2022/12/13 by Conny Rijken · 1 voice
Social Sciences · #Asian Geopolitics and Ethnography #International Law and Human Rights #Sex work and related issues
paper · doi:10.4337/9781786439635.00032
openalex publication_date 2022/12/13 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/02
Human trafficking and human smuggling are often confused and the terms are used interchangeably. Both are considered criminal offences but are different in the harm they cause and the motivations to criminalise the behaviour. This chapter discusses the legal definitions of human trafficking and human smuggling before explaining how these phenomena are interrelated. By addressing four ways in which smuggling can turn into trafficking the blurring boundaries between trafficking and smuggling are analysed. The significance of distinguishing the two is primarily related to the protection and assistance granted to victims of trafficking but not to those who have been smuggled. Therefore, the protection regime in migration law in the EU is discussed and the potential contribution of refugee law to the protection of victims of trafficking is assessed.