2042

Human Trafficking
Causes, Effects And
Solutions

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Chapter No. 1

INTRODUCTION
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Slowly and painfully a picture is emerging of

a global crime that shames us all. Billions of
dollars are being made at the expense of millions
of victims of human trafficking. Boys and girls
who should be at school are coerced into
becoming soldiers, doing hard labor or sold for
sex. Women and girls are being trafficked for
exploitation:
forced
into
domestic
labor,
prostitution or marriage. Men, trapped by debt,
slave away in mines, plantations, or sweatshops.
How can such a trade in human beings occur
in the 21st century? Because it is a low risk/ high
reward crime. In many countries, either the
necessary laws are not in place, or they are not
properly enforcedtoo often traffickers are let of
with a slap on the wrist, and victims are treated
as criminals.
Unscrupulous traffickers exploit the poverty,
hope and innocence of the vulnerable. Victims
become dehumanized and enslavedforced to
produce cheap goods or provide services over
and over again.1
Trafficking in persons is modern-day slavery,
involving
victims who are forced, defrauded or coerced into
labor or sexual exploitation. Annually, about
600,000 to 800,000
peoplemostly
women
and
childrenare
trafficked across national borders which does not
count millions trafficked within their own
countries. People are snared into trafficking by
many means. In some cases, physical force is
used. In other cases, false promises are made
1 http://www.ungift.org/doc/knowledgehub/resourcecentre/GIFT_Human_Trafficking_An_Overview_2008.pdf

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regarding job opportunities or marriages

foreign countries to entrap victims.

in

Human trafficking is international organized

crime, with the exploitation of human beings for
profit at its heart. It is an abuse of basic rights,
with organized criminals preying on vulnerable
people to make money. In most cases, victims are
brought to the UK from abroad, but we know that
trafficking also occurs within the UK and that
children in particular are increasingly vulnerable
to falling victim to exploitation.2
Human trafficking is an ofensive crime that
causes significant harm to its victims. Human
trafficking is a human rights violation, now known
most commonly as modern-day slavery.
The prohibition of slavery is a fundamental
principle of international law, applicable to all
countries across the globe. Slavery when one
person is treated as the property of another is
illegal everywhere in the world, yet many people
worldwide are subjected to conditions that
efectively amount to slavery.3
In recent years the smuggling of human beings
across international borders has grown rapidly
from a small scale cross border activity afecting
a handful of countries into a global multi-million
dollar enterprise. Although information about
human smuggling is patchy and often unreliable,
2 http://www.ungift.org/doc/knowledgehub/resourcecentre/Governments/UK_government_strategy_2011.pdf

3 http://www.institut-fuer-menschenrechte.de/en/project-forced-labour-today/humantrafficking-introduction.html

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current estimates suggest that some 8,00,000

people are smuggled across borders every year.
The spread of smuggling needs to be
understood in the context of the globalization and
greatly increased migration. Prospects of a better
life abroad, poverty, economic marginalization,
political and social unrest and conflict are all
incentives
to
move.
Global
media
and
transportation networks make movement easier.
As push and pull factors encourage increasing
numbers of people to migrate, they in turn collide
with the many legal obstacles to entry that
industrialized countries have put in place.
Two trends are a direct consequence of this.
First, as a avenues for legal migration have
become increasingly restricted, the asylum
system has come under pressure as one of the
few options that migrants can use. Second,
migrants have increasingly resorted to the use of
smugglers to facilitate their travel. This
compound their vulnerability to ill treatment and
exploitation.
Human trafficking involves forced or coerced
movements. Sometimes people are kidnapped
outright and taken forcibly to another location. In
other cases, traffickers use deception to entice
victims to move with false promises of well
paying jobs such as models, dancers or domestic
workers. In some instances, traffickers approach
victims or their families directly with ofers of
lucrative
jobs
elsewhere.
After
providing
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transportation to get victims to their destinations,

they subsequently charge exorbitant fees for
those services, creating debt bondage. What
begins as voluntary movement ends up coerced.4
Trafficking of women and children for
entertainment and labor and sex industry is
reported to be on the rise with every passing day.
The ill-fated victims are subjected to diferent
forms of exploitative work including domestic
servants, bonded labor, agriculture workers and
sweatshop factories, etc.5

1.1:

Definitions Of Human Trafficking

Generally Defined As

a) The illegal movement of people, typically for the

purposes of forced labor or commercial sexual
exploitation.
b) Organized criminal activity in which human beings
are treated as possessions to be controlled and
exploited (as by being forced into prostitution or
involuntary labor)6
4 http://ppscpms.blogspot.com/2012/04/essay-on-human-trafficking-in-pakistan.html

5 http://www.nation.com.pk/karachi/13-Jun-2008/Human-trafficking-on-the-rise-in-Pakistan

6 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/human%20trafficking

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c) The recruitment and/or movement of someone

within or across borders, through the abuse of
power/position with the intention of forced
exploitation, commercial or otherwise.7

Article 3 of the U.N. Protocol defines

TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS as:
The
recruitment,
transportation,
transfer,
harboring or receipt of persons, by means of the
threat or use of force or other forms of coercion,
of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse
of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the
giving or receiving of payments or benefits to
achieve the consent of a person having control
over another person, for the purpose of
exploitation. Exploitation includes, a minimum,
the exploitation of the prostitution of others or
other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or
services, slavery or practices similar to slavery,
servitude or the removal of organs. Often, the
U.N. Protocols definition of TIP is described as
composed of three necessary elements.8
The definition on trafficking consists of three
core elements:
1.The action of trafficking which means the
recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or
receipt of persons.
2.The means of trafficking which includes threat of
or use of force, deception, coercion, abuse of
power or position of vulnerability.
7 http://humantraffickingcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Taxonomy1.pdf

8 http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL34317.pdf
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3.The purpose of trafficking which is always

exploitation. In the words of the Trafficking
Protocol, article 3 "exploitation shall include, at a
minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of
others or other forms of sexual exploitation,
forced labor or services, slavery or practices
similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of
organs.9
Some other definitions of the terms used are:
Slavery: The condition of being under the control of
another person, in which violence or the threat of
violence, whether physical or mental, prevents a person
from exercising her/his freedom of movement or free
will.
Forced Labor: All work or service, legitimate or
otherwise, which is exacted from any person under
violence or the threat of violence, whether physical or
mental, which prevents a person from exercising his/her
freedom of movement and/or free will.
Sex Trafficking: The recruitment and/or movement of
someone within or across borders, through the abuse of
power/position with the intention of sexual exploitation,
commercial or otherwise.
Sex worker: A person who claims agency or choice to
perform sexual acts in exchange for monetary and/or
nonmonetary compensation.
Migration: Movement of persons within or across
international borders.
Legal Immigration: Movement of persons across
international borders as authorized by the destination
state
9 http://aigaforum.com/articles/root-causes-and-solutions-to-human-trafficking-inEthiopia.pdf

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 Illegal Immigration: Movement of persons across

international borders that is unauthorized by the
destination state.
OTC (Organ, Tissue, Cell) Trafficking: Human
trafficking for the purpose of the forced and/or
exploitative harvesting of a living persons organ,
tissues, cells, and/or body parts.
Forced Labor: All work or service which is exacted from
any person under the menace of any penalty and for
which they said person has not ofered himself
voluntarily.

How Does Trafficking Happen?

Trafficked persons are often enslaved or in
situations of debt bondage that are fraudulent
and exploitive: traffickers will take away or abuse
the basic human rights of their victims, who have
most likely been tricked and lured by false
promises or physically forced into their situation.
Trafficking can work like this: "It is a common
practice to persuade a young woman to leave
home and to move to a wealthier neighboring
country where she can work in domestic service,
child or adult care, or as a waitress in a
restaurant or a bar, or perhaps as a dancer. Upon
arrival, her passport, visa, and return tickets are
taken from her and, efectively, she is
imprisoned, either physically or financially or
mentally. She is made to work as a domestic
slave or as an agricultural or factory worker,
under slave-like conditions, or in a brothel. She
sees virtually none of the money that she earns,
and eventually she will be sold."10

1.2 : Types of Human Trafficking

10 http://www.cityvision.edu/wiki/human-trafficking-definition-prevalence-and-causes

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Specific Forms of Sex and Labor Trafficking

According to U.S Department of State :

Forced Labor
Recent studies show the majority of human
trafficking in the world takes the form of forced
labor. Also known as involuntary servitude, forced
labor may result when unscrupulous employers
exploit workers made more vulnerable by high
rates
of
unemployment,
poverty,
crime,
discrimination, corruption, political conflict, or
cultural acceptance of the practice. Immigrants
are particularly vulnerable, but individuals also
may be forced into labor in their own countries.
Female victims of forced or bonded labor,
especially women and girls in domestic servitude,
are often sexually exploited as well. The
movement
of
people
for
the
purpose
of forced labor and services usually involves an
agent or recruiter, a transporter, and a final
employer, who will derive a profit from the
exploitation of the trafficked person. In some
cases, the same person carries out all
these trafficking activities.
With
increased
possibilities
for
travelling
and
telecommunications, and with a growing demand
for cheap labor in the developed world on the one
hand, and increasingly restrictive visa regulations
on the other, possible channels for legal labor
migration have diminished. Private recruitment
agencies, intermediaries and employers may take
advantage of this situation and lure potential
migrants into exploitative employment.11
11 http://www.ungift.org/knowledgehub/en/about/trafficking-for-forced-labour.html

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Sex Trafficking
Sex trafficking comprises a smaller but still
very significant portion of overall human
trafficking. When an adult is coerced, forced, or
deceived into prostitution or maintained in
prostitution through coercion that person is a
victim of trafficking. All of those involved in
recruiting, transporting, harboring, receiving, or
obtaining the person for that purpose have
committed a trafficking crime. Sex trafficking can
also occur within debt bondage, as women and
girls are forced to continue in prostitution through
the use of unlawful debt purportedly incurred
through their transportation, recruitment, or even
their crude sale, which exploiters insist they
must pay of before they can be free.
It is critical to understand that a persons
initial consent to participate in prostitution is not
legally determinative: if an individual is thereafter
held
in
service
through
psychological
manipulation or physical force, that person is a
trafficking victim and should receive the benefits
outlined in the United Nations Palermo Protocol
and applicable laws.
Sexual exploitation is the sexual abuse of
children and youth through the exchange of sex
or sexual acts for drugs, food, shelter, protection,
other basics of life, and/or money. Sexual
exploitation includes involving children and youth
in creating pornography and sexually explicit
websites. While the Criminal Code of Canada
defines sexually exploited youth as under 18
years of age, the Child, Family and Community
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Service Act is applicable to youth under age 19.

Therefore, youth who are under 19 years old are
able to access services through the Ministry of
Children and Family Development.
Other terms that are used to talk about
sexual exploitation are child prostitution and
youth sex trade. We use the terms sexual
exploitation or commercial sexual exploitation
to acknowledge that the use of children and
youth for sexual acts is abuse and is inherently
exploitative.
While youth may not use the term sexual
exploitation to talk about involvement in the sex
trade, this is the way that it is framed under the
law. Many sexually exploited youth face realities
of drug use, homelessness, past trauma, and
other factors which have lead them in to the
survival sex trade. Other youth may have no
such history and may have been lured, tricked or
forced in to being sexually exploited. Regardless
of their personal history and life experience, it is
important to respect the identities of these youth
while also recognizing that any sex act between
youth and adults is abuse.12

Bonded Labor
One form of coercion is the use of a bond, or
debt. Often referred to as bonded labor or
debt bondage, the practice has long been
12 http://host.jibc.ca/seytoolkit/what.htm

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prohibited under U.S. law by its Spanish name

peonage and the Palermo Protocol calls for its
criminalization as a form of trafficking in persons.
Workers around the world fall victim to debt
bondage when traffickers or recruiters unlawfully
exploit an initial debt the worker assumed as part
of the terms of employment. Workers may also
inherit debt in more traditional systems of
bonded labor.

Debt Bondage Among Migrant Laborers

Abuses
of
contracts
and
hazardous
conditions of employment for migrant laborers do
not necessarily constitute human trafficking.
However, the burden of illegal costs and debts on
these laborers in the source country, often with
the support of labor agencies and employers in
the destination country, can contribute to a
situation of debt bondage. This is the case when
the workers status in the country is tied to the
employer as a temporary worker in the context of
employment-based temporary work programs.

Involuntary Domestic Servitude

A unique form of forced labor is the
involuntary servitude of domestic workers, whose
workplace is informal, connected to their of-duty
living quarters, and not often shared with other
workers. Such an environment, which often
socially isolates domestic workers, is conducive to
nonconsensual exploitation since authorities
cannot inspect private property as easily as
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formal workplaces. Investigators and service

providers report many cases of untreated
illnesses and, tragically, widespread sexual
abuse, which in some cases may be symptoms of
a situation of involuntary servitude. International
eforts are ongoing to ensure that not only are
administrative remedies enforced but also
criminal penalties are enacted against those who
hold others in involuntary domestic servitude.

Forced Child Labor

Most international organizations and national
laws recognize children may legally engage in
certain forms of work. There is a growing
consensus, however, that the worst forms of child
labor should be eradicated. The sale and
trafficking of children and their entrapment in
bonded and forced labor are among these worst
forms of child labor. A child can be a victim of
human trafficking regardless of the location of
that nonconsensual exploitation. Indicators of
possible forced labor of a child include situations
in which the child appears to be in the custody of
a non-family member who has the child perform
work that financially benefits someone outside
the childs family and does not ofer the child the
option of leaving. Anti-trafficking responses
should supplement, not replace, traditional
actions against child labor, such as remediation
and education. However, when children are
enslaved, their abusers should not escape
criminal punishment by virtue of longstanding
administrative responses to child labor practices.

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Child Soldiers
Child soldiering can be a manifestation of
human trafficking where it involves the unlawful
recruitment or use of children through force,
fraud, or coercion as combatants or for labor or
sexual exploitation by armed forces. Perpetrators
may
be
government
forces,
paramilitary
organizations, or rebel groups. Many children are
forcibly abducted to be used as combatants.
Others are made unlawfully to work as porters,
cooks, guards, servants, messengers, or spies.
Young girls can be forced to marry or have sex
with male combatants. Both male and female
child soldiers are often sexually abused and are
at high risk of contracting sexually transmitted
diseases.

Child Sex Trafficking

According to UNICEF, as many as two million
children are subjected to prostitution in the global
commercial sex trade. International covenants
and protocols obligate criminalization of the
commercial sexual exploitation of children. The
use of children in the commercial sex trade is
prohibited under both U.S. law and the Palermo
Protocol as well as by legislation in countries
around the world. There can be no exceptions
and no cultural or socioeconomic rationalizations
preventing the rescue of children from sexual
servitude. Sex trafficking has devastating
consequences for minors, including long-lasting
physical and psychological trauma, disease
(including HIV/AIDS), drug addiction, unwanted

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pregnancy, malnutrition, social ostracism, and

possible death.13

1.3: Victims Of Human Trafficking

There is not a consistent type or profile of a
trafficking victim. Based on U.S. federal law,
trafficked persons in the U.S. can be men or
women, adults or children, and foreign nationals
or U.S. citizens. Some are well-educated, while
others have no formal education.
Some
immigrant victims are currently in the U.S.
legally, and others are undocumented. Some
form of vulnerability tends to be the common
thread amongst all diferent trafficking victims.
Victims of human trafficking are young children,
teenagers, men and women.
It is essential to remember that vulnerability
to human trafficking is far-reaching, spanning
multiple diferent areas such as age, socioeconomic status, nationality, education-level, or
gender. Traffickers often prey on people who are
hoping for a better life, lack employment
opportunities, have an unstable home life, or
have a history of sexual abuse - conditions that
are present in all spheres of society.
Human trafficking victims have been
identified in cities, suburbs, and rural areas in all
50 states and in Washington, D.C. They are
forced to work or provide commercial sex against
13 http://www.traffickinghope.org/faqstypesofht.php

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their will in legal and legitimate business settings

as well as underground markets. Some victims
are hidden behind locked doors in brothels and
factories. In other cases, victims are in plain view
and may interact with community members, but
the
widespread
lack
of
awareness
and
understanding of trafficking leads to low levels of
victim identification by the people who most
often encounter them. For example, women and
girls in sex trafficking situations, especially U.S.
citizens, are often misidentified as "willing"
participants in the sex trade who make a free
choice
each
day
to
be
there.
While anyone can become a victim of trafficking,
certain populations are especially vulnerable.
These may include: undocumented immigrants;
runaway and homeless youth; victims of trauma
and abuse; refugees and individuals fleeing
conflict; and oppressed, marginalized, and/or
impoverished groups and individuals.
Undocumented immigrants in the U.S. are
highly vulnerable due to a combination of factors,
including: lack of legal status and protections,
language barriers, limited employment options,
poverty and immigration-related debts, and social
isolation. They are often victimized by traffickers
from a similar ethnic or national background, on
whom they may be dependent for employment,
shelter, and other means of support.
Trafficking victims in the U.S. under the
federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of
2000 include:
Minors (under age 18) induced to perform
commercial sex acts
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 Those age 18 or over who are forced, deceived,

or coerced into providing commercial sex acts
Children and adults forced to perform labor
and/or services in conditions of involuntary
servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery,
through force, fraud, or coercion.14
A child the age of 18 involved who has been
under recruited, harbored, transported, provided,
or obtained for the purpose of commercial sex is
a victim of human trafficking, without regard to
the presence of force, fraud, or coercion. Many
victims of human trafficking are forced to work in
prostitution or the sex entertainment industry. As
noted in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, 22
U.S.C. 7101(11), sex trafficking exposes victims
to serious health risks. Women and children
trafficked in the sex industry are exposed to
deadly diseases, including HIV and AIDS.
Trafficking also occurs in forms of labor
exploitation, such as domestic servitude, often in
industries such as restaurant work, janitorial
work, factory work, and agricultural work.
Traffickers use various techniques to instill fear in
victims and to keep them enslaved.15
Actual numbers of trafficking victims are
difficult to determine due to methodological flaws
in data definition and collection, estimates
indicate that in 2009, 12.3 million individuals
14 http://www.polarisproject.org/human-trafficking/overview/the-victims

15 http://www.refugees.org/our-work/child-migrants/human-trafficking-victims-1.html

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worldwide were in situations of forced and/or

bonded labor, and forced sexual exploitation.
Each year approximately 800,000 women, men,
and children are trafficked transitionally with an
approximate 80% of victims being identified as
women and 50% as children, and many more are
trafficked within their home country. Given the
significantly high percentage of those trafficked
estimated to be women and girls, the United
Nations has called for a gender-based approach
to combat trafficking crimes.

