“The Octopus”: The Human Trafficking and Terror Nexus of the PKK

Yıl 2022, Cilt: 1 Sayı: 2, 348 - 366, 30.06.2022

Haydar Karaman

Öz

A combination of events over the last decade triggered the largest wave of migration ever seen in and around Türkiye. Criminal networks have played a major role to smuggle the majority of people because of its profitability. Due to their financial needs, terror organizations such as the PKK (Partiya Karkerên Kurdistanê / Kurdistan Workers Party) also are took up business in human trafficking and smuggling. The PKK terrorist organization also takes part in human trafficking and migrant smuggling crimes for various purposes, directly committing these crimes or creating relations with other criminal groups for this purpose.
While the PKK terrorist group is involved in human trafficking, it also uses immigrants and its militants to rebuild its political-militarist activities outside of Türkiye. This demonstrates the importance of people smuggling and trafficking in the organization's campaign. As a result, it's critical to shed light on the link between human smuggling and trafficking, criminality, and terrorism, which has received little attention to date. The article's main goal is to make this connection more visible. To make this nexus clear, the article will begin with an examination of the link between organized crime and terrorism. The PKK terrorist organization, as well as the people smuggling and trafficking network, will be investigated using a deductive manner.

Anahtar Kelimeler

PKK Terrorist Organization, Organized Crime, Human Trafficking, Human Smuggling, Nexus

