Illicit Flows And Trafficking Southern Europe-Maghreb
neurs operating in ethnic networks and whose behavior is governed by codes of honor drawn from their national or tribal traditions .
Neither emigrants nor immigrants , these active transmigrants in Europe have in fact fulfilled the age-old wish of liberals and libertarians , bringing about a world without borders or taxes . These transmigrants are never or almost never illegal immigrants or “ sans-papiers ”; they act with their faces uncovered and have authentic passports bearing authentic tourist visas ( usually limited to three months of presence on the soil of the country visited ).
From the Moroccans of the Maghreb to the Turks or Kurds of Anatolia or Central Asia , passing through all the ethnic entities concerned , they all circulate by “ tours ” of several months , from home to home , a bit like the fishing campaigns of the Newfoundlanders of yesteryear . This , along routes already mentioned as the “ Route of the Sultans ” in use for sometimes five or six centuries and founded under the Ottoman Empire : Eastern Iran and Afghanistan , then Turkey and the Balkans , and finally Western Europe .
On the outskirts of the European Union and sometimes now within it ( Bulgaria ), these transmigrants of the Route of the Sultans can rely on local or regional merchants from the Muslim populations and enclaves of the Balkans to whom they are often united , outside the profession , by more discreet links of belonging to Sufi brotherhoods ( Bektashis , Naqhsbandis , etc .): Bosnians , Albanians , Turks , or “ Pomaks ” of Bulgaria , Muslims of the Serbo-Montenegrin Sandjak , etc .
Let ’ s now talk about those in our field of study : their mode of action is inspired by traditional nomadism in the Maghreb and the Sahel , imported into Europe where it has been grafted onto ancient local peddling traditions .
As a rule , the nomad remains faithful to his douar , or city of origin . They have no desire for permanent integration into Europe ; nor , when they engage in informal trade , specialties or professions . Their science is , precisely , that of nomadism ; their expertise is a savoir-jouer between diverse nationalities and origins , for the purpose of commercial exchange . This system operates of course by clan “ cousinage ,” but also by exploiting various migrants or illegal immigrants — the “ ants ”— for small jobs , all along the chain .
Travelling around in vans or small vans , these informal traders — which we can now clearly see operating in Paris itself , in certain neighborhoods — possess the talents of nomads : they know when to leave , where to go , what to sell where and to whom . They also know how to circulate vital information among themselves , and quickly — a practice known in colloquial French as the “ Arabic telephone .” This practice has recently been accelerated — and even become almost immediate — by the use of cell phones .
In this world of transmigrants , the traditions of honor and vengeance of the pre-modern world still exist and are very much alive . The word given between the
63