Irregular Migration or Human Trafficking? The Realities of Cross-border Population Mobility in Western Sudan

Abstract

A new public discourse labels irregular migration as human trafficking. The new discourse has been shaped by emerging globalized migration patterns and the increased securitization of Europe’s borders. This brief traces the history of Sudan as an origin and transit country of migration, and examines the discrepancies between the self-image of the actors who facilitate irregular migration and the policy makers who try to stop it.