Luigi Achilli: The Illegal Production of Legality. The role of migrant smuggling and human trafficking in Europe's migration regime

This presentation explores the role of so-called transnational criminal groups within migration governance, challenging traditional views that frame these groups solely as threats or peripheral actors. Highlighting findings from empirical research on migrant smuggling and human trafficking in Greece and Libya, it examines the complex interactions between criminal organizations, state authorities, and other key stakeholders. The study reveals that smugglers and traffickers do not merely disrupt migration governance but actively shape it. In this presentation, I will illustrate this by examining specific instances where their roles contribute to reproducing the very legal fabric of migration governance. This perspective offers a paradigm shift by acknowledging criminal actors as integral, rather than marginal, players in migration governance, urging both scholars and practitioners to rethink the nature of migration governance.

Luigi Achilli is a part-time assistant professor at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy, and an affiliated researcher in the WARFUN project at the Chr. Michelsen Institute in Bergen, Norway. He taught at Cambridge, SOAS, and various universities in the Middle East. His work focuses on irregular migration, forced displacement, smuggling networks, and transnational crime.