In December 1998, the United Nations General Assembly established an intergovernmental, ad-hoc committee and charged it with developing a new international legal regime to fight transnational organized crime. In October 2000, after eleven sessions involving participation from more than 120 states, the ad-hoc committee concluded its work. The centerpiece of the new regime is the Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime. The convention is supplemented by three additional treaties (protocols), dealing respectively with Smuggling of Migrants, Trafficking in Persons- Especially Women and Children, and Trafficking in Firearms. The first three of these instruments were adopted by the General Assembly in November 20007 and opened for signature at a high-level intergovernmental meeting convened in Palermo, Italy, in December 2000. They are expected to enter into force within the next two years. The significance of these developments should not be underestimated. The Vienna process, as it has come to be known, represents the first serious attempt by the international community to invoke the weapon of international law in its battle against transnational organized crime. Perhaps even more notable is the selection of trafficking and migrant smuggling as the subjects of additional agreements. Both issues are now high on the international political agenda. While human rights concerns may have provided some impetus (or cover) for collective action, it is the sovereignty/security issues surrounding trafficking and migrant smuggling which are the true driving force behind such efforts. Wealthy states are increasingly concerned that the actions of traffickers and migrant smugglers interfere with orderly migration and facilitate the circumvention of national immigration restrictions. Opportunities for lawful migration to the preferred destinations have dramatically diminished at the same time as individuals are moving further, faster, and in far greater numbers than ever before. A growing demand for third-party assistance in the migration process is a direct consequence of this reality. Evidence of organized criminal involvement in trafficking and migrant smuggling operations has provided affected states with additional incentives to lobby for a stronger international response.

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smuggling immigration human rights United Nations