The eight asylum-seekers discovered dead in a container in Wexford are the latest victims of the human-smuggling trade which is estimated to be worth between £8 billion and £20 billion worldwide.
In August, the Australian authorities came under intense international pressure when they turned away a group of 433 mainly Afghan asylum-seekers on a Norwegian freighter.
Earlier cases to attract international attention include that of 58 Chinese immigrants discovered dead in the back of a container in the British port of Dover in June 2000.
In Ireland, staff unloading animal feed from a vessel at Belview Port on August 22nd found the body of a young African who had been dead for at least three weeks.