1.3.1: The Trafficking Child

Trafficking
of
children involves
the
recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring,
or receipt of children for the purpose of
exploitation. The commercial sexual exploitation
of children can take many forms, including forcing
a child into prostitution or other forms of sexual
activity or child pornography. Child exploitation
may
also
involve
forced
labor or
services, slavery or practices similar to slavery,
servitude, the removal of organs, illicit
international adoption , trafficking for early
marriage, recruitment as child soldiers , for use in
begging or as athletes (such as child camel
jockeys or football players), or for recruitment for
cults.
IOM statistics indicate that a significant
minority (35%) of trafficked persons it assisted in
2011 were less than 18 years of age, which is
roughly consistent with estimates from previous
years. It was reported in 2010 that Thailand
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and Brazil were considered to have the worst

child sex trafficking records.
Traffickers in children may take advantage of
the parents' extreme poverty. Parents may sell
children to traffickers in order to pay of debts or
gain income, or they may be deceived concerning
the prospects of training and a better life for their
children. They may sell their children into labor,
sex trafficking, or illegal adoptions.
The adoption process, legal and illegal, when
abused can sometimes result in cases of
trafficking of babies and pregnant women from
developing countries to the West.
Trafficking of children for sexual exploitation
and forced labor is believed to be one of the
fastest growing areas of criminal activity. Child
victims are particularly vulnerable but there is
little
systematic
knowledge
about
their
characteristics and experiences. They are often
subsumed under the women and children
heading without allowing for analysis of their
special needs. In some situations, parental illness
compounded
already
dire
economic
circumstances and place even more pressure on
the children to contribute to the familys income.
In other cases, family breakdowns resulting from
death or divorce left the children vulnerable.16

1.3.2:

Trafficking of Adults

16 http://ppscpms.blogspot.com/2012/04/essay-on-human-trafficking-in-pakistan.html

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Its clear that when we talking about human

trafficking, it is not only women and children
whom are at risk. Male trafficking is much more
common than is usually assumed. it is imperative
not to distinguish between forced labor and
human trafficking in order to better identify and
assist trafficked men. In distinguishing the two, a
problem is created in the identification of
trafficked men. Whether talking about trafficking
or forced labor, the people involved are equally
victim to having their human rights violated.
The report further concludes that many trafficked
men are never identified. Instead they are treated
as irregular migrants and deported without any
investigation of their case. One of the reasons for
this is a heavy gender bias - the profile of a
trafficked person is most commonly seen to be
that of a woman, transported for prostitution;
hence when the authorities are investigating
trafficking they will be looking for persons with a
profile that matches this description. Furthermore
this gender bias means that many men who are
indeed trafficked will or can not see themselves
as victims of a crime or as trafficked persons.
The report ofers a description of the
demographic profile of trafficked men as well as a
description of the types of work trafficked men
are subjected to. Men who are exposed to
trafficking can be any age, be from anywhere and
can be employed in jobs as diverse as
construction, food processing, agriculture and oil
extraction. Often trafficked men face long work
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hours, low or no pay, injuries, fees, fines and

debts, psychological, physical and sexual abuse.
In most cases the men work voluntarily, but are
deceived and exploited along the way.
A massive problem, the report concludes,
is that even if a man is identified as trafficked he
will very often reject services, or simply not be in
need of the services ofered. As most services are
designed for women, a male victim of trafficking
is at risk of not receiving assistance that has been
tailored to his needs

1.3.3:
Girls

Trafficking of Women And

The primary victims of trafficking worldwide are

women and girls, the majority of whom are
trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation.
Traffickers primarily target women because they
are disproportionately afected by poverty and
discrimination, factors that impede their access
to employment, educational opportunities and
other resources.
Sex and labor trafficking of women is a
complicated phenomenon with many forces that
efect womens decisions to work abroad. Perhaps
the strongest factor is a desperate economic
situation, which impacts the availability of
satisfactory employment in many countries for
women more severely than men. Women may
become victims of trafficking when they seek
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assistance to obtain employment, work permits,

visas and other travel documents. Traffickers prey
on womens vulnerable circumstances and may
lure them into crime networks through deceit and
false promises of decent working conditions and
fair pay. Women may go abroad knowing that
they will work in the sex industry, but without
awareness of the terrible work conditions and
violence that accompany the trafficking business.
Other women answer job advertisements for
positions abroad such as dancers, waitresses, and
nannies, only to find themselves held against
their will and forced into prostitution and sexual
slavery. In the destination countries, women are
subjected to physical violence, sexual assault and
rape, battery, imprisonment, threats and other
forms of coercion.17
The trafficking of women and girls happen all
over the world yet remains hidden from public
view. Many women who are ofered the
opportunity of work in other countries, find
themselves trapped in a world of physical, and
psychological and sexual abuse and economic
deprivation.
Trafficked women and girls are subjected to a
range of human rights abuses, including :
Physical, psychological and sexual abuses.
Deprivation of liberty.
Torture and ill treatment.
17 http://www.stopvaw.org/trafficking_in_women

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 In some cases even to the right to the life.18

Conclusions of the chapter

Human Trafficking is the entire process of
transforming an individual into a slave (especially
for the purpose of profit). This coercive process
includes but is not limited to the recruitment,
harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining
a person for the purposes of sexual and/or labor
services. The two most common types of human
trafficking are Sex Trafficking and Labor
Trafficking.
Human Trafficking is not migrant smuggling.
Victims of human trafficking do not give consent
whereas a person being smuggled does.
Smuggling is the illegal transportation of people
across national borders, human trafficking does
not need to involve any transportation
whatsoever. This is where the term "Human
Trafficking" can be somewhat deceptive as it may
indicate the necessity to transport an individual
from one place to another.
The truth is, a person can be considered
trafficked in a number of diferent ways, even if
they never leave their home residence. A parent
can "traffic" their daughter in their own home by
selling her for sex. And yes, this happens- usually
this is done to provide for a drug addiction.
Human trafficking is the fastest growing criminal
enterprise in the world, reported in nearly every
country, including the United States. Not only
18 http://www.amnesty.org/en/campaigns/stop-violence-againstwomen/issues/implementation-existing-laws/trafficking

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that, it has been reported in all 50 States and is in

almost every city in America.
There are important diferences between
human trafficking and people smuggling. The
main diference is the element of exploitation.
People being smuggled as illegal migrants have
usually consented to being smuggled. Trafficking
victims have not consented, or have been tricked
into consent.
What happens to each of them at the end of
their journey will also be very diferent. The
relationship between an illegal migrant and a
people smuggler is a commercial transaction
which ends on completion of the journey.
However for people who are trafficked, the
purpose of the journey is to put them somewhere
where they can be exploited for the sake of the
traffickers profits. The journey is only the
beginning.
Someone becomes a victim of trafficking not
because of the journey they make but because of
the exploitation they experience at the end of
that
journey.
Any consent they give to make the journey in the
first place is likely to have been gained
fraudulently, for example with the promise of a
job
or
a
better
standard
of
living.
This is why the Palermo Protocol makes clear that
human trafficking is about the three elements of
movement, control and exploitation.
Sexual exploitation involves any nonconsensual or abusive sexual acts performed
without a victims permission. This includes
prostitution, escort work and pornography.
25 | P a g e

Women, men and children of both sexes can be

victims. Many will have been deceived with
promises of a better life and then controlled
through violence and abuse.
Forced
labor
involves
victims
being
compelled to work very long hours, often in hard
conditions, and to hand over the majority if not all
of their wages to their traffickers. Forced labor
crucially implies the use of coercion and lack of
freedom or choice for the victim. In many cases
victims are subjected to verbal threats or violence
to achieve compliance.
Manufacturing,
entertainment,
travel,
farming and construction industries have been
found to use forced labor by victims of human
trafficking to some extent. There has been a
marked increase in reported numbers in recent
years. Often large numbers of people are housed
in single dwellings and there is evidence of hot
bunking, where a returning shift takes up the
sleeping accommodation of those starting the
next shift.
Domestic servitude involves the victim being
forced to work in private households. Their
movement will often be restricted and they will
be forced to perform household tasks such as
child care and house-keeping over long hours and
for little if any pay. Victims will lead very isolated
lives and have little or no unsupervised freedom.
Their own privacy and comfort will be minimal,
often sleeping on a mattress on the floor in an
26 | P a g e

open
part
of
the
house.
In rare circumstances where victims receive a
wage it will be heavily reduced, as they are
charged for food and accommodation.
Organ harvesting involves trafficking people
in order to use their internal organs for
transplant. The illegal trade is dominated by
kidneys, which are in the greatest demand. These
are the only major organs that can be wholly
transplanted with relatively few risks to the life of
the donor.
Children
are
particularly
vulnerable
to
exploitation by
individual
traffickers
and
organized crime groups. They can be deliberately
targeted by crime groups, or ruthlessly exploited
by the people who should protect them.

27 | P a g e

Chapter No. 2

28 | P a g e

2.1:Causes
Trafficking

and

Effects

of

Human

Human Trafficking is something that results from

numerous points of conception and are summed
up below:
1.Poverty
2.Debt
3.Addiction
4.Political instability and natural disasters
5.Demand

Poverty

Poverty is a common thread that runs

through the stories of many victims. People living
in extreme poverty are given the promise of a
well paid job and a better life in another country,
perhaps
with
lodgings
and
educational
opportunities included. They have no idea that
the person making the extravagant promises is a
trafficker. And they do not find out until it is too
late.
The victims finds themselves in a foreign
country, like the UK or Ireland where they do not
speak the language or have any contacts. Their
passport and identification documents are usually
taken from them. They are then exploited.

Debt

29 | P a g e

Debt is another inroad for human traffickers.

People are trafficked into or within the UK and
Ireland as a means of repaying debts that they or
their family can no longer aford. They are then
exploited. They are told that any money they are
earning is going towards reducing their debt.
Many charges and penalties are regularly added
to the overall debt, such as for board, loadings,
transport, and even bad behavior. So the debt will
never be repaid and the victims continues to be
controlled and exploited.

Addiction
Addiction is used by traffickers to identify
and target victims who are already vulnerable.
People addicted to drugs or alcohol are easily
manipulated and can have impaired judgment,
making them believe what they are told more
easily then someone else might.
Addicts are targeted by traffickers and
promised money or their substance of choice in
exchange for work. They are then not paid for any
work they do and are beaten o threatened with
violence if they object. This intimidation is used
to secure further work from the addicts in the
future.
Addiction is also used a method of controlling
victims who are already enslaved.

Political Instability and Natural

Disasters
30 | P a g e

Political
instability
and
natural
disasters can make people vulnerable to being
trafficked. War, civil unrest and the aftermath of
natural disasters cause instability that traffickers
can use to their advantage.
Chaos, mass migration and the separation of
family units make people vulnerable to kidnap for
the purpose of trafficking. These situations can
equally encourage potential victims to agree to
themselves or family members being taken
elsewhere on the promise of safety and a life with
more stability.

Demand
Demand is sadly the biggest reason for
anyone being trafficked. There would be no
trafficking if there was no end user willing to
exploit the victims. But from private individuals to
organized crime lords, there are many people in
our society who ensure that there is a demand for
exploitation and there is money to be made from
it.
Reducing demand is a key step in seeking to
rescue victims from the cycle of human
trafficking.19
The root causes of trafficking are various and
often difer from one country to another.
Trafficking is a complex phenomenon that is often
driven or influenced by social, economic, cultural
19 http://www.invisibletraffick.org/causes-of-human-trafficking/

31 | P a g e

and other factors. Many of these factors are

specific to individual trafficking patterns and to
the States in which they occur. There are,
however, many factors that tend to be common
to trafficking in general or found in a wide range
of diferent regions, patterns or cases. One such
factor is that the desire of potential victims to
migrate is exploited by ofenders to recruit and
gain initial control or cooperation, only to be
replaced by more coercive measures once the
victims have been moved to another State or
region of the country, which may not always be
the one to which they had intended to migrate.
Some of the common factors are local conditions
that make populations want to migrate in search
of better conditions: poverty, oppression, lack of
human rights, lack of social or economic
opportunity, dangers from conflict or instability
and similar conditions. Political instability,
militarism, civil unrest, internal armed conflict
and natural disasters may result in an increase in
trafficking. The destabilization and displacement
of populations increase their vulnerability to
exploitation and abuse through trafficking and
forced labor. War and civil strife may lead to
massive displacements of populations, leaving
orphans and street children extremely vulnerable
to trafficking. These factors tend to exert
pressures on victims that push them into
migration and hence into the control of
traffickers, but other factors that tend to pull
potential victims can also be significant. Poverty
and wealth are relative concepts which lead to
both migration and trafficking patterns in which
victims move from conditions of extreme poverty
to conditions of less-extreme poverty. In that
context, the rapid expansion of broadcast and
32 | P a g e

telecommunication media, including the Internet,

across the developing world may have increased
the desire to migrate to developed countries and,
with it, the vulnerability of would-be migrants to
traffickers. The practice of entrusting poor
children to more affluent friends or relatives may
create vulnerability. Some parents sell their
children, not just for the money, but also in the
hope that their children will escape a situation of
chronic poverty and move to a place where they
will have a better life and more opportunities.
In some States, social or cultural practices
also contribute to trafficking. For example, the
devaluation of women and girls in a society
makes them disproportionately vulnerable to
trafficking. Added to these factors are the issues
of porous borders, corrupt Government officials,
the involvement of international organized
criminal groups or networks and limited capacity
of or commitment by immigration and law
enforcement officers to control borders. Lack of
adequate legislation and of political will and
commitment to enforce existing legislation or
mandates are other factors that facilitate
trafficking in persons.20

2.2: Impacts of Human Trafficking

Human trafficking today is a global
phenomenon, afecting men, women and children
in over 130 countries of the world . Trafficking is a
crime
against
individuals.
As such,
the
consequences are most directly felt by trafficked
persons.
As
well
documented,
trafficking
activities contravene fundamental human rights,
denying people basic and broadly accepted
20 https://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/Toolkit-files/08-58296_tool_9-2.pdf

33 | P a g e

individual freedoms. Trafficking act, trafficking

violates the rule of law, threatening national
jurisdictions also has broad economic, social and
cultural consequences. As a criminal and
international law. Further, trafficking in persons
redirects the benefits of migration from migrants,
their families, community and government or
other potential legitimate employers to the
traffickers and their associates. Difficult as it is to
measure accurately the scope of human
trafficking, it is equally difficult to measure its
impact. The dynamics of the trade are constantly
evolving and a range of national perspectives
exist. Available statistics are dependent upon a
variety of sources, methodologies and definitions.
Because trafficking is an underground
activity, its consequences are also hidden and
adequate indicators have yet to be developed
that will allow the anti-trafficking community to
successfully measure the impact of this crime.
There are some of the most notable social,
political and economic impacts of human
trafficking.
While these impacts are described separately
below, in reality they cannot be so readily
compartmentalized or discussed in isolation.
There
are
significant
and
complex
interrelationships, influences and overlapping
factors within each area. Impacts may both
contribute to and/or influence each other in many
ways and they are frequently closely interwoven.
Recognition of the complex nature of trafficking in
persons and how it has an impact upon us is
pivotal to informing action taken in response and,
ultimately, to sustaining success in countering
human trafficking.
34 | P a g e

Human trafficking is a multi-dimensional

threat: it deprives people of their human rights
and freedoms, it is a global health risk, and it
fuels the growth of organized crime. Human
trafficking has a devastating impact on individual
victims, who often sufer physical and emotional
abuse, rape, threats against self and family,
passport theft, and even death. But the impact of
human trafficking goes beyond individual victims;
it undermines the safety and security of all
nations it touches.21

