The Commission and Europol organise a conference to tackle migrant smuggling

Source: European Commission Spokesperson's Service  

On 29 and 30 April, the conference on ‘Tackling Migrant Smuggling in the digital domain’ will take place at Europol Headquarters in The Hague, The Netherlands. The event is co-organised by the European Commission and Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre with the participation of the Commission’s Deputy Director-General for Home Affairs. This conference will be the first in a series of meetings planned to address the growing phenomenon of digital migrant smuggling. It responds to the Call to Action for a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling launched on 28 November 2023.

The conference will foster dialogue between Member States’ law enforcement authorities, judiciary, Justice and Home Affairs Agencies and some key partner countries to identify common needs, promote operational cooperation and exchange good practices to tackle digital migrant smuggling. Smugglers increasingly use digital services, such as social media, in all stages of their operations ranging from advertising their services to transferring money. This use of digital services presents a new challenge to law enforcement and judicial authorities when it comes to investigating, prosecuting and convicting smugglers. As a key component of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, the EU approach to countering migrant smuggling is outlined in the EU action plan against migrant smuggling (2021-2025). To further step up the fight against smugglers, in November 2023, the Commission proposed to update the legislative framework with a Directive setting minimum rules to prevent and counter smuggling and a Regulation to reinforce Europol’s role in the fight against migrant smuggling and launched a Call to Action for a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling.