La tratta di esseri umani: la politica criminale multilivello e la problematica distinzione con il traffico di migranti

The paper tackles the issue of human trafficking, from a multi-level perspective.First, it considers both the human-rights-oriented approach to the matter and the importance of a law enforcement action. In the face of their diversity, the necessity will be underlined of integrating these two approaches. As an example of this holistic perspective, the UN Protocol against Trafficking in Persons sets forth a comprehensive approach, based on repressive penal measures, but also on preven- tion, cooperation between states and protection and assistance for the victims. According to the current interpretation, the difference with migrant smuggling, which is the object of a different protocol to the UN Convention on Transnational Organized Crime and aims to control migration flows, revolves around the involved persons, as victims or not of these two crimes. Such a rigid separation is also reaffirmed both in European norms and in Italian law on the matter. However, the boundary between these two phenomena is frequently blurred, as various kinds of relationships may exist between them. Italian judges, however, have frequently applied this distinction too strictly, whereas the osmotic relationship between these two criminal conducts should not be overlooked so as to ensure a more adequate protection of human dignity.