2.2.1: Social Impacts of Human

Trafficking

The social impacts of human trafficking are

rather universal. This does not denote them as
being not a serious matter, nonetheless. Those
who have truly experienced human trafficking are
the ones who must cope with the majority of the
social impacts. Although HIV and AIDS can be
spread because of human trafficking, which can
afect any or all of the population. Despite there
being shared impacts of human trafficking, the
specific incidents tend to difer from country to
country.
If a person has had to experience human
trafficking, they have known a life worse than
death itself. The conditions those are forced to
live in the brothels are thoroughly atrocious.
Victims of human trafficking have absolutely no
freedoms, and experience horrors such as abuse,
violence, deprivation, and torture. These kind of
conditions often lead to trauma. With that in
mind, it can be understandable how these people
would feel the urge to escape. Unfortunately, this
21 http://2001-2009.state.gov/documents/organization/33216.pdf

35 | P a g e

misdeed will never go without punishment, which

are never minor. One person once had to
submerge their body in barrel filled with water
contaminated with scorpion and other vermin,
and sit there for one week. As if that wasnt
enough, they also had to sit in the darkness all
lonesome. Another way to make the victims more
cooperative would be to inject them with drugs,
leading to addiction, which meant the brothel was
eventually their lifeline. Many people who have
been trafficked fought it at first, but eventually
accepted they lost the battle from the beginning.
They have ever been seen smiling and flirting,
but it is only an act. On the inside, they are
broken and crying.
Since human trafficking involves selling a
person for sex, pregnancies would be expected.
No matter, human trafficking have ever found a
way to make that seem dark and twisted. They
force those who are pregnant to have abortions,
with unclean instruments by non certified
practitioners. This lack of sanitation is one of the
many factors in the ever spreading HIV isnt
always completely obvious. Really, the fact that
there was any relationship at all between these
two problems is a recent realization. Currently,
there is not much research to show the
connection, but more studies are being
conducted in order to have that sufficient
information necessary for ending the social issue
of human trafficking. What is known thus far is
that many are not properly educated in the area
of sexually transmitted diseases, meaning they
are typically unaware of what they are and most
definitely whether or not one would have them.
This means people all over the world, especially
in the world of human trafficking, people are
36 | P a g e

spreading life threatening diseases, such as HIV

and AIDS.22

2.2.2: The Impacts of Trafficking

on Individuals
Violent crime can have a significant impact
upon the health and well-being of its victims. The
efects of victimization strike particularly hard at
the poor, the powerless, the disabled and the
socially isolated. Those already afected by prior
victimization are particularly susceptible to
subsequent
victimization.
The
efects
of
trafficking have an impact on individuals in all
areas of their lives. Victims of trafficking often
experience abuse, exploitation, poverty and poor
health prior to being
trafficked. These conditions are only exacerbated
by their experiences as victims of crime. Each
stage of the trafficking process can involve
physical, sexual and psychological abuse and
violence, deprivation and torture, the forced use
of
substances,
manipulation,
economic
exploitation and abusive working and living
conditions. What diferentiates the consequences
of trafficking from the efects of singular
traumatic events is that trafficking usually
involves prolonged and repeated trauma.
A.
Physical Impacts of Trafficking
All forms of trafficking, because of the
abusive and exploitative nature of the crime,
produce harmful efects on trafficked individuals.
For example, the National Human Rights
Commission of Thailand reported in 2003 the
22 http://htia.weebly.com/social-impact.html

37 | P a g e

impact of trafficking on a group of approximately

100 male fishermen. After three years of
exploitation, 39 had died, while those
who returned home were seriously illemaciated,
emotionally disturbed and unable to see, hear or
walk properly. Trafficked victims may be
deliberately selected for their specific physical
attributes, which are then exploited in specific
labor conditions. For example, the small size and
dexterity of children makes them desirable for
work at rug looms where the exploitation of these
physical attributes leaves them with eye damage,
lung disease, stunted growth and a susceptibility
to arthritis as they grow older. Small children
making silk thread dip their hands into boiling
water that burns and blisters them, breath smoke
and fumes from machinery, handle dead worms
that cause infections and guide twisting threads
that cut their fingers. However, in terms of global
documentation, most is known about the impact
of trafficking upon women and children for
purposes of sexual exploitation. Detailed research
on the physical consequences of trafficking upon
women is relatively new. In 2006, a major study
gathered statistical evidence on the health needs
of women who had recently escaped from a
trafficking situation, most of whom had been
trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation. The
findings indicate that more than half of the 207
respondents, from 14 diferent countries,
reported some form of violence prior to being
trafficked. Nearly all respondents (95 per cent)
reported physical or sexual violence, with three
quarters of respondents having been physically
hurt, and 90 per cent reporting having been
sexually assaulted, all of which occurred while
being trafficked. Most respondents had been
38 | P a g e

threatened with violence and forced into

performing sexual acts. Physical symptoms of
these trafficked women included headaches,
fatigue and weight loss, stomach, chest, back,
pelvic and vaginal pain, as well as dental and
eye, ear and skin problems. A majority
consistently reported vaginal discharge and
gynecological infections, which usually remained
untreated. This is consistent with earlier work and
estimates on the extent of health problems
expected to be experienced by women trafficked
for sexual exploitation.
B.
HIV/AIDS
Increased likelihood of HIV infection is often
cited as a risk among women trafficked for sexual
exploitation owing notably to a lack of bargaining
power concerning condom use and other
potentially dangerous sexual practices. Trafficked
women are also less likely to be beneficiaries of
medical or educational services made available to
non-trafficked women working in prostitution.
Lack of information about HIV/AIDS, as well as
prevalent popular misconceptions, including that
sexual intercourse with a virgin will cure the
disease and that younger girls are disease-free,
has increased the demand for younger victims
and increased the vulnerability of children to
infection. A recent study focusing on the
prevalence and predictors of HIV infection among
trafficked women and girls rescued from brothels
in a South Asian country found that 22.9 per cent
of trafficked individuals tested positive for HIV.
Those trafficked at younger ages and having
spent a longer time in brothels were slightly more
likely to become infected with the HIV virus.
These findings demonstrate the need for
39 | P a g e

increased attention to HIV among young victims

of sex trafficking in research and practice. It is
difficult to determine the absolute rates of HIV
infection among trafficked persons and little
research has been done to determine whether
these rates are higher than those of nontrafficked prostituted women or than those in the
general community.

C.

Mental Health Impact

Relentless anxiety, insecurity, fear and

physical pain and injury will have significant
efects on the mental health and well-being of
trafficked victims. Symptoms of psychological
trauma reported by trafficked persons include
post-traumatic
stress
disorder,
anxiety,
depression, alienation and disorientation. These
individuals report feelings of extreme sadness
and hopelessness about the future. They may be
suicidal, have cognitive impairment and memory
loss, and may be withdrawn. They may also have
difficulty concentrating and show aggression and
anger. Studies indicate that trauma worsens
throughout the duration of the trafficking process.
Initial trauma commonly experienced either
before they were trafficked or when they first
discovered that they were trafficked, will be
continually increased by the process of the
trafficking. The longer victims remain under the
control of their traffickers, the more severe and
long-lasting are the efects of their trauma. The
symptoms may persist for a long time after the
trafficking experience unless support and
appropriate counseling is provided.

D.

Child Victims
40 | P a g e

Child victims of trafficking are subject to the

same harmful treatment as adults. Their age
makes them even more vulnerable to the harmful
consequences of abusive practices. Prolonged
abuse in children, including physical and sexual
abuse, hunger and malnutrition, ma lead to
permanent stunting of growth. Trafficked children
may sufer, for example, from poorly formed or
rotting teeth and may experience reproductive
problems at a later date. The International Labor
Organization (ILO) has documented that children
in some tropical regions are at high risk of
sunstroke, increased heart rhythm, poisoning due
to chemicals in insecticides, dust inhalation in
sawmills and mines, machinery accidents, burns,
road accidents, stagnation of growth and general
fatigue that makes them less resistant to malaria
and other diseases because of their exposure to
harsh working conditions.
Trafficked children are less likely than adults to
have
accurate
in
formation
about
the
transmission
and
prevention
of
sexually
transmitted infections and have fewer negotiating
skills. Girls are especially vulnerable, as sexually
transmitted infections are likely to have long term
physical consequences. The emotional well-being,
self-esteem and ability to set personal goals and
form healthy relationships of these younger
victims of trafficking will be significantly
damaged.
Trafficked children find it difficult to trust
authority figures. If their trafficking situation was
initiated by a family member, or if they were very
young, they may be subsequently unable to
return to their families or connect with them.
They may have attachment problems and anti41 | P a g e

social behaviors, aggression, sexualized behavior

or addictions. If ofered a chance at education,
they may sufer developmental delays, language
and cognitive difficulties, deficits in verbal and
memory skills, poorer academic performance and
grade retention. They may experience difficulty in
adapting themselves to the rules, regulations and
discipline of the education system.

E.

Substance Abuse

Trafficked victims may be subjected to

substance abuse by their traffickers. Some
trafficked women have described how they were
forced to use drugs or alcohol to ensure their
compliance and to enable them to take on more
clients,
work
longer
hours
or
perform
objectionable or risky acts. Trafficked persons
may also turn to substance abuse to alleviate the
pain of their situation, often resulting in addiction,
organ damage, malnutrition, needle-induced
infections, overdose and death.

F.

Impact on Behavior

Prolonged physical and mental abuse afects

victims behavior in negative ways, having an
impact on both physical and emotional
responses. Because trafficked persons often
experience extreme forms of trauma over long
periods of time, their capacities both to
understand what has happened to them and to
describe their experiences are directly impaired
as a result of such abuse. Victims can find that it
is difficult to make personal sense of the abuse
they have experienced, much less try to explain it
to the authorities.
42 | P a g e

They are even less able to identify what help they

might need as a result of the abuse. This lack of
clarity may have negative consequences when a
victim is being interviewed by relevant
authorities. Trafficked persons may be unsure of
how they are supposed to answer questions. They
may be reluctant to disclose information, or may
give false information, be irritable or hostile and
aggressive towards others, even support persons.
They may seem complaining, uncooperative or
ungrateful. As a result, they may not be identified
as victims of crime, further compounding the
injustice they have experienced. In many
instances, failure to identify a person as a
trafficking victim commonly results in deportation
from the country of transit or destination without
access to legal, medical or social services. Such
behavior, however, may manifest in individuals
for many years.
Upon return to the country of origin,
assistance to trafficked persons will depend on
existing economic, political and social conditions.
Assistance, when available, may be contingent
upon certain behaviors and conditions, for
example, zero tolerance of substance abuse and
adherence to structured daily regimens. Victims
may be too traumatized to participate efectively
in programmes, take decisions, show preferences
or accept help. Unaddressed physical health
symptoms and chronic pain will also afect
victims ability to participate in program available
for their assistance. In some countries, service
programmes and providers limit a victims right
to determine what is best for themselves. Where
assistance is perceived as placing unnecessary
or unwanted restrictions on victims, trafficked
individuals may respond through various forms of
43 | P a g e

uncooperative behavior. Worst case examples are

those which impose a victim status on a
trafficking person that further victimizes, rather
than rehabilitates, that individual.
Fear, in its many manifestations, is also a
common behavioral response to return. Leaving
aside the stigma and shame associated with
trafficking, trafficking victims anticipate and
frequently sufer reprisals upon return to their
points of origin, from threats and actual physical
violence against themselves or those close to
them through to the very real possibility, in
many cases, of being re-trafficked.

G.

Stigma

The response of family members and the

community will have an impact upon the recovery
process of trafficked persons. Although more is
known about the stigma facing victims of
trafficking for sexual exploitation, all trafficked
persons may face social disapproval if they return
without promised wealth, regardless of the harm
they sufered. In many countries, the impact of
the trauma is influenced significantly by how
victims imagine their culture will view their
experiences. Many victims know that cultural
attitudes to prostitution could prevent them from
being
accepted
by
their
families
and
communities. In some cultures the entire family
could be ostracized as a result of the victims
past.
In a recent national study, surveyed
communities exhibited some understanding of
the role of social and economic hardships in
vulnerability to trafficking, but overwhelmingly
blamed the immoral character of the trafficked
girl herself, who was seen to bring disgrace and
44 | P a g e

shame to her family and community. Returned

victims were considered likely to continue as
prostitutes or try to recruit other young girls as
prostitutesall trafficking was associated with
sex work, and those who were trafficked were
assumed to be infected with HIV/AIDS and to be a
source of infection in the communities.
Prevention messages may unknowingly
contribute to the stigmas surrounding a trafficked
person, notably in the way they portray the
negative results of a trafficking situation. For
example, some campaigns use fear to discourage
women from leaving their homes and associate
trafficking with contracting HIV, implying that all
women trafficked for sexual exploitation have
HIV/AIDS.
Even participation in a recognized return
programme for victims of trafficking may expose
trafficked persons to the stigma of prostitution.
Men trafficked for sexual purposes may
experience the double shame and stigma of
being branded a prostitute and of having sex with
men despite not being homosexual themselves.
In some cases victims will simply move away
from the home area and return to prostitution,
while others choose not to reveal anything at all
about the trafficking experience, with this choice
significantly
afecting
their
physical
and
psychological recovery.

Recovery of Victims

Return and reintegration for a trafficked

person is a long-term and complex process with
no guarantee of recovery. Even where physical
problems can be addressed and stigma
overcome, trauma and psychological damage
make recovery a difficult task rendered even
45 | P a g e

more so by the problems in accessing necessary

resources and in communicating with support
persons and family. Some trafficked victims may
not adjust to a lifestyle that they previously
considered normal. If employment can be
found, a trafficked persons behavior, as a result
of the experiences of severe trauma, may make it
difficult to remain employed. Problems may be
compounded if, as often happens, trafficked
persons are returned to their place of origin to
face the same problems of unemployment, abuse
and discrimination that compelled them to leave
in the first place, all of which may be exacerbated
by the new stigma. With previous victimization a
better predictor of future victimization than any
other characteristic of crime, these circumstances
contribute extra risk. For some, especially those
who survived longer periods in a trafficking
situation, a return to a situation of exploitation
may provide the only alternative for which their
practical skills and
survival mentality are now oriented.

2.2.3:

The Political Impacts of

Trafficking on
Persons
In addition to the tragic impact on
individuals, human trafficking has now reached
such a scale that it has begun to influence the
domestic and foreign policies of many of the
countries where the problem has become
particularly noted. Because trafficking involves
the movement of people across international
borders, one of the most important areas of
debate is migration policy. However, because
trafficking in persons is also a deeply human
46 | P a g e

issue, it has become a major issue of discussion

and concern in human rights circles. The
following discussion will outline what are some of
the major concerns and challenges in each of
these two areas.

A.

Shaping migration policies

Unprecedented numbers of people leave

their homes and families every year in search of
economic opportunities that are not available to
them at home. Many of these individuals migrate
legally. The numbers are so great, however, and
the restrictions on regular or legal migration
usually so stringent, that many migrants become
absorbed into the illicit world of people
smuggling. In too many cases, smuggling leads to
conditions of ongoing exploitation and human
misery.
Commonly,
many
States
equate
trafficking
with
illegal
migration
or
smuggling of aliens or movement of asylumseekers, even though these are diferentalbeit
often overlappingphenomena. It is within this
overall concept and not as a separate issue that
trafficking in persons has helped to shape
migration policies, in countries both of origin and
destination.

B.

Border control

Just as a common response to irregular

migration has been to tighten borders, so too
have countries responded to the increase in
human trafficking by strengthening border
control. Stricter border controls and increased law
enforcement are common methods. Expenditure
on border control is increasing rapidly throughout
Australia, the United
47 | P a g e

States, Western Europe and other perceived

destination areas.
At
the
global
and
regional
levels,
international cooperation in addressing trafficking
is largely within the context of action to deter and
prevent irregular movements and the promotion
of national legislation to assist in this. The Bali
Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in
Persons and Related Transnational Crime, set up
in South-East Asia, has a strong crime control
emphasis and focuses on capacity-building of
operational-level law enforcement, immigration
and other key personnel involved in combating
migrant smuggling, trafficking in persons and
related forms of transnational crime. In Western
and Central Europe, the European Union has
focused extensively on issues of smuggling and
trafficking within the context of controlling
immigration from outside. Following the 1999
Tampere European Council, which guaranteed
access to European territory to asylum seekers,
draft council directives were formulated on penal
frameworks for those who facilitate unauthorized
entry and residence.
Regional forums all include bilateral aid and
trade programmes, assistance with poverty
alleviation and development as part of their
focus. These policies are directly linked to the
expectation
that
increases
in
overseas
development and humanitarian assistance will
also result in decreases in irregular migration,
including trafficking.

C.

Human rights

When trafficking is defined within the context

of irregular migration, the crime control focus
48 | P a g e

becomes the illegal entry or stay in a country,

that is, infraction of state laws by the migrant
him- or herself. This focus raises the danger that
the human rights abuses and exploitation that
are the characteristics of trafficking may not be
addressed. Even when government measures
primarily target the recruiters and exploiters,
trafficked persons are at risk of being considered
collaborators in illegal migration rather than as
victims of crime.
The unintended consequence of this
approach can be severe. To cross closed borders,
irregular migrants are more likely to use
professional smugglers or traffickers. The
involvement of criminal groups in migration
means that smuggling may lead to exploitation
and
potential
instances
of
trafficking,
victimization and the violation of human rights.
With trafficking being potentially more
profitable than smuggling, owing to the ongoing
exploitation of the victim, States of destination
may be inadvertently creating a lucrative market
for the traffickers. The more strictly the laws of
immigration against the illegal entrants are
enforced, the more sophisticated forms of
criminality are used in human trafficking to
overcome the barriers that are needed to making
a profit. This may increase the violence and
abuse associated with the practice.

D.
Regular migration: countries of
destination
As a result of the
migration, many countries
tightened their immigration
the demand for unskilled

increase of illegal
of destination have
requirements. While
domestic and care
49 | P a g e

workers, women in particular, has increased,

countries of destination have restricted the flow
of regular or legal migration by imposing
educational, language and other requirements.
Short-term contracts with dependence upon
specific employers, lengthy contract approval
processes, certification of skills, recruitment fees,
bonds, police and health checks and travel costs
may further impede legitimate migration. These
practices may not be designed specifically to
address trafficking, but are rather aimed at
regulating and controlling legal immigration. The
possible discrimination against unskilled migrants
(in the face of the growing demand) can have the
unintended impact of further increasing the
vulnerability of migrants to being trafficked.
Where a legal opportunity cannot be found,
potential migrants may turn to traffickers for
assistance. Restrictive migration policies that
limit opportunities to migrate safely and legally
will fuel demand for the services of traffickers.

E.
Regular migration: source
countries
It becomes important for labor-exporting
nations, which are the primary source countries
for trafficking, to manage migration in such a way
that it contributes to social and economic
development and is not seen as a danger by their
own citizens, a threat to public security or as
stigmatizing their citizens. Some source countries
attempt to protect their citizens from exploitation
through a variety of regulated programmes prior
to
departure.
Some
important
methods
commonly used in the Philippines, for example,
include a range of subsidized benefits, including
pre-migration training on social and work
50 | P a g e

conditions abroad, life insurance and pension

plans, medical insurance and tuition assistance
for the migrant and his or her family, and
eligibility for pre-departure and emergency loans.
Nevertheless, despite these eforts, significant
numbers of migrants, especially women, fall into
conditions of exploitation and trafficking.
Other
source
countries
may
impose
discriminatory exit requirements and may restrict
migration among certain population groups,
notably women. These restrictions may stem
from a countrys norms related to the status of
women or as a direct response to abuse
or exploitation perceived in countries of
destination. The restrictions may take the form of
complete bans or age-, occupation- and countryspecific limitations on womens emigration.
In some source regions, well intended
trafficking prevention messages have sometimes
taken a negative position on migration.
Frightening messages about the dangers of
migration have been used to discourage women
from leaving their villages. The unintended
consequence of such strategies may make
individuals more vulnerable to exploitation. Poor
women job-seekers, in particular from remote
rural areas with less access to accurate
information on migration procedures, job
opportunities,
recruitment
channels
and
legitimate jobs, are at higher risk of being
trafficked in these situations. Given the global
demand for female labor and the increasing
willingness of female migrants to travel overseas,
restrictive
female
migration
policies
will
encourage women to use informal or irregular
channels to assist their movement. This in turn
increases their vulnerability to trafficking.
51 | P a g e

F.

Management of the status of

trafficked persons
The detection and identification of trafficked
persons in countries of destination raises
significant political and social challenges. States
are faced with reconciling their obligations under
the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish
Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and
Children, to protect victims with their own
domestic
policies
of
preventing
irregular
migration. Trafficked persons will not usually have
a regular residence status in the State of
destination, either because they arrived in an
irregular way or because their residence permit
has expired.
A number of countries of destination have
recently recognized the humanitarian risks of
returning victims precipitously to their country of
origin. To address both their human rights
obligations and their national security and
migration requirements, several destination
States have adopted measures for the temporary
or permanent residence of victims of trafficking.
In some cases, that protection entitles the victims
to other rights and benefits. Additionally, in some
countries, reflection periods are granted to allow
for a period of time in which the presumed
trafficked person is referred for services and
counseling, without having to make an immediate
statement to the police. This enables trafficked
persons to receive appropriate support and to
make informed decisions. Such support and
assistance will assist in their recovery and may
encourage them to testify against traffickers,
assisting in successful prosecutions. Early
52 | P a g e

assistance can promote recovery and may in turn

have a positive future impact on the reduction of
trafficking,
by
preventing
re-trafficking.
Cooperative bilateral assistance eforts between
the State of destination and the State of origin
have also been developed in some cases and will
assist in reducing the risks faced by victims.

2.2.4:The Economic Impact of

Trafficking in Persons
A.

The Costs of Trafficking

The cost of crime is essentially a measure of

the impact of that crime on society. The costs of
trafficking include the value of all resources
devoted to its prevention, the treatment and
support of victims and the apprehension and
prosecution of ofenders. For example, as a
component of organized crime, there are costs to
the police (who investigate suspected crime and
gather and record evidence), the prosecution
services, criminal courts, legal aid and nonlegally-aided defence costs, and costs of the
prison and probation services. The foregone
productivity of imprisoned traffickers (although
such labor may not in all cases have been put to
productive use) should be included. There may
also be costs to witness protection schemes and
health, welfare and other government services.
53 | P a g e

While in some countries a successful prosecution

may mean some cost recovery and asset
confiscation,
in
most
circumstances,
the
resources devoted to these elements of the
criminal justice system and health and welfare
systems come from the public purse, which may
severely challenge existing resources, notably in
source countries. Realizing the potential to ofset
these costs through the confiscation of traffickers
income and assets is of great significance to
continued success against trafficking activities.
These costs are linked with the human and
social costs to the victims and their communities
and may include the physical and emotional
sufering of victims as well as the toll upon
community members who may develop increased
fear and anxiety about crime as a result of public
trials and media attention. Given that violence,
corruption and trafficking are invariably linked,
the cost of enforcement and reform may be
afected by public perceptions that government
cannot cope with criminal organizations.
The ongoing care and support of victims,
costs associated with immigration and customs
processes,
repatriation,
direct
government
funding or funding grants to non-governmental
organizations to assist victims, along with other
health, welfare housing and associated costs, will
also have an impact. For some source countries
especially, this is a significant economic burden.
While expenditures on trafficking prevention
programmes, advocacy and research projects
may be seen as discretionary, such expenditures
are often accepted by Governments that are
parties to the Trafficking Protocol as a
requirement of their domestic commitment to
54 | P a g e

addressing the crime of trafficking and a part of

their enforcement eforts against the crime.
The public health impact of trafficking is
potentially very costly. Recent epidemiological
data suggest that tuberculosis, which is regarded
worldwide as a re-emerging infectious disease,
has reached the level of an epidemic in some
countries from which victims are trafficked. In
areas where vaccination programmes and health
service standards and protocols are not widely
developed or infection rates are higher, diseases
such as tuberculosis or HIV/AIDS may be brought
to the country of destination, with attendant
costs and problems.

B.

Lost Resources

Human trafficking results in an irretrievable

loss of human resources and reductions in
revenue. Trafficking yields no tax revenues, and
may even lead to a net revenue loss as a result of
tax evasion and money laundering. There will be
a lower accumulation of human capital and a
lower rate of participation in the labor market. In
source countries, trafficking will influence the
future productivity of children, who may lose
access to education or sufer health problems
where a parent is trafficked and family support is
lost. There will be fewer individuals available to
care for elderly people or children, with fewer
resources.
Non-monetary economic loss such as healthrelated impacts may be significant, as trafficked
victims
and
their
families
sufer
the
consequences of this crime. Since trafficking may
result
in
premature
death,
a
possible
consequence is the loss of the future productive
55 | P a g e

capacity of the victim. As is also common for

families of homicide victims, or those who die
prematurely because of crime, the emotional,
psychological, and social impacts will be borne by
the family and community of the deceased
person.
When victims are repatriated to their country
of origin, the burden of assistance and
rehabilitation is shifted to the source country,
where resources are often already limited. The
future impact of untreated health and welfare
needs will be significant. In many cases families
and communities will be required to take on this
additional human, social and economic burden.
The efects of the bribery and corruption
known to accompany trafficking practices may
destabilize
regulatory
regimes
and
their
supporting infrastructure and also significantly
inhibit much needed overseas investment and
trade.

C.

Remittances

The most direct economic impact of human

trafficking on individuals is the receipt of little or
no income and, consequently, the loss of migrant
remittances. While it is not possible to sensibly
estimate the potential value of the labor of
trafficked persons, some States have taken
tentative steps, on occasion in assessing
compensation, to calculate income payments due
to trafficking victims. While compensation
payments remain rare and generally constitute
small financial sums, a well documented
motivation for many identified trafficking victims
in initially consenting to approaches by traffickers
is, firstly, the opportunity to earn an anticipated
56 | P a g e

level of income and, secondly, to apply that

income as remittances.
Official remittances, money sent home by
migrants, made up of millions of individual,
private, non-market income transfers, have
grown steadily and represent a significant
international flow of capital. Formal remittance
flows from foreign workers now total over $232
billion, with developing countries receiving $160
billion, while informal flows and national or
domestic remittances add 50 per cent more.
Women, children and the elderly are said to be
the majority of beneficiaries of these remittances.
While the issue of foreign remittances themselves
is controversial, any discussion on this topic must
acknowledge that, in the short term, they provide
and make possible a number of benefits to those
to whom they are sent. A direct impact of
trafficking in persons is to deny a victim those
benefits.
Sending members abroad may represent
many families main survival project and source
of income, with a much higher return than
opportunities at home. Funds provided for
household needs enable receivers to maintain or
increase expenditure on basic consumption and,
in cases of extreme poverty, these funds will
provide welfare assistance. Remittances may also
reduce the vulnerability of recipients to crises and
be critical to how they survive and recover from
disasters. Sending remittances home also
improves the status and negotiating power of
women in their families and communities, and
may create better conditions for other females in
the family. This may create an efective
development
tool,
contributing
to
the
57 | P a g e

improvement of womens economic status in

countries of both origin and destination.
For many developing economies, remittances
are the single largest source of foreign exchange
and are stable and resilient in the face of
economic downturns. Increasingly, it is argued
that remittances are a positive force for
development. They have been described as the
most stable, abundant and safe source of foreign
aid for developing countries, with greater eforts
expended on how they can be used to assist
development in recipient countries, including
their use in collective local development projects
such as those set up in Mexico. According to the
World Bank, a 10 per cent increase in the
percentage of remittances as a proportion of a
countrys GDP would result in a 1.6 per cent
reduction of the number of people living in
poverty in that country.
There is no way of assessing the value of
remittances sent home by trafficked and/or
exploited persons, given that trafficked persons,
by definition, are not in control of the money that
is earned as a result of their labor or services.
The fact that the profits of trafficking derive from
the exploitation of its victims, which may include
keeping a great part of their earnings and thus
preventing victims from sending remittances
home or, at least, reducing remittances, should
have an impact on the benefits outlined above.

D.

The Profits of Organized Crime

In 2005, ILO estimated that there were 12.3

million people in forced labor worldwide, of whom
about 2.4 million had been trafficked, both
internally and across borders. The profits of
trafficking are significant. Unlike smuggling of
58 | P a g e

migrants, which produces a one-time profit,

trafficking involves the long-term exploitation of
individuals, which translates into continuous
income. Recent ILO estimates suggest that the
global profits of trafficking in human beings are
around $31.6 billion annually. Based on the
previously cited numbers of trafficked persons,
this translates into an annual illicit profit of
$13,000 per victim.
The International Monetary Fund assesses
the annual turnover of criminal organizations at
some $1,500 billion internationally. Trafficking in
persons is believed to be the third largest source
of the profits for international organized crime
after trafficking in drugs and arms. Trafficking in
persons guarantees criminal networks a stable
and regular source of income with little risk,
enabling them to form additional rings for other
lucrative and dangerous illicit activities. These
profits
have
funded
the
expansion
of
international, regional and local criminal groups,
contributed to corruption and undermined the
rule of law. Information suggests that traffickers
have efectively used the new opportunities
created by changes in international restrictions
on movements of goods, money and services,
and the creation and development of new global
markets and new technologies, to operate
increasingly at the international level.
The structure and size of the organized
criminal groups involved in human trafficking
range from small local networks to large
transnational organizations. Those who benefit
include recruiters, document forgers, brokers,
brothel
owners,
debt
collectors
and
managers/owners of employment agencies.
Corrupt immigration officials, consular workers,
59 | P a g e

embassy personnel, members of law enforcement

bodies and border guards accept bribes in
exchange for passports, visas and safe transit. As
a major global crime, human trafficking is also
often intermixed with other organized illicit
activities, including fraud, extortion, racketeering,
money-laundering, bribery of public officials, drug
use, document forgery and gambling.
Of a global sample of 40 organized criminal
groups surveyed by the United Nations Office on
Drugs and Crime in 2002, 8 were found to be
involved in human trafficking activities, with 2
almost exclusively involved in human trafficking
and the remaining 6 including human trafficking
as one of a number of diversified criminal
activities undertaken by the group. In 50 per cent
of human trafficking cases in one destination
country, the perpetrators were also engaged in
illegal trade in drugs or arms. Links to other
global criminal activities make human trafficking
more profitable, as groups are able to use the
safe and tested routes and work through known
corrupt officials.
Human trafficking crimes are also closely
integrated into legal business interests such as
tourism, employment or recruitment agencies,
agriculture, hotel and airline operations, and
leisure and entertainment businesses. Criminal
organizations may hide the traces of their illegal
activities by directly and indirectly investing their
profits in legitimate financial institutions.
Although some businesses are simply established
to launder money and not necessarily to make
profits, this practice may in turn have a negative
impact on the economy, as legitimate businesses
may find themselves having to compete against
enterprises being secretly or unknowingly
60 | P a g e

subsidized by laundered proceeds of crime or

supported by the exploitation of trafficked
persons. Fair competition may also be afected
when exploited trafficked persons have been
used further down the supply chain to produce
materials such as textiles.
The most visible impact of the profits of
organized
crime
associated
with
human
trafficking in destination countries is trafficking
for sexual exploitation within the commercial sex
trade.
Well-established
domestic organized
criminal groups often engage in the sex trade and
cheap labor markets with foreign counterparts.
Prostituted women have been known to be used
as drug smugglers/couriers and dealers. These
crimes, combined with the movements of illicit
profits made by the sex industry, estimated to be
between $7 and $12 billion annually, have a
significant impact on economic stability and
security, human rights and law enforcement and
crime control.

2.2.5: The Impact on the Rule of Law

Efective and impartial application of the rule

of law is indispensable for sustaining a
democratic society. Corruption and other ancillary
crimes linked to trafficking activities undermine
Governments,
reduce
accountability
and
representation in policymaking, suspend the rule
of law and result in unequal service provision.
The spread of organized crime, including
human trafficking, has become, for example, one
of the most important mechanisms for unlawful
redistribution of national wealth in South-Eastern
Europe. Organized crime undermines law
enforcement eforts, slows economic
61 | P a g e

growth, raises the cost of regional trade and

disrupts the transition to a market economy. It
has been suggested that profits from organized
crime, in some parts of the globe, have been
used as financial contributions to political parties
and election campaigns. This has a negative
impact on the publics trust in democratic and
market
economy
institutions
and
breeds
disillusionment with reforms in general.
In countries where there is civil unrest or
where major natural disasters have occurred, the
destruction
of
infrastructure
means
that
Governments may have difficulty exercising full
control over their national territory. For example,
following natural disasters or as a result of civil
unrest, people housed in refugee camps or in
temporary shelters, especially children separated
from their families and women alone, may be at
risk from criminal organizations and traffickers
seeking to exploit their desperate circumstances.
In these often chaotic circumstances, traffickers
can undermine government eforts to exert
authority and to protect vulnerable populations.
Public
safety
may
be
threatened
and
communities may lose faith in their national
Governments, while international donors may be
reluctant to provide aid in such circumstances.

2.2.6: Post-Conflict Situations

In post-conflict areas, the association

between international peacekeeping personnel
and private contractors, organized crime and the
growth of trafficking in women and children for
sexual exploitation has raised global concerns. It
has been reported, for example, that during
peacekeeping
operations
where
significant
62 | P a g e

human trafficking activity occurred, those who

were trafficking in people also trafficked in guns
and narcotics, the revenue from which could
destabilize a theatre of operation. It has also
been suggested that the resources accumulated
by illegal activities, including trafficking, in postconflict zones may
also become a part of redirected revenue used for
the clandestine political economy of a region,
with serious global consequences.

