Human Trafficking

Human Trafficking: A Violation of Human Rights

Trafficking in persons (TIP), a threat to the lives and rights of human beings, is a multi-dimensional phenomenon occurring worldwide. The most recent United States Trafficking Report (June 2008), released by Condoleezza Rice, estimates that 800,000 men, women, and children are trafficked across international borders each year. In actuality, the number of persons trafficked is substantially higher; the TIP report does not include the vast numbers of people trafficked within their own countries. Human trafficking is also severely under-reported because of its highly illegal nature and because victims are often times too afraid to report such a heinous crime.

Many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and international organizations estimate the actual number of trafficked persons to be at least two million. The International Labor Organization (ILO) associated with the United Nations (UN) gauges that there are about “12.3 million people in forced labor, bonded labor, forced child labor, and sexual servitude at any given time.” Despite any ambiguities in these numbers, two statistics are agreed upon: approximately 80 percent of the victims are girls and women and about 50 percent are children.

What is Human Trafficking?

Human trafficking is seen as “modern day slave trading.” The UN defines TIP as the “recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons” by means of threat, coercion, or fraud for the “purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include…the exploitation of the prostitution of others…forced labor or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery…[and] servitude.” Thus, there are two forms of TIP: sex trafficking and labor trafficking. Sexual exploitation includes “abuse within the commercial sex industry,” while exploitation through labor includes “traditional chattel slavery, forced labor, and debt bondage.” They both involve moving a person from one place to another through force, coercion, and violence to exploit a person for profit. Victims are subjected to one or both of these forms.

Sex Trafficking Because human traffickers often target the vulnerable, “poverty, gender-based discrimination and a history of sexual and physical violence” are all characteristics that make women and children susceptible to sexual exploitation and trade. Traffickers abduct and sell people through deception and the promise of a better job and life. Many of these vulnerable people feel this is their only and best economical option. They are willing to trust and consent to the terms and conditions of traffickers not knowing they will soon be entering sexual servitude. For human traffickers, sexual exploitation is a “high profit and low-risk endeavor” because they use “several means to prevent victims from escaping.” They use physical and psychological restraints such as violence and drugs; they also instill the victims with fear and make them believe they are the offenders and should blame themselves. As a result, the victims’ quality of life, health, and well-being are all harshly undermined. Sexual violence used in trafficking can result in depression and thoughts of suicide, physical injuries such as broken bones and stab wounds, and sometimes death. The high risk of sexually transmitted disease, pregnancy, and unsafe abortions all threaten the reproductive health of the victims and access to health care is seriously restricted. Substance abuse is also a major issue because women and children often turn to drugs and alcohol in order to cope with their situation.

Labor Trafficking Internationally, there is an increasing demand for cheap labor, but at the same time, there are strict regulations on visas, which decrease “possible channels for legal [labor] migration.” Private employers, businesses, and agencies often take advantage of the availability of travel and modern communication systems, luring vulnerable people into dangerous illegal employment. Trafficking for forced labor usually involves a recruiter, a transporter, and final employer, who all “derive a profit from the exploitation of the trafficked person.” Sometimes these three steps are carried out by one person. Victims are subject to low paying and degrading work which often emulates conditions of slavery. Victims of labor exploitation are sometimes enticed into bondage when they accept debt as a term of employment. This is primarily seen is South Asia where large numbers of people are enslaved for generations. People are forced into involuntary servitude when they “believe an attempted escape from their conditions would result in serious physical harm or the use of legal coercion, such as the threat of deportation.” These victims are often migrant and low skilled workers who are taken from their less prosperous communities to more developed areas. They are held captive, experiencing violent physical and verbal abuse. Trafficking of children into forced labor is unfortunately very common. It is extremely hazardous because children often experience permanent physical and psychological damage. They are isolated from families and societies, denied education, and are physically weak and under-developed. Most detrimental is that children in forced labor are highly reliant and psychologically dependent upon their traffickers.

A Human Rights Issue Traffickers fundamentally abuse human rights by “[preying] on the vulnerable” and using creative and cruel ploys that trick and coerce victims. TIP undermines the well-being and quality of life of these individuals, exploiting their physical and mental integrity, their life, liberty, dignity, and security. Humans have the basic right to be free from “slavery, slave-like practices, torture, and other inhuman or degrading treatment,” all of which are abused when forced into trafficking and servitude. Human trafficking brutally impacts individual victims, but also goes beyond this and “undermines the health, safety, and security of all nations it touches.” There is no country that is immune from human trafficking. Southeast Asia is a flourishing trafficking market, especially for sexual exploitation. Women are particularly targeted in countries like Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, and Burma where they have low social status and very limited opportunities for employment. These countries are popular sources, transits, and destinations for human trafficking. The UN estimates that about 200,000 women and children from Nepal are trafficked to the U.S. annually and are “held in servitude, including for domestic work, prostitution, or agricultural labor.” The U.S., Australia, and Europe are primarily destination countries, but are used for some transit as well. Many victims in the U.S. and Australia come from Southeast Asia, China, and South Korea, while Europe’s victims come primarily from the Balkans. All 53 African nations also deal with human trafficking. Their main victims are children between the ages of 12 and 16, who are often recruited as soldiers and prostitutes, forced into armed conflict and sold as purity brides. Studies have shown that about a third of African countries are trafficking humans to Europe, while a quarter is sent to Middle Eastern Arab states.

Ending Human Trafficking Following drug and arms trafficking, human trafficking is the “third most profitable criminal activity” worldwide. It is estimated that about seven to 10 billion dollars is made annually from the trafficking of humans. Despite the fact that it is still a major international problem, steps are continually being taken to locate victims and provide them with adequate social services, reinstating their basic human rights. A large number of NGOs and human rights organizations throughout the world are dedicated to combating this issue. Free the Children, an NGO formed in 1995 by child rights activist Craig Kielburger when he was 12 years old, is a network of children helping children through education. The organization has programs in 45 different countries and focuses on fighting child labor worldwide. They seek to free children from exploitation and show them that they are not powerless to affect world change. WANGO presented Free the Children with their 2006 Human Rights Award at their Awards Banquet in Spain. Amnesty International, one of the largest NGOs worldwide, stands up and fights for humanity and basic human rights. One of the issues they combat is human trafficking, and specifically, violence against women. They have volunteers and activists in over 150 countries. Shakti Samuaha, an NGO in Nepal, is the first in the world to be formed by human trafficking survivors. They focus on the prevention of trafficking among vulnerable populations and providing rehabilitation services. The organization has also set up an Adolescent Girls Group in poor communities to educate people about the dangers of trafficking. They believe it is important to seriously focus on prevention. These three NGOs, among many others, have dedicated themselves to the eradication of human trafficking in hundreds of different countries. Educating people worldwide is the first step in combating human trafficking, especially those who may be potential victims. It is essential that people understand what human trafficking is, how to prevent it, and how traffickers should be prosecuted if the issue is going to subside. It is also necessary that governments become more involved in passing laws that condemn and prosecute human traffickers. In order for trafficking to stop, issues of economics and poverty must also be addressed. When people are faced with deprivation, “the promises offered by traffickers of a better life can be hard to resist.”