From 9-13 September, the EuroMed Justice Project, in co-operation with INTERPOL Momentum MENA project and the Malta General Police organised an in-person capacity building training on Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling Investigations, in Valletta, Malta.
The 5-day course enhanced law enforcement’s and judicial authorities technical capacities in addressing transnational organized human trafficking and migrant smuggling crimes by adapting current and state-of-the-art investigation techniques and practices. It was organised under the framework of the Action Plan A: Countering the trafficking in human beings and smuggling of migrants within the cross-Mediterranean region.
Using various innovative and interactive training strategies, more than 50 human trafficking and migrant smuggling investigators, border security officers, prosecutors, and members of the judiciary from eight MENA countries were trained on addressing several cutting-edge topics relevant to the trafficking of persons and migrant smuggling crimes. It included identifying indicators and new criminal patterns and leading proactive investigations in the absence of victim cooperation, as well as prosecuting traffickers and smugglers successfully within a human rights framework.
Additionally, the training adopted a victim-centric approach, which provided participants with up-to-date practices for managing victims throughout the investigation and prosecution process. During that module, participants benefited from Eurojust’s experience via the participation of a representative of the Eurojust Victims’ Rights Working Group. The training also highlighted effective impact gender-sensitive policies could have on the success of the investigation process, especially in these types of crimes.
Lastly, the participants were introduced to new crime patterns and the challenges of the use of advanced technology like artificial intelligence in committing the crime and responding to it.