Manuel Mallia says police forces in different continents should cooperate to combat human trafficking of migrants
Addressing the 83rd Interpol general assembly, Minister Manuel Mallia, said that human trafficking crimes have been rapidly increasing as a result of the increased migration flows away from war zones, towards better economic prospects.
This pattern is evident in the Mediterranean Sea, a frontier between the continents of European and Africa. Criminal organizations are taking advantage of the despair faced by large number of migrants, to carry put such acts. The flow of people across southern borders of Europe is posing a major security threat.
Minister Mallia said that international co-operations should go beyond the mere term of policing at borders, but rather move on to real investigations, gathering the required information and intelligence from countries which are points of assembly and departures for such migrants. Currently, police officers at borders are solely involved in search and rescue operations. He added, that the cooperation between organized police forces on both continents has become crucial, and the loss of certain borders, such as the Schengen area, makes protecting such borders more of a shared responsibility.