An undercover investigation has exposed the horror ordeals suffered by those desperate for a new life in Britain.
Journalists from Al Jazeera travelled to central Vietnam - a hotspot for people-smuggling - to track down a trafficker transporting locals 6,000 miles into Britain.
Posing as a couple wanting to live in the UK, they were told a trip would cost £22,000, with the smuggler saying: “I will arrange for you to get to Russia. Then take a car to Poland, Germany, and then France.
“Once in France, I will pick you up to go to England. I assure you it’s really safe. I assure you, you won’t have to walk at all. You just sit in the car and go directly there.”
But one woman who made it successfuly to these shores told of the nightmare ordeal she underwent to avoid detection.
The woman, named Huyen, said: “It was so scary. I was hidden in the driver’s cabin. I was even covered in petrol so the dogs couldn’t smell me. Very dangerous.
“For one man the crossing took 26 hours. If I was him, I would have died. I avoided eating or drinking ... If you thought you’d need to go [to the toilet] you’d wear a nappy like a child.”
Human trafficking is such a huge problem in Vietnam, the British embassy in Haiphong launched a local TV campaign highlighting the dangers illegal immigrants face.
But many are prepared to take the risk because traffickers promise easy access to the UK, though for a price.
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