2.2.7: Global Security

In most regions of destination, trafficking in
persons along with its links to organized crime
and its significant human rights, economic, social,
and political impacts are acknowledged as
endangering human as well as national security.
For example, trafficking in persons is described in
the European Security Strategy as one of the five
key threats for the region. Regional forums both
within the European Union and in South-East Asia
commonly focus on developing collaborative
eforts at addressing organized crime, including
law enforcement cooperation and training, and in
combating human trafficking by targeting
migrant smugglers and human traffickers within a
regional focus. The United States regards
trafficking in persons as an important issue both
because of its human impact and also because of
its consequences for national security, primarily
with respect to terrorism, crime, health and
welfare, and border control.
In many countries, in particular in source
areas, the prioritization of anti-human trafficking
eforts must compete with a range of significant
national concerns, including addressing poverty,
corruption and/or civil unrest, as well as
63 | P a g e

competing demands for scarce resources. As

evidenced by the ratification of the Trafficking
Protocol, there is, however, broad global
agreement on the significant risks and harms that
relate human trafficking issues to humanitarian
concerns,
business
interests,
political
relationships, investments in training and
assistance, and law enforcement cooperation.
The proliferation of trafficking in persons and the
organized crime associated with it is recognized
as having a negative impact on all these areas
and undermining the efectiveness of aid and
investment. There is also a consideration that
organized crime networks involved in human
trafficking may be a potential terrorism threat.23

2.3:

Solutions to the Problem

For many people, the phrase "human

trafficking" conjures up images of horrific
nightmares from long ago and far away. However,
human trafficking is tragically still prominent, and
remains a modern source of misery.
Those who are aware of the practice often
have various misconceptions regarding the
practice of human trafficking. For example, those
who are trapped in its vicious cycle are not just
mail order brides from foreign countries.
Shockingly, 83 percent of sex trafficking victims
in the U.S. are American citizens. And while
women constitute the overwhelming majority of
victims, labor traffickers trap males as well, who
are forced to work for little or no pay under
terrible conditions in arrangements that vary
23 http://www.unodc.org/documents/humantrafficking/An_Introduction_to_Human_Trafficking_-_Background_Paper.pdf

64 | P a g e

between some form of indentured servitude and

outright slavery.
This worldwide business bringing in $43 billion
a year, has been a growing problem in the United
States, particularly in Utah.
One of the largest human trafficking cases in
U.S. history occurred between 2005 and 2007,
when a group of workers from Thailand sought
what they thought was freedom and a new life in
America. At the center of scrutiny is Global
Horizons, a Los Angeles-based company that
recruited people in Thailand for farm work in the
United States. It eventually placed some of them
with two Utah companies: Circle Four pig farms in
Milford and at Delta Eggs chicken farms in Delta.
Conditions were barbaric. Members of the group
stated that Global Horizons controlled their
movements. If they failed to work long and hard,
they were threatened that their families back
home would lose everything. Housing lacked heat
in freezing winters and air conditioning in
scorching summers. They repeatedly went hungry
and even had to trap birds and other animals for
sustenance.
The workers stated they arrived legally in
America at diferent times in 2004 and 2005 with
H-2A visas for agricultural work. Such visas are
good only as long as workers remain with the
employer that obtained them, which in this case
was Global Horizonsmaking these individuals
literally trapped by their employers. If workers
tried to leave Global, they would lose their legal
status.

65 | P a g e

The Thais in Utah may be just the tip of the

iceberg of human trafficking. Between 2001 and
2008, the Justice Department convicted 515
people on human trafficking charges. In 2012, it
convicted another 47. How has Utah responded to
such travesties?
Utahs trafficking laws received a D grade
in Shared Hopes 2012 national report card, as
did sixteen other states, including Maryland, New
York, and Oregon. (Another 16 states scored an
F grade, including Virginia, California, and the
District of Columbia.) In 2006, the Department of
Justice selected Salt Lake City as one of 40 cities
to receive a grant to create a human trafficking
task force, and there was a great deal of local
publicity surrounding the issue. Sadly, that
momentum seems to have faded. Though it
appears that the Utah Human Trafficking Task
Force remains in continuation, it has never
published a report and it is unclear how active
the task force remains. Though the task force is
supposedly administered by the U.S. Attorneys
Office for the District of Utah, there is no mention
of the task force on the U.S. Attorneys Office
website among its other projects.
Various advocacy groups suggest that a
state-funded task force is essential to bring Utah
in line with anti-trafficking goals, and to jumpstart
Utahs eforts to protect the vulnerable men
women and children who are being exploited
through sex and slave labor.
In March 2013, Utah made strides in
combating human trafficking with a new bill. The
Utah Senate voted 25-0 on to pass HB163 and it
was signed into law on March 27th by Governor
66 | P a g e

Gary Herbert. The law removes the statute of

limitations on prosecuting suspects engaged in
human trafficking, and bars the common defense
claim that the age of a kidnapped person was not
known to the suspects at the time of the crime. It
also increases the penalties for felony convictions
of using children in prostitution or smuggling
children for the purpose of slavery or sexual
exploitation.
However, there is a dire need for more action
protecting those who are daily efected by
exploitation. State and local governments need
anti-trafficking coalition building, educational
outreach, direct service to victims, and
collaboration with other national and international
organizations in the global fight against human
trafficking.24

Some ways
trafficking

to

prevent

human

Take Action 1: Read All About It.

There are a wide range of books that
chronicle the personal experiences of victims,
survivors and campaigners against human/sex
trafficking. Organize your book club or your social
clubs reading list to include these books and
share these stories of struggle, triumph and hope.
Take Action 2: Share on Social Media.
We live in an increasingly connected world.
With one click we can share an informative
24 http://www.diplomaticourier.com/news/topics/security/1942-solutions-to-humantrafficking-exploring-local-alternatives
67 | P a g e

meme, a change-inspiring photo, or a YouTube

documentary with our social networks.
Take Action 3: Use Every Opportunity to
Raise Awareness!
Be creative. Any event is an opportunity to
raise awareness and make a diference. Hope for
the Sold has an amazing package that enables
wedding guests to donate to Hope for the Sold in
lieu of wedding favors. Perhaps your birthday is
coming up, an anniversary or, a company launch;
these are all great avenues to raise awareness
Take Action 4: Blog About It!
The blog spere is another area that we can
use to advocate! Cool Cat Teacher Blog used the
Christmas season to launch a campaign to Free
the Slaves for Christmas amongst bloggers. This
Christmas season is almost here; its a great time
to make a change!
Action 5: Donate your old cell phones.
Be environmentally friendly AND save the
lives of others through
the Phones4Freedom program. The
Phones4Freedom program reuses and recycles
old or broken cell phones and uses them to help
warn remote villages in impoverished
communities and areas of trafficking operations.
Action 6: Write a Victim, Support a Victim!
Survivors throughout the world are often
comforted by these simple gestures. Alternatively
you can support Sanctuary Spring, an
organization that ofers some of these survivors
68 | P a g e

the opportunity to rebuild their lives by creating

job opportunities through crafting greeting cards.
Purchasing one of these cards would be a small
step in helping to rebuild a survivors life.
Action 7: Organize Screenings of
Documentaries.
Sharing a documentary beyond the realm of
the world of social media remains an excellent
way to get support on the Ground. MTV EXIT Latin
America, the Pan American Development
Foundation (PADF) amongst others, shared this
year a three-week long series of outdoor film
presentations that showcased the human
trafficking documentary Invisible Slaves (The
Animation) to impoverished communities.
Action 8: Work through Art.
One of the most powerful means of telling
and sharing stories, emotions, and life
experiences has always been Art. Arts Aftercare,
as one example, produces the Healing Arts
Toolkit, and trains human trafficking aftercare
groups how to use the toolkit to help restore life
and health in survivors of human trafficking.
Action 9: Be Trained!
One of the key ways to fight human
trafficking is to be aware and engaged so that
you can best know how to help victims, leverage
assistance, and organize. Organizations like
the Polaris Project provide a huge database of
training materials including pre-recorded
webinars and interactive training sessions
Action 10: Fundraise and Donate.
69 | P a g e

The work of ending human trafficking

requires incredible amounts of infrastructure and
work that ultimately carries a huge financial
burden. 1) Research which organizations you feel
most comfortable giving to and 2) organize a
bake sale, movie night, marathon or any other
event to raise funds. 3) Donate!
Action 11: Engage Students and Youth.
While young people, particularly girls, are
extremely vulnerable to human trafficking, they
can also be key agents in this fight. The Not for
Sale Campaign has created a free school
curriculum for both high schools and colleges
which, when paired with its Student Abolition
Movement, can be very efective in transitioning
students from learners to activists!
Action 12: Make it Their Business (Partner
with Companies).
In an era of corporate irresponsibility where
companies may be part of supply networks that
lend to human trafficking, partnerships with
companies to break this cycle are essential. As
one example, The Body Shop in 2009 started a
partnership with ECPAT International and local
NGO partners around the world to campaign to
Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People,
resulting in one of the largest campaigns ever.
Action 13: Public-Private Sector
Partnerships.
Governments and businesses can and should
combine their resources to address human
trafficking. An example of this is the recently
announced Partnership for Freedom: Innovation
70 | P a g e

Awards to Stop Human Trafficking. This publicprivate initiative led by Humanity United, the
Department of Justice, and other federal
agencies, with support from Goldman Sachs, will
fund innovative solutions to improve care for
survivors of human trafficking and modern-day
slavery.

Action 14: Petition! Petition! Petition!

A huge part of ending the modern-day
injustice of human trafficking involves demanding
more of our governments and holding
accountable companies that directly/indirectly
support human trafficking. Change.org is one of
the key petition sites with over 10 live petitions
currently addressing human trafficking.
Action 15: Know your footprint! Be
responsible.
Our food and clothes are sometimes
produced thousands of miles away and in some
cases through slavery. Living miles away we may
simply be unaware of how our demand for certain
foods and products contributes to human
trafficking. Slavery Footprint allows individuals to
measure their footprint and see how much and
how they contribute to demand with a view to
changing consumer patterns.
Action 16: Get Volunteering!
Perhaps you want to volunteer on the battle
lines, away from the virtual world and a lot closer
71 | P a g e

to the spaces that often see the violation of so

many persons annually. Organizations like Not for
Sale, Hope for the Sold, and A 21, among many
others, provide a chance to work to positively
impact the lives of so many persons subject to
human slavery.
Justice for Youth exists to bring hope
and human trafficking solutions to children and
youth around the world. We accomplish this
through bringing awareness, connecting
resources and networking partners.
Other related issues we are concerned with are
poverty, homelessness and HIV/AIDS or other life
threatening diseases. We are committed to
trafficking solutions focusing on prevention, using
an all of the above approach at the grassroots
level.

Grassroots Human Trafficking

Solutions
Human Trafficking: 30 million people are
slaves today and have the right to be free. We
address this need by bringing awareness
and providing support. Short term projects
include a poster campaign in Eastern Europe
bringing human trafficking awareness in the
schools by placing posters and conducting
seminars systematically throughout Moldova,
Ukraine and Kazakhstan. Our long term
commitment includes extensive mass media
campaigns, partnerships for job creation and
crisis counseling for victims.
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Poverty: Thousands of children die daily because

of hunger and unclean water. Poverty greatly
afects children and their future, and is one of the
ROOT CAUSES of human trafficking. The slave
trade preys on young people who are not
prepared to transition to adulthood, or whose
families are in dire need of income. JFY is
committed to meeting this need by providing
quality education programs, innovative
agricultural programs, clean water projects and
small business incubators.
Homelessness: In Eastern Europe alone,
hundreds of thousands of young people live on
the streets and many more are institutionalized in
poor quality orphanages. Once they transition to
young adulthood they become vulnerable to the
slave trades. We help meet this need by assisting
orphanages with program and facility
improvements, adoptions and building new
homes for orphansproviding solid footing for
those transitioning to adulthood.
HIV/AIDS & other diseases: The infection rate
of HIV/AIDS is growing faster in Eastern Europe
than any other region in the world. In the end,
children are afected the most through either the
loss of a parent of contracting the disease
themselves. Many children have diseases that are
curable but do not have access to proper or more
advanced health care. We raise awareness for
basic health and hygiene and connect quality
health care to needy children around the world.25

25 http://www.justiceforyouth.org/human-trafficking-solutions/

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Some other ways

1. GET INFORMED
Scour the Internet for information to equip
yourself with the
facts;freetheslaves.net, A21campaign.org,
www.MoreThanRice.com.
2. SPREAD THE WORD, EDUCATE, AND
INFORM OTHERS
Memorize statistics about human trafficking
to inform your friends and areas of influence. Use
social media to spread the word.
3. USE YOUR TALENT
Use what you do best to make a diference!
Write a blog; paint a picture, display it publicly;
use sports events to raise awareness and funds;
write a song; create a short film and post it on
www.youtube.com
4. LOBBY POLITICIANS LOCALLY AND
NATIONALLY
Two good resources for information and a
winning strategy is www.ijm.org and
www.polarisproject.org.
5. ORGANIZE AN EVENT
Connect with any of the web sites mentioned
in this article and find out specifically what they
need. Your event could be a walk-a-thon, a 5K
run, a musical concert, etc. and conclude the
event with a powerful, informative presentation
about human trafficking.

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6. SPONSOR THOSE AT RISK

Because poverty is a major contributor that
can lead to human trafficking, sponsoring a child
or woman in poverty-stricken areas that are also
ranked as high origin countries for trafficking can
help make a diference.
7. VOLUNTEER YOUR TIME BY JOINING A
TEAM OR FORM A TEAM OF YOUR OWN
www.notforsalecampaign.org is a campaign
of students, artists, entrepreneurs, people of
faith, athletes, law enforcement officers,
politicians, social workers, skilled professionals,
and all justice seekers united to fight the global
slave trade and end human trafficking.
8. MOTIVATE THE MEDIA
Encourage your local newspaper or television
station to cover stories about human trafficking,
as well as what your community can do to help
stop it. Take the initiative; dont assume they
know the facts. Ofer your research to help
generate a story that is newsworthy. Ask your
bookstores and libraries to carry books like More
Than Rice, on human trafficking.
9. HELP VICTIMS ESCAPE
Leave local rescue hotline numbers in public
places around your city.
10. PRAY
Last but certainly not least is the greatest
weapon known to mankind prayer. Pray with
passion as if one of these victims was your own
family.26
26 http://www.morethanrice.com/blog/10-ways-you-can-help-stop-human-trafficking

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Chapter No. 3
Trafficking in Different
Countries

76 | P a g e

3.1: European countries

1. Albania
Albania was an economic ruin when it
emerged 12 years ago from the ironfisted rule of
communist dictator Enver Hoxha. High rates of
poverty and unemployment, a crumbling
infrastructure, and corrupt elected officials made
the nation fertile ground for smuggling in drugs,
weapons, and women. Albanias government has
estimated the number of Albanian women and
girls trafficked to Western Europe and other
Balkan countries between 1991 and 1999 for
sexual
exploitation
at
100,000.
Criminal
organizations based in the capital Tirana and the
cities of Vlora, Bekat, Shkodra, and Fier rely on
speedboats for transporting victims across the
Adriatic Sea to Italy, a trafficking stronghold.
Albanias northern regions were more sheltered
from the trade thanks to the prevalence in rural
communities of a traditional code that dictates
revenge killings for traffickers who lay hold of a
female family member. However, by the late
1990s, lack of economic opportunity had
undermined even this traditional safeguard as
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thousands of Albanian men and boys went abroad

to work. Today, trafficking victims come from all
parts of Albania; in particular, from rural areas
where poverty is higher, education levels lower,
and familiarity with traffickers ploys less
extensive.

Victims
Albania not only supplies women and girls for
the international sex trade, but also acts as a
major hub through which women from countries
further East are taken to Western European
markets. Albanian women and girls are either
lured by false promises of marriage or ofers of
legitimate employment or kidnapped to work as
prostitutes. Ranging in age from 14 to 35, girls
trafficked from Albania are among the youngest
victims worldwide, with as many as 80 percent of
them younger than 18, according to a 2000 Save
the Children report. They are brought to work
primarily in Italy as street prostitutes, the most
dangerous and unpredictable form of prostitution.
Some Albanian girls are trafficked to other
countries such as Belgium, Greece, the
Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. In Italy,
according to a 2001 Save the Children report,
Albanian pimps reportedly expect their teen-aged
prostitutes to earn between $200-$550 a night.
Most of the women never receive a cut of the
money they make.
Foreign women and girls, the majority of
whom are from Moldova and Romania, are also
trafficked through Albania for sexual exploitation.
Brought in via Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, or
Macedonia, they are bought and sold in Albania
78 | P a g e

before being sent to the port cities of Durres or

Vlora for passage to Italy.
Albanian children, both boys and girls, are
trafficked to Greece and Italy to beg, wash car
windows, and deal in drugs. Most of those
trafficked come from Albanias ethnic Roma
minority, a traditionally disadvantaged group.
Often in exchange for a monthly stipend, very
poor families give their children to traffickers,
who take them across the border to Greece by
foot or by boat to Italy to work as forced laborers.
The childrens parents only receive a small
fraction of what they earn, which may average
almost $1,000 per month, according to the 2001
Save the Children report Child Trafficking in
Albania.27

Prosecution
The Government of Albania sustained its
anti-trafficking law enforcement eforts during the
reporting period. Albania criminally prohibits sex
and labor trafficking through its penal code,
which prescribes penalties of 5 to 15 years
imprisonment. These penalties are sufficiently
stringent and exceed those prescribed for other
serious crimes, such as rape. The State Police and
Serious Crimes Prosecution division reported
investigating a combined 35 suspected traffickers
in 2009. The government prosecuted 31
suspected
trafficking
ofenders
in
2009,
convicting 11 of them; this contrasts with 26
trafficking ofenders convicted in 2008 and seven
27 http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/episodes/dying-to-leave/human-traffickingworldwide/albania/1447/

79 | P a g e

in 2007. All of the prosecutions and convictions

involved sex trafficking of women or children. In
2009, sentences imposed on convicted trafficking
ofenders ranged from 5 to 16 years
imprisonment. Pervasive corruption in all levels
and sectors of Albanian society seriously
hampered the governments ability to address its
human trafficking problem, according to local
observers. While there were no prosecutions of
trafficking-related
complicity
initiated,
the
Supreme Court overturned convictions of
traffickers in two cases in 2009, raising concerns
regarding the courts impartiality. In January
2009, the government reported it doubled the
number of police investigators to investigate
trafficking. The Serious Crimes Court successfully
seized and confiscated $268,115 in traffickers
assets and property in 2009. The government, in
partnership with other relevant stakeholders,
continued its routine anti-trafficking training for
police recruits, in-service police personnel, and
other front-line responders in 2009. The
government also continued its anti-trafficking
training for 200 judges, prosecutors, and judicial
police officers.

