of the Horn of Africa. Available recent 4Mi data shows that the risks are highest on the Northern route when compared to the Southern route, but historically and continuing today the highest prevalence of kidnapping and abduction remains the Eastern route to Yemen and the Gulf States.
Traveling to popular destinations such as Europe, South Africa, and Saudi Arabia requires many refugees and migrants to transit countries that are fragile in terms of economy, rule of law, institutional capacity, democracy, and peace. For others, problems occur at destination countries such as Egypt, Kenya, Libya, Sudan, and Yemen.
Overall, smugglers play a dominant role in the kidnapping and detention business, but state officials are also active. In relation to the treatment of Eritreans, Ethiopians and Somalis from the Horn of Africa, in many cases, “what in the eyes of the migrant was smuggling of migrants was actually human trafficking from the very beginning”. In all cases and all routes impunity is endemic for perpetrators who see refugees and migrants using irregular pathways as easy prey and as a seemingly unending flow of potential victims ripe for financial and/or sexual exploitation.
Data is relatively scarce, and this area of mixed migration and international crime is under-researched. This may be partly due to the fact that some analysts and commentators prefer to view smuggling as a victimless crime against the state and prefer to de-emphasize the criminal and harmful aspects of smuggling (that also include detention, commonly).
In addition to the regional focus on the Horn of Africa, the paper also includes some general and global observations and case studies from Thailand and Malaysia, Mexico, and Europe.
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