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Do you see the migrants as victims or criminals, I ask Lt Col Zoltan Boross of the Hungarian police. Chief commander in the war against illegal migrants for the past 23 years, he stares over my head at a map of south-eastern Europe scarred by the thick brown arrows which migrants leave on the orderly geography of police forces. "I see them as witnesses against the smugglers," he says. The migrant route across Hungary has reopened this year, as borders through the Balkans to Austria have become harder to cross. At least 12,000 migrants have broken through the infamous razor wire fence on Hungary's southern border with Serbia this year. Most are caught within hours by the army of policemen and soldiers patrolling the Hungarian side. "Unfortunately most tell fairy tales," says Lt Col Boross. "They think if they give evidence, they won't get he...

Trafficking syndicates seeking to avoid crackdown by Thai and Malaysian authorities hold Bangladeshi and Rohingya migrants at sea Thousands of Bangladeshi and ethnic Rohingya migrants are being held in huge cargo ships by human traffickers in the Andaman Sea, according to testimony collected from survivors . First-hand accounts indicate that trafficking syndicates trading in vulnerable migrants have responded to a recent crackdown by authorities in Thailand and Malaysia by holding their victims in large vessels close to international waters, where they are ransomed for their freedom in return for money from relatives.  The practice, which has been accompanied by violence and other abuses, mirrors the fate of victims held in camps recently discovered by officials in southern Thailand and Malaysia, where dozens of mass graves have yet to be unearthed according to survivors who spoke to the Arakan Project . There is one crucial difference, however:...

RightsInfo is a new website which aims to provide a concise and engaging online guide to human rights. Inspired by news sites such as Buzzfeed and the BBC, it uses infographics and custom illustrations to summarise key human rights developments and cases in a bitesize, shareable format... Designed by digital agency Hikkendry and featuring infographics and illustrations by Information is Beautiful , RightsInfo offers a basic introduction to human rights for UK and EU residents. Launched at an event in London last night, the site presents a timeline of human rights developments, dating from the Magna Carta to the present day and an illustrated guide to protection offered by the European Convention and the Human Rights Act. It also contains a section debunking popular human rights myths. The site was was founded by Adam Wagner, a human rights lawyer and editor of the  Human Rights Blog , which reports on cases and policies. While his blog is aimed at legal profess...

Sarkas Rani, a 36-year-old Syrian was quoted on Sunday by Italian daily La Repubblica as saying he was contacted in Turkey by human traffickers who had posted notices on Facebook offering clandestine passage to Europe for $5,000 for individuals, or $4,500 per person in groups of 25 or more. "They promised me $15,000 and the possibility of sending my entire family over," Rani was quoted as saying by La Repubblica, which used transcripts of a police interrogation after the Syrian was arrested December 31 in the Italian port of Gallipoli. The Blue Sky M was intercepted Wednesday by Italian authorities as it was locked on a course towards Italy's coast with 768 migrants aboard. According to La Repubblica, Rani acknowledged having left the bridge to hide among the migrant passengers once he had set the ship's autopilot toward Italy's southern shore. Italian naval officers later boarded the Moldovan-registered Blue Sky M just five miles (eight kil...

This blogpost is in English as I hope it will reach the people in the refugeecamps around the world. People will come to you and promise you houses, jobs and places at university in Europe. You "only" have to pay them around 10,000 dollar for each family member and they will take care of everything for you. WHAT IS A LIE They will smuggle you to Europe and that is very dangerous. Many people die on that journey. And if you survive you will not get a house and a job and a spot at the university. First the immigration service will check if you are a 'real' refugee. And even when you get a permit you will have to work very hard to succeed in that foreign culture. BUT There are European countries that give residence permits to entrepreneurs. I was told today that Latvia will even do that for an investment of 35000 euro. Countries like Cyprus, Malta, Hungary have similar policies but they are more expensive. If you can borrow money to pay to get your whole famil...

 Failed Migrant’s Journey to Europe Echoes in Africa Mustaf Hussein Abukar. Heidi Vogt/The Wall Street Journal MOGADISHU, Somalia— Mustaf Hussein Abukar wanted a better life for his younger brother, in Europe. Instead, he got an encounter with a human-smuggling racket that nearly bankrupted his family, a common story in this East African nation and across the continent. Two years ago, Mustaf Abukar sold his father’s farm to help pay his brother’s smugglers in the hope his sibling might prosper in Europe. But German security forces caught the brother, Hashim, trying to sneak into the country, and he has been stuck in immigration limbo for the past year. Now without land or savings, Mustaf says he is near destitution. He thinks about what Hashim could have done with the money they spent, such as starting a business in Mogadishu to sell mobile phone credit. “I regret it,” Mustaf Abukar said. “Really, it was a big mistake.” Lees hier verder voor het lange artik...