Protection
The Government of Albania took some
steps to improve its eforts to identify and protect
victims of trafficking victims in 2009. The
government implemented its National Referral
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Mechanism and conducted meetings with

relevant stakeholders to improve its functioning.
It identified 94 victims of trafficking in 2009,
compared with 108 in 2008. The governments
one shelter assisted 24 victims and NGOs
assisted 70 during the reporting period. In 2009,
the government provided free professional
training to 38 victims, provided 11 with microcredit loans to start private businesses, and
integrated five victims into schools. In January
2010, it approved a draft law to provide social
assistance to trafficking victims bridging the time
that they leave the shelters until they find
employment. NGO-managed shelters continued
to rely primarily on international donor funds in
order to provide comprehensive services to
trafficking victims. The government continued to
fund and operate a reception center that housed
both victims of trafficking and irregular foreign
migrants identified within Albanian territory;
however, victims freedom of movement is often
restricted in this high-security center. The
government did not penalize victims for unlawful
acts committed in connection with their being
trafficked and, under law, it ofered legal
alternatives to the removal of foreign victims to
countries where they may face hardship or
retribution, though no victims were granted such
legal alternatives during the reporting period.
The government encouraged victims to
participate in investigations and prosecutions of
81 | P a g e

trafficking ofenders; however, victims often

refused to testify, or they changed their
testimony as a result of intimidation from
traffickers or fear of intimidation. In some cases
in 2009, the police ofered no protections to
trafficking victims when testifying against their
traffickers, forcing victims to rely exclusively on
NGOs for protection. In 2009, one victim witness
received asylum in another country due to
ongoing threats from the trafficker to her and her
family and concerns that the government could
not adequately protect her. The General
Prosecutors office did not request witness
protection for victims of trafficking in 2009.

Prevention
The Government of Albania sustained
partnerships with international organizations in
order to implement anti-trafficking prevention
activities aimed at informing the public and
vulnerable groups about trafficking. The National
Coordinators office continued to manage regional
anti-trafficking working groups comprised of
relevant stakeholders in 2009. These working
groups, however, reportedly do not always
include civil society actors and they did not
efficiently address trafficking cases brought to
their attention. The government continued to
fund the national toll-free, 24-hour hotline for
victims and potential victims of trafficking. In
November 2009, the government passed
legislation to improve the registration process for
82 | P a g e

new births and individuals in the Roma

community; previous cumbersome procedures
rendered unregistered Albanians and ethnic Roma
highly vulnerable to trafficking.28

2. Romania
Romania is a source, transit, and
destination country for men, women, and children
subjected to forced labor and women and
children subjected to sex trafficking. Romanians
represent a significant source of trafficking
victims in Europe. Romanian men, women, and
children are subjected to forced labor in
agriculture, domestic service, hotels, and
manufacturing, as well as forced begging and
theft in European countries, including Austria,
Azerbaijan, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark,
France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, the
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United
Kingdom. Men, women, and children from
Romania are victims of forced prostitution in
European countries, including Belgium, Cyprus,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary,
Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, and Switzerland. Romania is a
destination country for a small number of women
from Moldova, Colombia, and France who are
forced into prostitution. The majority of identified
Romanian victims are victims of forced labor,
including
forced
begging.
Children
likely
represent at least one-third of Romanian
trafficking victims. Traffickers who recruit and
exploit Romanian citizens are overwhelmingly
28 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2010/142759.htm

83 | P a g e

Romanian themselves, typically seeking victims

from the same ethnic group or within their own
families. Frequently, traffickers exploit victims
within Romania before transporting them abroad
for forced prostitution or labor. The Romanian
government reported increasing sophistication
among Romanian criminal groups, including the
transportation of victims to diferent countries in
Europe in order to test law enforcement
weaknesses in each. Romania is a destination
country for a small number of foreign trafficking
victims, including sex trafficking victims from
Moldova and labor trafficking victims from
Bangladesh and Serbia. Romanian girls and boys,
particularly those whose parents work abroad,
are vulnerable to sex trafficking throughout
Romania.
The
government
and
NGO
representatives noted an increase in the number
of disabled victims.
The Government of Romania does not fully
comply with the minimum standards for the
elimination of trafficking; however, it is making
significant eforts to do so. The government
continued to identify a large number of victims
and coordinated a national referral mechanism to
ensure that police refer victims to appropriate
care. Nevertheless, for a fourth consecutive year,
the government did not provide funding to NGOs
ofering assistance to trafficking victims, and did
not ofer specialized shelter services in Bucharest
for adults and children. Trafficking prosecutions
and convictions increased significantly during the
reporting period, and the government continued
to sentence a high proportion of convicted
ofenders to prison terms. The Government of
Romanias central coordinating body on anti84 | P a g e

trafficking eforts implemented several creative

public awareness campaigns during the year.

Prosecution
Romania demonstrated law enforcement
eforts over the reporting period; however, it did
not report the number of investigations,
prosecutions, and convictions obtained against
labor trafficking ofenders. Romania prohibits all
forms of trafficking in persons through Law No.
678/2001, which prescribes penalties of three to
15 years imprisonment. These penalties are
sufficiently stringent and commensurate with
penalties prescribed for other serious crimes,
such as rape. In 2009, authorities investigated
759 cases including some investigations started
in 2008, compared with 494 new cases in 2008.
The government prosecuted 303 individuals for
trafficking in 2009, compared with 329 individuals
prosecuted in 2008. During the reporting period,
Romania convicted 183 trafficking ofenders, up
from 125 individuals convicted in 2008. During
the reporting period, only 39 percent 72 of the
183 of convicted trafficking ofenders served
some time in prison; one ofender was sentenced
to up to six months imprisonment, 54 ofenders
were
sentenced
to
five
to
10
years
imprisonment, six ofenders were sentenced to
10 to 15 years imprisonment, and one child
ofender was sentenced to an undisclosed
amount of time in prison. The remaining 111
convicted trafficking ofenders did not receive
imposed prison sentences. In 2009, Romanian law
enforcement officials forged partnerships with
foreign counterparts from five countries, leading
to the arrest of at least 16 trafficking ofenders
and the identification of at least 107 victims.
85 | P a g e

There were no reports that government officials

were involved in trafficking during the reporting
period.

Protection
The Government of Romania significantly
decreased its eforts to protect and assist victims
of trafficking during the reporting period. In 2009,
the government provided no funding for antitrafficking and victim-service NGOs, compared
with $270,000 provided to four NGOs in 2008.
This lack of government funding caused a
significant decrease in the number of victims
assisted by both government agencies and NGOs.
In 2009, the government identified 780 victims
including at least 416 identified victims of forced
labor and at least 320 identified victims of forced
prostitution, a significant decrease from 1,240
victims identified in 2008. Of those victims
identified in 2009, 176 were children, trafficked
for both forced labor and prostitution. The
government
did
not
undertake
proactive
measures to identify potential victims among
populations vulnerable to trafficking, including
illegal migrant detention centers. No foreign
victims were identified by the government or
NGOs in 2009. Although the government
continued to operate nine shelters for victims of
trafficking, their quality varied and many victims
preferred to go to NGO-operated shelters. Local
governments were tasked with providing victims
access to various types of assistance; however,
the
national
government
provided
local
governments with no funding, training, or
guidance, and the capacity of local governments
to address human trafficking was virtually
nonexistent during the reporting period. The
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government reported that approximately 365

victims were provided with some type of
government-funded assistance, compared with
306 victims assisted by the government in 2008.
An additional 32 victims were assisted by nongovernment funded programs, compared with
234 victims assisted by NGOs in 2008.
Government authorities referred all 780
identified victims for assistance, compared with
540 victims referred for assistance in 2008.
Victims were encouraged to participate in
trafficking investigations and prosecutions; 158
victims served as witnesses in 2009, a significant
decrease from 1,053 victims who assisted law
enforcement in 2008. The law provides that
foreign victims were eligible to benefit from a 90day reflection period to remain in the country and
decide whether they would like to cooperate in a
criminal proceeding; however in practice, no
foreign victims used this reflection period. The
law permits foreign victims to request a
temporary residence permit and remain in the
country until completion of the trafficking
investigation and prosecution; in 2009, no foreign
victims applied for and received temporary
residence permits. While the rights of victims
were generally respected and identified victims
were not punished for unlawful acts committed as
a direct result of being trafficked, some judges
continued to be disrespectful toward female
victims of sex trafficking which discouraged
victims from participating in trafficking cases.

Prevention
Romania maintained its eforts to raise
awareness during the reporting period. The
87 | P a g e

government conducted a public campaign to

raise awareness about sex trafficking entitled
The Two-Faced Man. This campaign reached an
estimated audience of 620,000 and ran for three
months, consisting of advertisements for
television and radio and posters displayed on
public transportation. The government also
conducted an awareness campaign targeted at
approximately 30,000 school children and 530
teachers. The government concluded its demand
reduction campaign targeted at clients of
potential victims of forced prostitution and forced
labor in June 2009.29

3.Australia
Australia is a destination country for
human trafficking. Australian authorities believe
that traffickers are primarily of individual
operators or small crime groups that often rely on
larger organized crime groups to procure
fraudulent documentation.
Australia is a destination country for victims
trafficked who are from East Asia, South East
Asia, and Eastern Europe, particularly the
Peoples Republic of China, the Republic of Korea,
and Thailand. There are several reports of
migrants, particularly from India, the Peoples
Republic of China, and South Korea, who
voluntarily migrate to work in Australia but are
later coerced into exploitative conditions. The
Australian Crime Commission reports that
29 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2010/142761.htm

88 | P a g e

deceptive practices in contract terms and

conditions appeared to be increasing among
women in prostitution, while deceptive recruiting
practices appeared to be decreasing. There are
no reliable estimates on the number of trafficking
victims in Australia. However, the Australian
NGO Project Respect estimates up to 1,000
victims are currently under debt bondage, not
including those who have been trafficked but
already paid of their debt.
There are many causes of human trafficking to
Australia.
1) a lack of women in Australia prepared to do
prostitution;
2) 'customer'
compliant;

demand

for

women

seen

as

3) 'customer' demand for women who they can

be violent towards; and
4) Racialized ideas that Asian women have
certain qualities, for example that they are more
compliant and will accept higher levels of
violence.

Prosecution
The Australian Government has increased
its eforts to prosecute traffickers. Since 2004, the
Australian Federal Police has opened 112
investigations and charged 22 people for human
trafficking. Since October 2006, Australia has had
four convictions for sex trafficking, four
89 | P a g e

convictions for child sex tourism, and there are

currently six sex trafficking and two labor
trafficking before the court.

Protection
The Australian Government provides
assistance for trafficking victims, their families,
and witnesses in the prosecutions. The
government funds two return and reintegration
program; one program is for all trafficked women
and children, and the second program is solely for
Thai victims. Trafficking victims who cooperate
with
authorities
in
investigations
and
prosecutions of their traffickers qualify for a
temporary visa and a range of social
services. Those who have held the temporary
visa for two years can qualify for a permanent
visa. 58 temporary visas have been granted since
January 2004, no victim has qualified for a
permanent visa yet. The visa program also
provides victims with shelters, counseling, food
and living allowances. As of January 2007, 35
trafficking victims have received these services.

Prevention
The Australian Government supports a
public awareness campaign with advertisements
in daily newspapers that encourage victims and
communities to call the police hotline, and widely
publicizing prosecutions against traffickers.

International Cooperation
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The Australian Government has anti-human

trafficking agreements with Cambodia, Burma,
Laos, and Thailand to coordinate investigations
and improve cooperation. The government is a
co-chair and co-founder of the Bali Process on
People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons, and
Related Transnational Crime, which creates
regional projects, build awareness, coordinate law
enforcement and enhance victim support. The
government also funds the Asia Regional
Cooperation to Prevent People Trafficking project
to strengthen the criminal justice process in
Thailand, Laos, Burma and Cambodia.30
Signs a person
trafficking:

may

be

victim

of

The following points may indicate that a person is

a victim of human trafficking, slavery or slaverylike practices:
the person appears to be servicing a large debt to
their employer or a third party;
the person does not possess their passport or
travel/identity documents, which are with their
employer or a third party, and the person is
unable to access these documents when they
wish to do so;
the person does not have a labor or employment
contract/agreement , or they do not understand
the terms or conditions of their employment;
30 http://www.humantrafficking.org/countries/australia

91 | P a g e

 the person is unable to terminate their

employment at any time;
the person is subject to diferent or less favorable
working conditions than other employees
because he/she comes from overseas;
the person never or rarely leave their
accommodation for non-work reasons;
the person is living at the place of work or
another place owned or controlled by their
employer;
the person has little or no money or no access to
their earnings;
the person has physical injuries which may have
resulted for assault, harsh treatment or unsafe
work practices;
the person is always in the presence of their
employer, who does not want or allow the worker
to socialize with others;
the person works excessively long hours and
have few, if any, days of
the person regularly between diferent
workplaces, including interstate.
Signs that a person may be in, or at risk of,
a forced marriage:
The following may indicate that a person is in a
forced marriage, or at risk of being made to enter
into a forced marriage:
the person has a family history of elder siblings
leaving education early and/or marrying early;
the person is subject to unreasonable or
excessive restrictions from their family, such as
92 | P a g e

not being allowed out or always having to be

accompanied;
the person expressed concern regarding an
upcoming family holiday;
the person has extended absence from school,
college or the workplace, or begins to display
truancy or low motivation;
the person displays signs of depression, selfharming, social isolation and substance abuse;
the person has limited career choices or their
parents control their income; or
there is evidence of family disputes or conflict,
domestic violence, abuse or running away from
home.31

4.United kingdom
The United Kingdom (UK) is a destination
country for men, women, and children primarily
from Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe who are
subjected to human trafficking for the purposes
of sexual slavery and forced labor,
including domestic servitude. It is ranked as a
"tier 1" country by the US Department of
State which issues an annual report on human
trafficking. "Tier 1" countries are those "Countries
whose governments fully comply with the The
Trafficking Victims Protection Act's minimum
standards for the elimination of trafficking. The
TVPA is a federal statute of the United States. It is
believed that some victims, including minors from
the UK, are also trafficked within the country. It is
also believed that migrant workers are trafficked
to the UK for forced labor in agriculture,
31 http://www.afp.gov.au/policing/human-trafficking.aspx

93 | P a g e

construction, food processing, domestic

servitude, and food service. Source countries for
trafficking victims in the UK include Lithuania,
Russia, Albania, Ukraine, Malaysia, Thailand,
the People's Republic of China(P.R.C.), Nigeria,
and Ghana. Precise details about the extent of
human trafficking within the UK are not available,
and many have questioned the validity32 33of
some of the more widely quoted figures (such as
the 'police estimate' that there are up to 4,000
trafficking victims in the United Kingdom at any
one time).
The Government of the United Kingdom fully
complies with the minimum standards for the
elimination of trafficking. Over the last year, UK
authorities continued to launch aggressive antitrafficking law enforcement eforts to uncover
trafficking and identify victims. During 2009, a
six-month investigation into human trafficking by
all 55 police forces of the United Kingdom failed
to find a case of human trafficking. In May 2012,
a cross-border operation involving police forces
from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland,
which included the raiding of more than 130
premises, resulted in eight arrests. Three of these
arrested persons were thought to be trafficking
victims. It emerged that the women were not
victims of human trafficking, and they were
consequently charged with running a brothel.
Each woman received a suspended sentence, and
forfeiture orders were made for cash found at the
premises during the raid. It was stressed that
32 http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/oct/20/trafficking-numbers-women-exaggerated

33 http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/oct/20/government-trafficking-enquiry-fails

94 | P a g e

human trafficking did not feature in the eventual

court case. Many believe that the repeated failure
of large-scale police operations to find any
evidence of trafficking exemplifies the inaccuracy
of the human trafficking statistics often quoted by
NGOs and the media, while others insist that
failure to find human trafficking is merely
indicative of its underground nature.
Prosecution

The British government continued its proactive

law enforcement eforts to combat
trafficking. The UK prohibits all forms of
trafficking through the Sexual Ofences Act 2003
Trafficking into the UK for sexual exploitation
1). A person commits an ofence if he
intentionally arranges or facilitates the arrival
in the United Kingdom of another person B and
either
(

(a). he intends to do anything to or in respect of

B, after Bs arrival but in any part of the world,
which if done will involve the commission of a
relevant ofence, or
(b). he believes that another person is likely to do
something to or in respect of B, after Bs arrival
but in any part of the world, which if done will
involve the commission of a relevant ofence.
(2). A person guilty of an ofence under this
section is liable
(a). on summary conviction, to imprisonment for
a term not exceeding 6 months or a fine not
exceeding the statutory maximum or both;
95 | P a g e

