Crowds of migrants moving from southern toward central and northern Europe, a fraction of which Slovenia has experienced briefly, are still a hot topic. Particularly due to the fact that if one of the neighbouring countries closes its borders, Slovenia could face a massive arrival of migrants on the border. How to describe certain events occurring during massive migrations, as human trafficking or smuggling of refugees, and how to recognize victims of human trafficking, were the topics of Friday's panel organized by the interdisciplinary group for actions against human trafficking and the government's press bureau.

According to Sandi Čurin from Ministry of the Interior, the national co-ordinator for actions against human trafficking, the latter is most often associated with illegal prostitution in Slovenia, but there are numerous other forms of forcing people into work. Head of the detectives specialized in preventing organized crime, Tomaž Peršolja, explained the key differences between human trafficking and smuggling. What is characteristic of human trafficking is that it occurs in three steps: luring the victim, transporting them to the chosen location, and exploiting the victim. When smuggling people, the latter search for criminal organizations themselves, seeking help in crossing the border illegally. "A victim of smuggling wants to be illegally transported from point A to point B," noted Peršolja, adding that in the case of the current migration wave it is not yet possible to assume that all migrants are victims of human trafficking.

Their wish is to get to the target countries, where they expect to live a better life than the one is areas plagued by conflicts and war. It remains to be seen if migrants might need to return the money they had borrowed for travel costs in inhumane ways. That will need to be investigated by the police authorities in the target countries.

Gregor Cerar (MMC), translated by K. Z.