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People smuggling is a term which is used to describe transportation of people across international borders to a non-official entry point of a destination country for a variety of reasons. Typically those being transported may not have adequate formal travel documents or prior approval to enter the destination country.

Above: Over a thousand men, smuggled into Oman, return to Pakistan by boat after they were arrested and imprisoned. Thousands of South Asians are smuggled into the Middle East; but they are arrested and deported back each year - Pic by Ansar Burney Trust

People smugglers are often used by refugees fleeing persecution, although many people who are smuggled are seeking to better their employment and financial opportunities. However, with the growing restrictions on refugee policies worldwide, illegal immigrants escaping persecution or extremely difficult living conditions are often interpreted as mere economic migrants. Interpol, in a recent communication, described people smuggling as follows:

People smuggling has become the preferred trade of a growing number of criminal networks world-wide which are showing an increasing sophistication in regard to move larger numbers of people at higher profits than ever.

In the Southwest United States, a "coyote" is a person paid to smuggle illegal immigrants across the border between Mexico and the United States. Snakeheads are smugglers from China who smuggle people into the United States and other Western countries.

Human trafficking differs from people smuggling. A people smuggler will facilitate illegal entry into a country for a fee, but on arrival at their destination, the smuggled person is usually free. Trafficking involves a process of using physical force, fraud or deception to obtain and transport people. Women, who form the majority of trafficking victims, are particularly at risk from criminals who exploit lack of opportunities, promise good jobs or opportunities for study, and then force the victims to be prostitutes. To many, the contemporary phenomenon of trafficking in human beings is equivalent to slavery.

• Trafficking in human beings
• Snakehead (gang), gangs in China that smuggle people
• Abu Quassey
• Immigration

• Ansar Burney Trust - organisation working against human smuggling and trafficking
• Havocscope Human Smuggling Market
• Amnesty International, People Smuggling - fact sheet