(b). on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment

for a term not exceeding 14 years.34
In 2007, the UK government
launched Pentameter II, a large-scale operation
aimed at rescuing victims, disrupting trafficking
networks, developing intelligence, and raising
public awareness. A study conducted by the
government in 2007 identified a minimum of 330
individual cases of children trafficked into the UK
and, the same year, the government reported
prosecutions involving at least 52 suspected
trafficking ofenders. Although the government
reported 75 ongoing prosecutions during the
previous reporting period, it convicted only ten
trafficking ofenders in 2007, a significant
decrease from 28 convictions obtained in 2006.
Sentences imposed on convicted trafficking
ofenders in 2007 ranged from 20 months to 10
years imprisonment, with an average sentence
of four years. In one case in 2008 in the U.K., girls
were trafficked for forced prostitution and a man
was sentenced to 10 years in prison35 In January
2008, police arrested 25 members of Romanian
organized crime organizations
using Romanian children, including a baby less
than a year old, as pickpockets and in begging
schemes. The Rochdale sex trafficking gang, a
group of predominantly British
Pakistani paedophiles that preyed on under-age
girls in Rochdale, were the first people in Britain
34 http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/42/part/1/crossheading/trafficking

35 http://www.theguardian.com/society/2008/jul/03/childprotection.internationalcrime

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to be convicted of sex trafficking, on 8 May

2012.36

Protection
The system that is currently in place for
helping trafficked women is the National Referral
Mechanism (NRM). In order to protect trafficked
women, a first responder must refer the woman
to the NRM. A first responder might include the
National Health Service or local authorities. In
these cases, the victim has to consent to being
referred, and it is preferred that it is done within
48 hours of contact with the victim. The referral is
sent to the Competent Authority which is the
program that will decide whether or not a person
is being trafficked. The Competent Authority will
analyze the referral form and make a decision
within 5 business days. If the victim is believed to
be a trafficker, the Competent Authority will grant
the victim a 45 day recovery and reflection
period. This would involve being in a safe
environment with medical and other kinds of
help. Before the end of the 45 day period, the
Competent Authority will make a conclusive
decision about whether or not the victim was one
of trafficking. These results might depend on
evidence that is recovered during the 45 day
period. If you are found to be a victim of
trafficking, a decision might be made to extend
your recovery period, or to grant you a residence
permit. If you receive a negative conclusive
decision, the only option you have is to ask the
36 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9239126/Rochdale-grooming-trial-gangconvicted-for-sex-trafficking.html

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Competent Authority to review the decision. If the

authority still has not found you eligible, you have
the option to challenge the decision by the
judicial review. You should obtain a legal
representative to go through this process, they
will be able to discuss your rights according to
the country you are from.37

Compensation
If you were ever a victim of trafficking in the
United Kingdom, it is possible to receive
compensation from the government, or from
those who were in charge of trafficking you. The
Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2009 is
the program in charge of allowing victims to be
compensated for the injuries they have received
while being trafficked. The Criminal Injuries
Compensation Scheme 2009 is run by the
Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA).
In order to receive compensation through the
program, you must report the violence or harm
you experienced to the authorities within two
years of escaping your situation. Your traffickers
do not need to be arrested in order to receive
compensation from them.

Prevention
National Vigilance Association (NVA)

The National Vigilance Association was

created at a meeting located in London in 1885.
This is an example of a past association that took
on the challenge of trying to diminish human
trafficking. The purpose of this association was to
37 http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/4cc7fd322.pdf

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be the main agency for undertaking private

prosecutions for human trafficking and alert
police of those that broke the new passed
Criminal Law Amendment Act. The Criminal Law
Amendment Act included, ofense to hold a
woman under 21 as a prostitute, the legal age of
sexual consent pushed up to 16 years old, any
male found practicing homosexual acts in
private/public would be charged and imprisoned,
and financial penalties were imposed on anyone
involved in prostitution acts. These acts allowed
for women to be isolated in military stations
across England and Ireland if they were believed
to be involved in forms of prostitution. By 1888,
the NVA had 300 affiliated groups that were
engaged in local, national and international
levels. By 1977, the NVA was unable to continue
due to financial difficulties. The prosecutions that
they performed became costly and the NVA
began to lose control of their original duties. They
were forced to change their focus or end their
branches completely. By the middle of the 20th
century, the remaining NVA in Scotland was
redesigned to become a casework agency. The
NVA helped to change the relationship between
the individual and the state by allowing the state
to have a right to intervene in inappropriate
sexual behavior, where in the past, sexual
behavior was always considered a private matter
for the individual.

International laws
The two most recent attempts at defining,
preventing and prosecuting human trafficking of
the international law are the United Nations
Convention against Transnational Organized
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Crime and the United Nations Protocol against the

Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea, and Air.
These were created by the United Nations Office
on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). According to King,
the standard for how a trafficked victim should be
treated is explained in two international agendas,
"Human Rights Standards for the Treatment of
Trafficking Persons" and "Recommended
Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights and
Human Trafficking."

Issues when enforcing international

law
There are issues that occur when trying to
enforce international laws. Victims of trafficking
are usually very hesitant to admit their situations
because they fear the consequences. Another
problem that occurs when trying to enforce
international law is the lack of training that
enforcement has in each state. It is usually not
likely that each officer in a state is properly
trained with the knowledge and skills needed in
order to handle trafficking victims. In order to
provide a solution, the awareness of these
officers and officials is crucial. Particularly, health
service, social workers, building inspectors and
health and safety inspectors need to be properly
informed of how to recognize diferent indicators
of forced labor and prostitution. The training of
immigration judges is also crucial when
identifying females that are being trafficked.
The United Kingdom Human Trafficking
Center (UKHTC) has put 12 training seminars in
place since 2008, which includes trafficking in the
UK now, laws on human trafficking and
identification of victims. The language barrier is
100 | P a g e

another issue that arises when women are

passed across international borders. 38

5. Greece
Greece is a transit and destination country
for women and children who are subjected
to human trafficking, specifically forced
prostitution and conditions of forced labor for
men, women, and children. Female sex trafficking
victims originate primarily in Eastern Europe and
former Soviet bloc countries. Traffickers use
physical, emotional, and sexual abuse for
coercion. Greece's European Union membership,
coupled with a shared border with Turkey, means
the country sees massive flows of illegal
immigrants looking to enter the EU. Traffickers
also use Greece not only as a destination but a
transit stop on the way to Western Europe.
The Government of Greece does not fully
comply with the minimum standards for the
elimination of trafficking; however, it is making
significant eforts to do so. The government made
clear progress in prosecuting labor and sex
trafficking ofenses, identifying victims,
implementing a child victim protection agreement
with Albania, and advancing prevention activities.
Concerns remain about trafficking-related police
complicity, inadequate victim identification
among the Hellenic Coast Guard, border police,
and vice police, as well as inadequate funding for
anti-trafficking NGOs. The economic crisis in
Greece also places strains on allocation of

38 http://www.du.edu/korbel/hrhw/researchdigest/trafficking/InternationalLaw.pdf

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funding and resources towards anti-trafficking

eforts.39

Greece as destination
According to the 2001 Greek census, there
were 797,091 documented foreigners living in
Greece, with a large number
from Albania, Romania, Russia, and
the Ukraine. Ten years before that, the number of
legal immigrants was only 30,000.40 By 2009, the
immigrant population had expanded to 1.2 million
in a country of just of 11 million citizenslegal
immigrants make up more than 10% of the Greek
population, and the number of illegal
immigrants increases the percentage of
immigrants even more. The exponential increase
in migration to Greece serves as a cover for
traffickers, and facilitates their transportation of
women for work in the sex industry in
Greece.41 Because of the ease with which
traffickers can disguise foreign victims among the
immigrant population, Greeks are not typically
the targeted victims of traffickers; instead women
are brought in from outside the country to fuel
the sex industry. Women are brought to Greece
from a variety of places, but a large number
come from Eastern Europea full 5055% of sex
workers in Athens are from former Soviet
bloc countries. Greece is also a destination
39 http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs12117-008-9048-7

40 http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1950049

41 http://www.freedomsunday.org/downloads/The%20Natasha%20Trade.pdf

102 | P a g e

country for a large number of

trafficked Moldavians. (from register book number
2)

Gateway to the European Union

A large number of trafficked persons are
trafficked through Greece on their way to Italy or
other Western countries. From the 1970s
onwards, migrants from Asia and Africa began to
enter Greece as a temporary stop on their way to
other, more developed Western European
countries. 42 Since then, immigration into Greece,
legally and illegally, in order to gain access to the
rest of the European Union has increased, and
traffickers have taken advantage of this as well.
There are two main trafficking routes that go
through Greece in order to reach the European
Union. The first is the Balkan Route, through
which victims are moved from
the Balkans into Slovenia, Hungary, Italy,
and Greece, and from there to the rest of the EU.
The second is the Eastern Mediterranean Route,
which moves victims from Turkey through Greece
into Bulgaria and Romania. (from register book
number 3) Some accounts have estimated that
Greeces border with Turkey serves as the backdoor entry point for close to 90% of the illegal
immigrants to the European Union, and this
number includes those transported illegally for
purposes of sexual exploitation.

Governmental anti-trafficking efforts

42 http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1950049

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There are several international standards for

combating human trafficking. The UN Protocol to
Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in
Persons, especially Women and Children, also
known as the Palermo Protocol, lays down
universal, fundamental regulations for
international organization and cooperation for
combating trafficking. Greece signed the Protocol
on the 13th of December 2000 and proceeded to
completing the ratification process on the 11th of
January 2011.43 The European Union has
developed an anti-trafficking response that
underpins the 3Ps of the Palermo Protocol
prosecution of traffickers, protection of victims,
and prevention of trafficking. Since 2000, the U.S
State Department has created an analysis of antitrafficking eforts country by country around the
world that ranks each country based on their antitrafficking eforts, resulting in the annual
Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP). From 2001 to
2003, Greece was placed on the Tier 3 list of the
TIP report, which means the government was
essentially ignoring the human trafficking
problem. As the government made strides to
address issues of human trafficking, it was moved
to the Tier 2 Watch List in 2004, and in 2006 was
placed on Tier 2, where it remains as of 2012.

Prosecution
The government demonstrated clear
progress in its prosecution of trafficking
ofenders, though a high-profile case of
trafficking-related complicity remained pending in
43 https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XVIII-12a&chapter=18&lang=en#EndDec

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court as of 2010. Under the Alien Act law

1975/1991, which lasted until June 2001, there
were penalties for trafficking human beings but
there was no legislation specifically criminalizing
trafficking.44 In 2002, Greece passed law
3064/2002, the first Greek law to criminalize
human trafficking and outlaw trafficking for
sexual and labor exploitation. Police conducted
66 human trafficking investigations in 2009, a 65
percent increase over the 40 investigations in
2008. The government reported 32 new
convictions of trafficking ofenders in 2009,
compared with 21 convictions in 2008. The
average sentence for trafficking ofenders was
approximately 11 years with fines. The Ministry of
Justice reported two suspended sentences in
2009. Some convicted trafficking ofenders
continued to be granted bail pending their
lengthy appeals. The media continues to allege
that trafficking-related complicity exists among
some local police and vice squad officers. In a
case cited in the 2010 TIP Report, a trafficking
victim was allegedly raped while in police custody
in 2006. In a positive development in 2009, one
active and one retired officer were held without
bail pending prosecution for alleged involvement
in sex trafficking. In 2009, the Greek police
reported cooperation with counterparts
in Albania, Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, and Russia on
trafficking cases. As of 2011, Greece has laws
and penalties pertaining to Article 2 of
the European Directive of 2011, which states all
EU Member States must have legislation that
punishes traffickers, regardless of the type of
trafficking.
44 http://www.lse.ac.uk/europeanInstitute/research/hellenicObservatory/home.aspx

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Protection
The government has demonstrated some
progress in ensuring that victims of trafficking
were provided access to essential services.
Before 2001, a person who made his or her living
from prostitution was liable to prosecution; since
then, laws have been implemented that seek to
care for the victim and punish the trafficker
instead.[8] In 2000 a Task Force against human
trafficking was created to identify and assist
victims, and in 2007 the largest trafficking ring
known to date in Thessaloniki was dismantled. In
2003, Presidential Decree 223/2003 introduced
measures for the assistance and protection of
victims of human trafficking.45 In August 2004, a
National Action Plan was developed to implement
a wide variety of counter-trafficking eforts,
including collecting facts and statistics,
establishing procedures to identify victims,
establish shelters, provide victims with legal
recourse, and educating police, judges, and other
member of law enforcement. The Ministry of
Health trained nurses, medical admissions staf,
psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers
on the identification of trafficking victims.
Similarly, experienced anti-trafficking police
continued to provide training to border police,
vice police, and the Hellenic Coast Guard on
victim identification. Greece provided officiallyidentified trafficking victims with access to legal
and medical services through government-run
shelters, public healthcare, and intermittent
funding to NGOs.
45 http://www.lse.ac.uk/europeanInstitute/research/hellenicObservatory/home.aspx

106 | P a g e

In 2005, law 3386/2005 was passed to better

assist victims of trafficking; however, victim
identification continues to be a weak point of
Greek anti-trafficking eforts. The government
officially identified only 125 human trafficking
victims in 2009, an improvement over the 78
victims identified in 2008. The government
continued to operate a short-term shelter, which
could accommodate children, in addition to two
long-term shelters for women. The government
also referred child victims to orphanages or
detention centers that did not have specialized
facilities for trafficking victims. One NGO reported
that authorities released unaccompanied foreign
minors onto the street with little support after
detention. The government encouraged victims
to participate in prosecutions by ofering a 30-day
reflection period, a time for victims to receive
immediate care while they consider whether to
assist law enforcement, but according to NGOs,
authorities did not always provide the reflection
period consistently during the reporting period.
Victims who assisted with law enforcement
prosecutions qualified for temporary, renewable
residence permits as a legal alternative to
removal. NGOs reported excellent cooperation
with specialized anti-trafficking police units.
Overall, the government did not penalize victims
for unlawful acts that may have been committed
as a direct result of being trafficked. However,
some NGOs reported that the coast guard and
border police, overwhelmed with processing
refugees and undocumented migrants, had little
time to use victim identification procedures. As a
result, they sent many potential victims, including
vulnerable unaccompanied minors, to migrant
detention centers, where they often faced poor
107 | P a g e

conditions. In a positive development, the

government implemented a child repatriation
agreement with Albania, repatriating six Albanian
child victims in cooperation with NGOs.46

Prevention
The government has demonstrated steady
progress in the prevention of trafficking. In 2009,
a state television station aired a special on
human trafficking in Greece in addition to other
programs on the topic. The Minister for Foreign
Afairs spoke out against trafficking, and since
October 2009, anti-trafficking NGOs have
reported stronger partnerships with high-level
officials. The government, in partnership
with IOM and NGOs, provided anti-trafficking
training for police recruits and commanders,
police from neighboring countries, and over 100
judges and prosecutors. The Minister for Foreign
Afairs provided $155,100 toward
a UNICEF campaign on trafficking of children as a
global phenomenon and funded an International
Organization for Migration-produced public
awareness campaign acknowledging trafficking
as a problem in Greece. The government did not
run any new campaigns targeting the clients of
prostitution or beneficiaries of forced labor. The
government implemented a law enforcementfocused national plan of anti-trafficking action;
however, the government lacked a central
authority to coordinate ministries anti-trafficking
eforts and monitor anti-trafficking results.
Coordination of data between agencies remained
ad hoc. The Greek government facilitated anti46 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2010/142760.htm

108 | P a g e

trafficking partnerships by funding initiatives in

neighboring countries. Greek law provide
extraterritorial jurisdiction over child sex
tourism ofenses by its nationals; the government
did not report any prosecutions of Greek citizens
for child sex tourism during the reporting period.
The government gave its peacekeeping troops
anti-trafficking training before deploying them
abroad. Greece is not a party to the 2000 UN TIP
Protocol.

3.2 Asian Countries:

Pakistan , India, china, Burma,
Vietnam
1.

