8 - A Researcher’s Visit to Italy: Human trafficking and the Nigerian-Sicilian Mafias
African Sociological Review,
Vol. 23 No. 1 (2019): African Sociological Review
Abstract
This essay interrogates the complex nexus between organized crime and migrants within host countries. It specifically focuses on the surge of irregular migrants crossing the Central Mediterranean to Italy and the emergence of Nigerian criminal gangs who have cemented an ignoble but enduring cord with the Sicilian notorious mafia. This network, which took on a life of its own, has changed the traditional map of organised crime on the Island, defying both regional and global measures. The essay expresses concern on how Sicily intends to stop being “the refugee camp of Europe” through increased repatriations in the face of the financial, logistical and humanitarian implications of such an undertaking.
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- Agius, Connie (2015) How organised crime profits from Italy’s immigration boom, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-06/agius-migrants-and-organised- crime/6829714 Associated Press (2018) Italy stems immigration, short on aiding indebted sex slaves, March 7
- Bhalla, Nita (2018) Africa’s human trafficking is flourishing, and SA is on its route, BusinessDay, July 31
- Bonaccorso, Nicole (2018) From Refugee to Commodity, https://features.weather.com/exodus/chapter/from-refugee-to-commodity/
- Dickie, John (2004) Cosa Nostra: A History of the Sicilian Mafia, Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Emma Wallis (2019) Tricked, trafficked and sold: How criminal gangs are bringing Nigerian women to Italy, https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/14725/tricked-trafficked-and-sold-how-criminal-gangs-are-bringing-nigerian- women-to-italy
- EPSC Strategic Notes (2017) Irregular Migration via the Central Mediterranean, http://www.statewatch.org/news/2017/feb/eu-com-epsc-note-irregular-migration-central-med-2-2-17.pdf
- Esslemont, Tom (2016) As Nigerian sex trafficking rises, Italy tracks crime kingpins, Thomson Reuters Foundation news, November 9
- Filitz, John (2018) Nigerian Women’s Ill-fated Pursuit of a Better Life: Understanding the Dynamics of Migration, https://oefresearch.org/think-peace/nigerian- women-understanding-dynamics-migration
- Filitz, John (2018) Nigerian Women’s Ill-fated Pursuit of a Better Life: Understanding the Dynamics of Migration, https://oefresearch.org/think-peace/nigerian- women-understanding-dynamics-migration
- Guidroz, Bobby J. (2017) The difference between human trafficking and smuggling, https://eu.dailyworld.com/story/opinion/columnists/2017/09/06/difference-between-human-trafficking-and-smuggling/621095001/
- Human Rights Watch (2019) No Escape from Hell: EU Policies Contribute to Abuse of Migrants in Libya, https://www.hrw.org/report/2019/01/21/no-escape-hell/eu-policies-contribute-abuse-migrants-libya
- Lorenzo, Tondo (2016) Mafia at a crossroads as Nigerian gangsters hit Sicily’s shores, The Guardian, June 11
- Martelli, Sarah (2018) A Long Journey for a Chance at a Second Life, https://www.unicef.org/innovation/stories/uReportonthemoveLongJourney
- Meers, Jelter (2017) Italy: After Cosa Nostra, Nigerian Black Axe New Foe for Police, https://www.occrp.org/en/27-ccwatch/cc-watch-briefs/8095-aly-after-cosa-nostra-nigerian-black-axe-new-foe-for-police
- Merelli, Annalisa (2017) Rescuing refugees is a matter of common sense on the paradisiacal island of Lampedusa, Quartz Daily Brief, February 3
- Mwangaguhunga, Ron (2018) Nigerian Gangs, The Mafia, Human Trafficking And Italy, https://www.openletr.co/find-your-truth/nigerian-gangs-the-mafia-human-trafficking-and-italy3182018
- Osborne, Simon (2016) The Black Axe: Italy faces chilling new organised crime group more ruthless than the mafia, Express, November 21
- Politzer, Malia and Kassie, Emily (2016) The 21st Century Gold Rush: How the refugee crisis is changing the world economy, https://highline.huffingtonpost.com/articles/en/the-21st-century-gold-rush-refugees/#/niger
- Reguly, Eric (2018) Refugee crisis a multibillion-dollar honeypot for Italian Mafia, https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/refugee-crisis-a-multibillion-dollar-honeypot-for-italian-mafia/article27186445/
- Save the Children, Italy (2017) Young Invisible Enslaved: Children Victims Of Trafficking and Labour Exploitation, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/library/young-invisible-enslaved-children-victims-trafficking-and-labour- exploitation-italy
- The Telegraph (2017) Nigerian girls as young as 13 increasingly trafficked to Italy to work as street prostitutes, September 14
- Transparency International (2011) Breaking the Chain: Corruption and Human Trafficking,https://www.transparency.org/news/feature/breaking_the_chain_corruption_and_human_trafficking
- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2008) Human Trafficking: An Overview, https://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/2008/ HumanTrafficking-AnOverview.pdf
- Von, Helen Hecker (2018) From Refugee to Sex Slave: How African women are propelled into prostitution, https://www.deine-korrespondentin.de/from- refugee-to-sex-slave/
- Walter, Mayr (2017) Paradise Looted: How Sicily Became Ungovernable, Spiegel Online, November 10
References
Agius, Connie (2015) How organised crime profits from Italy’s immigration boom, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-06/agius-migrants-and-organised- crime/6829714 Associated Press (2018) Italy stems immigration, short on aiding indebted sex slaves, March 7
Bhalla, Nita (2018) Africa’s human trafficking is flourishing, and SA is on its route, BusinessDay, July 31
Bonaccorso, Nicole (2018) From Refugee to Commodity, https://features.weather.com/exodus/chapter/from-refugee-to-commodity/
Dickie, John (2004) Cosa Nostra: A History of the Sicilian Mafia, Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Emma Wallis (2019) Tricked, trafficked and sold: How criminal gangs are bringing Nigerian women to Italy, https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/14725/tricked-trafficked-and-sold-how-criminal-gangs-are-bringing-nigerian- women-to-italy
EPSC Strategic Notes (2017) Irregular Migration via the Central Mediterranean, http://www.statewatch.org/news/2017/feb/eu-com-epsc-note-irregular-migration-central-med-2-2-17.pdf
Esslemont, Tom (2016) As Nigerian sex trafficking rises, Italy tracks crime kingpins, Thomson Reuters Foundation news, November 9
Filitz, John (2018) Nigerian Women’s Ill-fated Pursuit of a Better Life: Understanding the Dynamics of Migration, https://oefresearch.org/think-peace/nigerian- women-understanding-dynamics-migration
Filitz, John (2018) Nigerian Women’s Ill-fated Pursuit of a Better Life: Understanding the Dynamics of Migration, https://oefresearch.org/think-peace/nigerian- women-understanding-dynamics-migration
Guidroz, Bobby J. (2017) The difference between human trafficking and smuggling, https://eu.dailyworld.com/story/opinion/columnists/2017/09/06/difference-between-human-trafficking-and-smuggling/621095001/
Human Rights Watch (2019) No Escape from Hell: EU Policies Contribute to Abuse of Migrants in Libya, https://www.hrw.org/report/2019/01/21/no-escape-hell/eu-policies-contribute-abuse-migrants-libya
Lorenzo, Tondo (2016) Mafia at a crossroads as Nigerian gangsters hit Sicily’s shores, The Guardian, June 11
Martelli, Sarah (2018) A Long Journey for a Chance at a Second Life, https://www.unicef.org/innovation/stories/uReportonthemoveLongJourney
Meers, Jelter (2017) Italy: After Cosa Nostra, Nigerian Black Axe New Foe for Police, https://www.occrp.org/en/27-ccwatch/cc-watch-briefs/8095-aly-after-cosa-nostra-nigerian-black-axe-new-foe-for-police
Merelli, Annalisa (2017) Rescuing refugees is a matter of common sense on the paradisiacal island of Lampedusa, Quartz Daily Brief, February 3
Mwangaguhunga, Ron (2018) Nigerian Gangs, The Mafia, Human Trafficking And Italy, https://www.openletr.co/find-your-truth/nigerian-gangs-the-mafia-human-trafficking-and-italy3182018
Osborne, Simon (2016) The Black Axe: Italy faces chilling new organised crime group more ruthless than the mafia, Express, November 21
Politzer, Malia and Kassie, Emily (2016) The 21st Century Gold Rush: How the refugee crisis is changing the world economy, https://highline.huffingtonpost.com/articles/en/the-21st-century-gold-rush-refugees/#/niger
Reguly, Eric (2018) Refugee crisis a multibillion-dollar honeypot for Italian Mafia, https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/refugee-crisis-a-multibillion-dollar-honeypot-for-italian-mafia/article27186445/
Save the Children, Italy (2017) Young Invisible Enslaved: Children Victims Of Trafficking and Labour Exploitation, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/library/young-invisible-enslaved-children-victims-trafficking-and-labour- exploitation-italy
The Telegraph (2017) Nigerian girls as young as 13 increasingly trafficked to Italy to work as street prostitutes, September 14
Transparency International (2011) Breaking the Chain: Corruption and Human Trafficking,https://www.transparency.org/news/feature/breaking_the_chain_corruption_and_human_trafficking
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2008) Human Trafficking: An Overview, https://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/2008/ HumanTrafficking-AnOverview.pdf
Von, Helen Hecker (2018) From Refugee to Sex Slave: How African women are propelled into prostitution, https://www.deine-korrespondentin.de/from- refugee-to-sex-slave/
Walter, Mayr (2017) Paradise Looted: How Sicily Became Ungovernable, Spiegel Online, November 10