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Now, small-scale people smuggling hits the seas
Suspected illegal migrants
With authorities cracking down on large-scale people smuggling, a new trend has emerged where crews manning fishing boats are stealing vessels and engaging in operations on their own.
Detectives say these people smugglers only carry a small number of people, mostly from the same location and are known to each other.
Last Monday (August 15), the Sri Lanka Navy apprehended 18 persons onboard a multi-day fishing trawler named ‘Blue Star’ about 40 nautical miles off Batticaloa. It is suspected that the group was trying to head to Australia. They were handed over to the Maritime Division of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
CID’s Maritime Division Director Inspector S.P. Wijethunga said the skipper of the vessel was among those who were arrested. Inquiries revealed that the vessel’s crew had organised the operation without the knowledge of the boat owner. The 18 suspects were all from the village of Oddamavadi in Valachchenai, Batticaloa.
According to Inspector Wijethunga, crews of fishing vessels are trying to make their way illegally to various countries along with family members and others known to them. These small-scale operations draw less attention and are harder to detect.
A similar incident occurred in March, where 17 people who had set out on a boat from Negombo were taken into custody by the Navy. This operation too had been carried out by the crew of that vessel without the owner’s knowledge.
Meanwhile, the Australian Government this week, returned six Sri Lankan nationals who attempted to enter the country illegally by boat.
“Since Operation Sovereign Borders began in 2013, every Sri Lankan boat that has attempted to come to Australia illegally has failed,” a statement released from the Australian High Commission in Colombo noted.
Statistics released by the Navy reveal that incidents of people-smuggling have significantly decreased from their peak in 2012-2013 period, when well-organised, large-scale operations were the norm.
A fishing trawler used in smuggling operations