Kaynakça

• Adepoju , A. (2005). Review of research and data on human trafficking in sub-Saharan Africa. International Migration, 43(1-2), 75-98.
• Agbu, O. (2003). Corruption and human trafficking: The Nigerian case. West Africa Review, 4(1), 1-13.
• Akın, E. (2009). Anayasa mahkemesi - Yargıtay kararlari ve uluslararasi hukuk metinleri çerçevesinde terör ve terörün finansmani suçu. Adalet Press. Bruggeman, W. (2002). Illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings seen as a security problem for Europe. In European Conference on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Brussels:18-20.
• Cockayne, J. (2016). Hidden power: the strategic logic of organized crime. Oxford University Press.
• Dalman, M. and Tabak, I. (1995). Avrupa'da insan ticareti ve PKK. Türk-Alman Basın Ajansı (DTPA). Dora, Z. K. (2020). International migrants as a matter of security: Open door policy and Syrians in Turkey. Güvenlik Bilimleri Dergisi, 9(2), 501-524
• Elizabeth Pathy Salett, L. (2006). Human trafficking, the modern-day slavery. Human Rights & International Affairs.
• EUROPOL. (2011). TE-SAT 2011: EU terrorism situation and trend report, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.europol.europa.eu/publications-events/main-reports/eu-terrorism-situation-and-trend-report, [].
• EUROPOL. (2012). TE-SAT 2012: EU terrorism situation and trend report, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.europol.europa.eu/publications-events/main-reports/te-sat-2012-eu-terrorism-situation-and-trend-report
• EUROPOL. (2018). TE-SAT 2018: EU terrorism situation and trend report, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.europol.europa.eu/publications-events/main-reports/european-union-terrorism-situation-and-trend-report-2018-tesat-2018
• Farrell, A. and Pfeffer, R. (2014). Policing human trafficking: cultural blinders and organizational barriers. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 653(1): 46-64.
• Frontex (2014). Frontex annual risk analysis 2013. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://frontex.europa.eu/media-centre/news/news-release/annual-risk-analysis-2013-published-WuhFH2 Frontex (2016). Frontex annual risk analysis 2015, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://data.europa.eu/data/datasets/ara-2015?locale=en
• Gödekli, M. (2017). Terörizmin finansmani suçu. Seçkin Yayıncılık.
• Gürel, S. (2015). Terör ve terör örgütlerinin finans kaynaklari. Uluslararası Yönetim ve Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, 2(4): 15-27. Hakeri, H. (2013). Türk hukuku'nda terörle mücadelenin hukuki boyutu. Erciyes Üniversitesi Hukuk Fakültesi Dergisi, 8(2): 59-77.
• Howard, R. D. and Traughber, C. M. (2008). The ‘new silk road’of terrorism and organized crime: the key to countering the terror-crime nexus. Armed Groups: Studies in National Security, Counterterrorism, and Counterinsurgency, (pp.371-387).
• Hürriyet (2008). İnsan kaçıran çetedeki PKK’lı - The PKK members in human trafficking gang, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/insan-kaciran-cetedeki-pkk-li-10316886
• Hürriyet Daily News. (2008). Urbancic’s interviewwith Osman Sert from CNN Türk. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, http://archive.hurriyetdailynews.com/h.php?news=pkkcriminal-networks-and-fronts-in-europe-2008-03-20
• İçişleri Bakanlığı. (2019). Emniyet Genel Müdürlüğü Kaçakçılık ve Organize Suçlarla Mücadele Dairesi Başkanlığı 2001 Raporu, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.egm.gov.tr/kom/raporlarimiz
• INTERPOL. (2019). Annual report. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.interpol.int/Resources/Documents#Annual-Reports
• Karaman, H. (2021). The Nexus between illicit drug trafficking and terror: The PKK as an example of hybrid transnational threat. MANAS Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, 10(4), 2513-2527.
• Klueber, S. A. (2003). Trafficking in human beings: Law enforcement response. University of Louisville.
• Mahmoud, T. and Trebesch, C. (2010). The economics of human trafficking and labour migration: Micro-evidence from Eastern Europe, Journal of Comparative Economics, 38(2), 173-188.
• Okan, A, Erdal, H. and Bonavac, T. (2013), Terrorism people smuggling and trafficking in human beings interactivity, Lyon: INTERPOL.
• Öner, N.A.Ş. and Öner, I.S.G. (2018). Giriş: Uluslararası ilişkiler disiplininde göçün yeri (Eds. Öner, N. A. Ş. and Öner, I. S.G.). Uluslararası ilişkilerde göç: Olgular, aktörler ve politikalar. Der yayinevi.
• Öztürk, F. and Ardor, H. N. (2007). Suç sanayinin bir alanı insan ticareti: Türkiye açısından bir değerlendirme. Ekonomik Yaklaşım, 18(62): 79-102. Proksik, J. J. (2018). EULEX and the fight against organised crime in Kosovo: what’s the record? Trends in Organized Crime, 21(4): 401-425.
• Roth, M. P. and Sever, M. (2007). The Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) as criminal syndicate: Funding terrorism through organized crime, a case study. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 30(10), 901-920.
• Sabah. (2015). PKK, göçmenlerin yılda 300 milyon $’ını çalıyor! - PKK steals $ 300 million of immigrants a year!, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.sabah.com.tr/gundem/2015/09/05/pkk-gocmenlerin-yilda-300-milyon-ini-caliyor
• Sabah. (2021). Terör örgütü PKK'ya ilk kez insan kaçakçılığı soruşturması - Human smuggling investigation for the first time against the terrorist organization PKK, Accessed date: 01 May 2022,https://www.sabah.com.tr/gundem/2021/11/16/son-dakika-teror-orgutu-pkkya-ilk-kez-insan-kacakciligi-sorusturmasi
• Sarı, B. and Tınas, M. (2018). İnsanlığa ve demokrasiye terör tehdidi: PKK örneği. Polis Akademisi, Rapor No 16, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.pa.edu.tr/Upload/editor/files/PKK_Ornegi_Raporu_TR.pdf
• Shelley, L. and Picarelli, J. (2002). Methods not motives: Implications of the convergence of international organized crime and terrorism. Police Practice and Research, 3(4): 305-318.
• Türkiye: Criminal Code [Türkiye], Law No. 5237, 26 September 2004, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.refworld.org/docid/4c447a5f2.html
• The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Foreingn Affairs. (2022). PKK, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.mfa.gov.tr/pkk.en.mfa#:~:text=PKK%20is%20a%20terrorist%20organization,a%20terrorist%20entity%20in%202004.
• UN General Assembly. (2000). Protocol to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons, especially women and children, supplementing the united nations convention against transnational organized crime (Palermo Convention). Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.refworld.org/docid/4720706c0.html
• UN General Assembly. (2000, November 15). Protocol against the smuggling of migrants by land, sea and air, supplementing the United Nations convention against transnational organized crime. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.refworld.org/docid/479dee062.html
• United Nations Security Council. (2017, November 21). S/RES/2388. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=S/RES/2388%282017%29
• UNODC. (2000). Protocol against the smuggling of migrants by land, sea and air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against transnational organized crime, Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.unodc.org/documents/middleeastandnorthafrica/smuggling-migrants/SoM_Protocol_English.pdf
• USA Department of State (2015). 2015 trafficking in persons report. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2015/index.htm
• USA Department of State (2017). 2017 trafficking in persons report. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.state.gov/reports/2017-trafficking-in-persons-report/
• USA Department of State (2019). 2019 trafficking in persons report. Accessed date: 01 May 2022, https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2019-Trafficking-in-Persons-Report.pdf Williams, P. (2007). Terrorist financing and organized crime: Nexus, appropriation, or transformation? in Countering the financing of terrorism (pp. 142-165).
• Routledge. Windle, J. (2018). Fundraising, organised crime and financing terrorism. in routledge handbook of terrorism and counterterrorism (pp. 195-206). Routledge.