Human Smugglers: Lesser Of The Evils

Human Trafficking Dept: Toews, in announcing an anti-trafficking program modelled after Crime Stoppers, acknowledged that smuggling -- facilitating the illegal movement of people across international borders -- can sometimes become trafficking, which is defined as the exploitation of migrants who cannot pay the usurious fees they are charged. Toews' "Blue Blindfold" campaign calls on Canadians to report suspicious activity, such as migrants who are forced into the sex trade to pay off debts, according to Calgary Herald. Both initiatives come in the wake of last month's arrival of the MK sun Sea, a ship carrying hundreds of Tamil migrants. The going rate commanded by smugglers is about $50,000 per head for their Asian clients, a figure leading to the assumption that only the wealthy can afford it. This is hardly the case. Smugglers, whether they be Mexican "coyotes" or Asian "snakeheads," often operate on convenient instalment plans. Those who miss payments risk having loved ones back home being raped, tortured or killed. Or, they can be threatened directly and o n Tuesday, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews drew a distinction between human smuggling and human trafficking. The impression he left was that smuggling is the lesser of the evils. Whether someone is involved in human smuggling or human trafficking to us seems irrelevant. When human beings are treated as commodities, those involved should be dealt with harshly, which is why we prefer the less-muddied suggestion made by Immigration Minister Jason Kenney that there be mandatory minimum jail sentences for human smugglers. As reported in the news.
@t vic toews, calgary herald