"Letters to the Editor: Taking the fight to people-smugglers"

A letter by Dame Sara Thornton, the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner, features in The Sunday Times on the tragic discovery of the bodies of 39 Vietnamese men, women and teenagers in Grays, Essex.

"Letters to the Editor: Taking the fight to people smugglers" (The Sunday Times, 03/11/19)

The tragic loss of 39 young lives illustrates the vulnerability of those on perilous journeys to achieve a better life ("Dreams of new life end with bloody handprints in a lorry", News, last week). A smuggled migrant may become a trafficking victim at any time. Paying to travel also leads to debt bondage. We need more effective policing of the border and greater use of technology and intelligence.

You can read the full letter here.