The Smuggling of Migrants across the Mediterranean Sea: States’ Responsibilities and Human Rights

Abstract

The main focus of this thesis is the legal framework governing the issue of migrant smuggling across the Mediterranean Sea. The objective of the thesis is to determine what States are obliged to do or refrain from doing when dealing with the issue of migrant smuggling across the Mediterranean Sea. In order to achieve that objective the thesis analyzes the relevant rules stemming from various sources of law, including customary international law, the law of the sea, transnational criminal law Human rights law and refugee law. The thesis also analyses the nexus between the relevant sources of law and exposes gaps related to the protection of human right. The first part of this thesis considers the need for States to criminalize the smuggling of migrant by sea. Therefore, the first part determines and discusses the sources of international law that may provide States with the legal grounds to criminalize the smuggling of migrants. The thesis then analyses the relevant rules from the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea that may grant States the right to intercept vessels at Sea and the nexus between the relevant provision of the Law of the Sea convention and the Smuggling Protocol. The Second part of the thesis considers the human right dimension during intercepting or rendering assistance to vessels at sea. The second part first discusses the contemporary practice of interdicting vessels engaged in smuggling migrant in the Mediterranean Sea and the associated violations of human rights obligations that take place while conducting these operations. The thesis then discuss the legal framework of search and rescue operations, and whether the current legal framework is sufficient to deal with the challenges unfolded by the current migration crisis at the Mediterranean Sea. Finally the thesis discusses the contemporary practice of NGOs conducting rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea.