European Union initiatives to address people smuggling from Libya

Abstract

The EU has constantly addressed the issue of migration as part of its foreign policy. Recently however, in light of the migration crisis in 2014, the EU had to take further action to effectively deal with the arrival of large numbers of irregular migrants. Most of these migrants travel to Europe through smuggling services which involves crossing country borders illegally to get to an ideal departure point such as Libya and to then cross the Mediterranean Sea. Throughout the journey migrants‟ lives and safety are at risk while smugglers profit from their vulnerability. However, due to a lack of legal channels this still remains one of the most used methods to get to Europe and the unstable political situation in Libya has further contributed to the growth of the smuggling industry. This study aims to identify the main EU initiatives regarding irregular migration and to assess their effectiveness in addressing people smuggling from Libya. The effects of Operation Sophia and the EU-Turkey statement are analysed by comparing migration statistics prior to and after the implementation of these measures. Results show that whilst certain initiatives are effective and successful in achieving their original aims, other initiatives have been effective only up to a certain extent. This is evident in the case of the EU-Turkey statement which led to the closure of the eastern Mediterranean route and as a result redirected migrants to the central route. This shows how certain measures can have counter-productive effects that undermine their initial objectives.