A small inflatable rubber dinghy approaches the coast of Lesbos loaded with refugees through crossing from Turkey, September 2015. Debets/Press Association. All rights reserved. On February 23 this year, I had the pleasure to be in
Brussels for the event “CEPS Lab – Reconstructing the Union” as a discussion
leader, and in my panel “Rights & Security” we discussed a topic central to
our era: migration and effective ways to eradicate smuggling.

Despite different opinions and perspectives
there was a general agreement that alternatives to the deadly sea journey need
to be established as soon as possible. As long as EU Member States as a whole
do not offer safe and legal ways to reach Europe, smugglers’ business will
continue to thrive, as they continue to conduct their activities with no respect
for basic human rights or international law.

So far, Europe has been mostly focused on
stopping migration flows, along with policing and border control.

Due to our perspective at the forefront of
the migration crisis at sea, at MOAS we constantly deal with the immediate and
most terrible effects of human smuggling.

The people we rescue are increasingly
reporting having been exploited, abused, beaten, kidnapped for ransom or
tortured along the journey from their country of origin to the Libyan coast. We
cannot ignore this awful reality.

Humanitarian conditions are also
deteriorating in Libya where people held in detention camps are victims of
physical and psychological abuses, sexual violence, inhuman treatment and other
human rights violations. Migrants reporting forced labour and arbitrary
detention with no access to lawyers or legal assistance are also on the
increase.

Last year, we dealt with an unprecedented
number of injuries and psychological traumas spread among the people we helped,
due to the abuses they had suffered at the hands of smugglers and human
traffickers.

This situation suggests a greater level of
systematization and industrialization among smuggling networks than in the
past, with more actors competing to maximize their opportunities and to meet the
demand.

Worth mentioning is also a change in
smuggling practices. In 2014, on an inflatable boat we would find around 75-80
people, while last year MOAS' team rescued up to 120-150 people per boat. Also,
we see the number of people packed onto wooden boats increasing, and their  condition worsening year on year.

On average 50 or 60 more people are packed on
the same boat nowadays compared to the past.

In my view, in order to defeat the smuggling
business the first option has to be to create efficient alternatives and
eradicate their networks through the implementation of humanitarian corridors
and resettlement policies.

For this reason, we strongly believe that the
focus of the EU should be on humanitarian efforts, rather than just preventing
people from getting to Europe. Smuggling networks have industrialized despite
Europe’s efforts to stop the flow by building walls and raising fences along
its external and internal borders. This approach has brought no long-term
solution to the current humanitarian crisis.

MOAS proposes the creation of valid
alternatives to uncontrolled migration flows through the establishment of safe
and legal routes. MOAS proposes the creation of
valid alternatives to uncontrolled migration flows through the establishment of
safe and legal routes.

A large-scale implementation of this model
would help to eradicate smuggling networks, as it will provide vulnerable
people with legal access to European soil. Moreover, it will increase our
safety and security since eligible candidates would be assessed in advance.

A second option is a better implementation of
the resettlement policy. This would allow a more rational distribution of
asylum seekers and refugees within Europe with the ultimate goal of integrating
them in our shared community. I personally devote special attention to this
policy since it is one of the best ways to avoid the trafficking of women.

Women are especially vulnerable to being
targeted by smugglers and more and more often they simply disappear from
reception centres and end up trapped in prostitution.

Last, but not the least, as a long-term
solution MOAS believes it is fundamentally important to spread knowledge and
information about the deadly journey.

According to the people we rescue, most of
them are totally unaware of the dangers that they will face when they are leaving
their country of origin. Many say they would not attempt the crossing again.
This huge lack of information has to be addressed as soon as possible.
Education plays a key role in improving the current situation, as well as
investing in those countries generating the highest number of refugees and
migrants. Moreover, we should explore innovative ways of eradicating the
existing push factors by improving the quality of life in the countries
generating the highest number of refugees.

In a nutshell, our proposals are: safe and
legal routes through the creation of humanitarian corridors; a better
implementation of the resettlement and relocation policies and a system of
shared information in the countries of origin.

The 2017
CEPS Ideas Lab – a key annual event on EU policy organised by the
Brussels-based think tank, the Centre for European Policy Studies – asked how
such core EU challenges as Rights & Security can be implemented with
respect for the EU rule of law and fundamental rights. Cooperating with
openDemocracy, we bring the resulting debates to this dedicated page.