Burma

Myanmar is a source country for men,

women, and children who are subjected to human
trafficking, specifically forced labor and for
women and children, forced prostitution in other
countries. Children of Myanmar are subjected to
forced labor as sellers and beggars in Thailand.
Many men, women, and children from Thailand,
Malaysia, China, Bangladesh, India, and South
Korea who migrate abroad for work are trafficked
into conditions of forced or bonded labor or
commercial sexual exploitation. Economic
conditions within Myanmar have led to the
increased legal and illegal migration of citizens
regionally and internationally, often to
destinations as far from Myanmar as the Middle
East. Men are subjected to forced labor in the
fishing and construction industries abroad.
Women of Myanmar who migrate to Thailand,
China, and Malaysia for economic opportunities
are found in situations of forced labor and forced
109 | P a g e

prostitution. Some trafficking victims transit

through Myanmar from Bangladesh to Malaysia
and from China to Thailand and beyond. The
government has yet to address the systemic
political and economic problems that cause the
people of Myanmar to seek employment through
both legal and illegal means in neighboring
countries. Myanmars internal trafficking remains
the most serious concern. The military of
Myanmar engages in the unlawful conscription of
child soldiers, and continues to be the main
perpetrator of forced labor inside Myanmar. The
direct government and military use of forced or
compulsory labor remains a widespread and
serious problem, particularly targeting members
of ethnic minority groups, such as the Shan
population. Military and civilian officials
systematically used men, women, and children
for forced labor for the development of
infrastructure and state-run agricultural and
commercial ventures, as well as forced pottering
for the military. Those living in areas with the
highest military presence, including remote
border areas populated by ethnic groups, are
most at risk for forced labor. Military and civilian
officials subject men, women, and children to
forced labor. Men and boys as young as 10 years
old are forcibly recruited to serve in the National
army and ethnic armed groups through
intimidation, coercion, threats, and violence.
Thousands of children are forced to serve in
Myanmars national army as desertions of men in
the army continue. Children of the urban poor are
at particular risk of involuntary conscription; UN
reports indicate that the army has targeted
orphans and children on the streets and in
railway stations, and young novice monks from
110 | P a g e

monasteries for recruitment. Children are

threatened with jail if they do not agree to join
the army, and are sometimes physically abused.
Children are subjected to forced labor in tea
shops, home industries, and agricultural
plantations. Exploiters traffic girls for the purpose
of prostitution, particularly in urban areas. In
some areas, in particular international sex
trafficking of women and girls, the Government of
Myanmar is making significant eforts.
Nonetheless, serious problems remain in
Myanmar, and in some areas, most notably in the
area of forced labor, the Government of Myanmar
is not complying with the minimum standards for
the elimination of trafficking. The regimes
widespread use of and lack of accountability in
forced labor and recruitment of child soldiers is
the top causal factor for Myanmars significant
trafficking problem. 47
Government response to human rights

While forced labor is widely considered to

be the most serious trafficking problem in
Myanmar, authorities reported that most
trafficking cases investigated and prosecuted
involved women and girls subjected to forced
marriage or intended to be subjected to forced
marriage. The Myanmar regime rules arbitrarily
through its unilaterally imposed laws, but rule of
law is absent, as is an independent judiciary that
would respect trafficking victims rights. The
State Peace and Development Council (SPDC),
Myanmars military government, has not
acknowledged the prevalence of human rights
issues within their country, specifically human
47 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2010/142759.htm

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trafficking. No one has been held accountable for

the serious crimes committed by government
security forces. These crimes include forced
labor, child soldiers, and sexual violence. 48
Corruption The Myanmar regime reported
investigating 155 cases of trafficking, prosecuting
410 individuals, and convicting 88 ofenders in
2009, an increase from 342 reported prosecutions
in 2008; however, these statistics included 12
cases of abduction for adoption, which are not
considered trafficking by international
standards. Additionally, court proceedings are not
open and lack due process for defendants. While
the Myanmar regime has in the past been known
to conflate irregular migration with trafficking,
leading to the punishment of consensual
emigrants and those who assist them to
emigrate, the police reported some eforts to
exclude smuggling cases from human trafficking
figures during the reporting period, and improved
their transparency in handling
cases. Nevertheless, limited capacity and
training of the police coupled with a lack of
transparency in the justice system make it
uncertain whether all trafficking statistics
provided by authorities were indeed for trafficking
cases. Corruption and lack of accountability
remains pervasive in Myanmar, afecting all
aspects of society. Police can be expected to selflimit investigations when well-connected
individuals are involved in forced labor cases.
Although the government reported four officials
prosecuted for involvement in human trafficking
48 http://www.hrw.org/news/2010/07/01/universal-periodic-review-submission-myanmarburma

112 | P a g e

in 2009, the government did not release any

details of the cases.
ILO and International Cooperation

Myanmar law enforcement reported

continued cooperation with Chinese counterparts
on cross-border trafficking cases, including joint
operations, as well as general cooperation with
Thai authorities. In 2009, the ILO continued to
receive and investigate forced labor complaints;
93 cases were submitted to the Myanmar
government for action, an increase from 64 cases
in 2008; 54 cases remain open and are awaiting a
response from the government. Despite a report
of a child labor case involving as many as 100
children on an agricultural plantation near
Rangoon, the regime did not report any eforts to
investigate the allegation. Many minors from
Myanmar work in Thai border towns, particularly
the town of Mae Sai. Drivers who smuggle illegal
workers into Thailand go to villages to recruit
minors, and then transport them to the border. In
one such case found in a survey, a girl was
deceived by a driver, and sold into prostitution.3
Between 20,000 and 30,000 women and girls
from Myanmar are estimated to be working in the
prostitution industry in Thailand. As illegal
immigrants, they are often arrested and deported
back to Myanmar. About 50 to 70 percent of the
prostitutes are HIV positive. (from register book
number 4) In other cases, children from
Myanmar were tricked during their recruitment,
and not paid for the jobs they were promised. It is
believed that the children from Myanmar make
up the largest sector of foreign working children.
Minors also participate in the fishing industry and
work in Bangkok, though this isnt as common.
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The ethnic minorities from Myanmar working in

Thailand were also found to have the lowest
education in all minor workers surveyed, at about
1.3 years, and Burmans were found to have only
a slightly higher education level, on average
roughly four years. The minors from Myanmar
that work in Thailand usually left for economic
reasons. 49 A lack of job opportunities in Myanmar
has contributed to the rise of human trafficking
operations, and now the trade is no longer
targeting rural areas but is reaching the countrys
major cities. Many of the 2.5 million migrants
from Myanmar came to Thailand to find lowpaying domestic jobs during the militaristic
regime previously in place. These migrants often
lack basic education and access to social security
benefits. Conversations between the US and
Myanmar have been more frequent in recent
years. The U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for the
Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in
Persons Luis CdeBaca and Myanmar Police Chief
Major General Zaw Win agreed in the need for
government-civil society partnerships, health
care, and prevention. The latest reports from
Washington indicate that the US feels
improvements are underway. 50
Prosecution of Victims

Victims of forced labor cases are not

protected from countersuit by regime officials.
During the reporting period, 17 complainants and
their associates in a series of forced labor cases
49 http://www.childtrafficking.com/Docs/ilo_2002__child_trafficking.pdf

50 http://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/trafficking-09172013150346.html

114 | P a g e

involving 328 farmers in Magwe Division were

prosecuted and jailed by local authorities for their
role in reporting forced labor perpetrated by local
government officials. Myanmar courts later
released 13 of the individuals, but four
complainants remain in prison. The central
government did not intervene with local
authorities to stop the politically motivated
harassment, including lengthy interrogations, of
the forced labor complainants. Such
unaccountable harassment and punishment
discouraged additional forced labor
complaints. On February 28, 2014, Myanmar
officials decided to ban Doctors Without Borders
from the state of Rakhine after the organization
discovered and treated 40 victims of a rampage
between Muslim and Buddhist citizens that the
government denies took place. The United
Nations has that its negotiations with Myanmar to
allow Doctors Without Borders into the Rakhine
state are of special importance as citizens lack
the ability to report human rights abuses for fear
of becoming victims of the human trafficking or
violence themselves. For victims of human
trafficking, Doctors Without Borders is often the
only access to healthcare they have. 51
Protection

The regime made eforts to protect

repatriated victims of cross-border sex trafficking
to China and Thailand, though it exhibited no
discernible eforts to protect victims of internal
trafficking and transnational labor trafficking. In
forced labor cases, some victims, notably 17
individuals in Magwe Division, were harassed,
51 http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/18/opinion/myanmars-deadly-medicine.html?_r=0

115 | P a g e

detained, or otherwise penalized for making

accusations against officials who pressed them
into forced labor. The government reported
identifying 302 victims, most of whom were
victims of forced marriage rather than explicitly
trafficking victims, and reported assisting an
additional 425 victims identified and repatriated
by foreign governments in 2009, including 293
from China and 132 from Thailand. The regime
did not identify any male trafficking victims.
Victims were sheltered and detained in nonspecialized Department of Social Welfare facilities
for a mandatory minimum of two weeks, which
stretched into months if authorities could not find
an adult family member to accept the victim.
While in government facilities, victims had access
to counseling, thought it was often substandard,
but had limited access to social workers. There
were no shelter facilities available to male victims
of trafficking. Non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) were sometimes allowed access to
victims in government shelters, but the regime
continued to bar NGOs from operating shelters
for trafficking victims. The regime did not have in
place formal victim identification procedures.
While the government reported that it
encouraged victims to assist in investigations and
prosecutions, it did not appear to provide
financial support or other assistance to victims to
serve as incentives to participate in the
prosecution of their traffickers. The regime
cooperated with the ILO on the issue of the
militarys conscription of children, resulting in the
return of 31 children to their families. However,
numerous children undoubtedly continue to serve
in the Myanmar Army and in ethnic militias. The
government has done little to help international
116 | P a g e

organizations assess the scope of the problem.

The regime did not permit UNICEF access to
children who were released through the
governments mechanisms for follow-up
purposes. Additionally, some child recruits have
been prosecuted and sentenced for deserting the
military and remain in prison.

Prevention

Myanmar made limited eforts to prevent

international trafficking [in persons] over the last
year, and made few discernible eforts to prevent
the more prevalent internal trafficking,
particularly forced labor and child conscription by
regime officials and ethnic armed groups. The
government continued awareness campaigns
using billboards, flyers, and videos during the
reporting period and state-run television aired a
documentary on human trafficking produced by
the MTV Exit Campaign. The government of
Myanmar reported forming three new antitrafficking units in 2009, and reported a 40
percent overall increase in spending on
prevention eforts. During the reporting period,
the government signed Memoranda of
Understanding with China and Thailand on
trafficking in persons. The regime sustained
partnerships with Mekong region governments
and the UN in the Coordinated Mekong Ministerial
Initiative Against Trafficking, and hosted the
(COMMIT) Senior Officials Meeting in January
2010.
117 | P a g e

2.India
Human trafficking outside India, although
illegal under Indian law, remains a significant
problem. People are frequently illegally trafficked
through India for the purposes of commercial
sexual exploitation and forced/bonded labor.
Although no reliable study of forced and bonded
labor has been completed, NGOs estimate this
problem afects 20 to 65 million Indians. Women
and girls are trafficked within the country for the
purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and
forced marriage especially in those areas where
the sex ratio is highly skewed in favor of men. A
significant portion of children are subjected to
forced labor as factory workers, domestic
servants, beggars, and agriculture workers,
and have been used as armed combatants by
some terrorist and insurgent groups.
India is also a destination for women and girls
from Nepal and Bangladesh trafficked for the
purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Nepali
children are also trafficked to India for forced
labor in circus shows. Indian women are
trafficked to the Middle East for commercial
sexual exploitation. Indian migrants who migrate
willingly every year to the Middle East and
Europe for work as domestic servants and lowskilled laborers may also end up part of the
human-trafficking industry. In such cases, workers
may have been 'recruited' by way of fraudulent
recruitment practices that lead them directly into
situations of forced labor, including debt
bondage; in other cases, high debts incurred to
pay recruitment fees leave them vulnerable to
exploitation by unscrupulous employers in the
118 | P a g e

destination countries, where some are subjected

to conditions of involuntary servitude, including
non-payment of wages, restrictions on
movement, unlawful withholding of passports,
and physical or sexual abuse.52
Human trafficking in India results in women
sufering from both mental and physical issues.
Mental issues includes disorders such as PTSD,
depression and anxiety. The lack of control
women have in trafficking increases the risk of a
victims likeness to sufer from mental disorders.
Women who are forced into trafficking are at a
higher risk for HIV, TB, and other STD's. Condoms
are rarely used and therefore there is a higher
risk for victims to sufer from an STD. Filmmaker
Manish Harishankar has taken the subject of Child
trafficking in India in his film Chaarfutiya
Chhokare intensively and shown this problem,
nexus, modus operandi and repercussions.

Prosecution
The Government of India penalizes trafficking
for commercial sexual exploitation through the
Immoral Trafficking Prevention Act (ITPA).
Prescribed penalty under the ITPA ranging from
seven years' to life imprisonment are
sufficiently stringent and commensurate with
those for other grave crimes. India also prohibits
bonded and forced labor through the Bonded
52 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2008/105388.htm

119 | P a g e

Labor Abolition Act, the Child Labor Act, and the

Juvenile Justice Act.
Indian authorities also use Sections 366(A)
and 372 of the Indian Penal Code, prohibiting
kidnapping and selling minors into prostitution
respectively, to arrest traffickers. Penalties under
these provisions are a maximum of ten years'
imprisonment and a fine.
Bonded labor and the movement of sex
trafficking victims, may occasionally be facilitated
by corrupt officials. They protect brothels that
exploit victims, and protect traffickers and brothel
keepers from arrest and other threats of
enforcement.
Usually, there are no eforts made to tackle
the problem of government officials' complicity in
trafficking workers for overseas employment.
Bulk of bonded labor heads for Middle East to
emerging economies and there are several media
reports which report on the illegal and inhumane
trafficking of Indian workers.
India's Central Bureau of
Investigation incorporated anti-trafficking
training, by Dr. Gilly McKenzie of the Interpol
Trafficking and Organized Crime Division, Into its
standard curriculum. In November, the State
of Maharashtra developed an action plan to
combat trafficking ;it did not, however, allocate
appropriate funding to accomplish the objectives
of this plan.
The government does not break down these
statistics by sections of the law, meaning that law
enforcement data regarding trafficking ofenses
120 | P a g e

may be conflated with data regarding arrests of

women in prostitution pursuant to Section 8 of
the ITPA.

Protection
India's eforts to protect victims of trafficking
varies from state to state, but remains
inadequate in many places. Victims of bonded
labor are entitled to 10,000 ($185) from the
central government for rehabilitation, but this
program is unevenly executed across the
country. Government authorities do not
proactively identify and rescue bonded laborers,
so few victims receive this assistance. Although
children trafficked for forced labor may be housed
in government shelters and are entitled to
20,000 ($370), the quality of many of these
homes remains poor and the disbursement of
rehabilitation funds is sporadic.
Some states provide services to victims of
bonded labor, but Non Governmental
Organizations provide the majority of protection
services to these victims. The central
government does not provide protection services
to Indian victims trafficked abroad for forced labor
or commercial sexual exploitation. Indian
diplomatic missions in destination countries may
ofer temporary shelter to nationals who have
been trafficked ;once repatriated, however,
neither the central government nor most state
governments ofer any medical, psychological,
legal, or reintegration assistance for these
victims.
Section 8 of the ITPA permits the arrest of
women in prostitution. Although statistics on
121 | P a g e

arrests under Section 8 are not kept, the

government and some NGOs report that, through
sensitization and training, police officers no
longer use this provision of the law; it is unclear
whether arrests of women in prostitution under
Section 8 have actually decreased. Because most
law enforcement authorities lack formal
procedures to identify trafficking victims among
women arrested for prostitution; some victims
may be arrested and punished for acts committed
as a result of being trafficked.
Some foreign victims trafficked to India are
not subject to removal. Those who are subject to
removal are not ofered legal alternatives to
removal to countries in which they may face
hardship or retribution. NGOs report that some
Bengali victims of commercial sexual exploitation
are pushed back across the border without
protection services. The government also does
not repatriate Nepali victims; NGOs primarily
perform this function. Many victims decline to
testify against their traffickers due to the length
of proceedings and fear of retribution by
traffickers.
Ministry of Labor and Employment displays
full-page advertisements against child labor in
national newspapers at periodic intervals. The
government has also instituted pre-departure
information sessions for domestic
workers migrating abroad on the risks of
exploitation. These measures include
distinguishing between 'Emigration Check
Required' (ECR) and 'Emigration Check Not
Required' (ECNR) passports. ECR passport holders
must prove to government authorities that they
shall not be exploited when travelling abroad, if
122 | P a g e

they wish to do so. Most of the Indian workers pay

large sums of money to agents who facilitate
their emigration outside the official channels and
willingly emigrate despite being aware of the
conditions prevailing in those destinations. This is
because of the fact that most of the destinations
abroad pay better sums of money. Therefore, a
dream of better future ahead often lures the
people abroad and hence trafficking cannot
entirely be prevented. India ratified the 2000 UN
TIP Protocol 2011.53

Child Trafficking in India

According to UNICEF is defined as any person
under 18 who is recruited, transported,
transferred, harbored or received for the purpose
of exploitation, either within or outside a
country. Children are taken from their homes to
be bought and sold in the market. In India, there
is a large number of children trafficked for various
reasons such as labor, begging, and sexual
exploitation. Because of the nature of this crime;
it is hard to track; therefore making it impossible
to have exact figures regarding this issue. India is
a prime area for child trafficking to occur, as
many of those trafficked are from, travel through
or destined to go to India. Though most of the
trafficking occurs within the country, there is also
a significant number of children trafficked
from Nepal and Bangladesh.54 There have been
many cases where children just disappear
53 https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XVIII-12a&chapter=18&lang=en

54 http://www.childlineindia.org.in/child-trafficking-india.htm

123 | P a g e

overnight, as many as one every eight minutes,

according to the National Crime Records Bureau.55
There are many contributing factors to child
trafficking, which include economic deprivation,
conditions, lack of employment opportunities,
social status, and political uprisings. Many of the
families in India are unable to aford the basic
necessities of life, which forces the parents to sell
their children of to gangs, and the gangs to
exploit them. Having approximately half of those
in India living under the poverty line, this results
in desperate measures being taken to make any
money they can.56 "Children are trafficked to and
from states such as Andhra Pradesh, Bihar,
Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya
Pradesh, Rajasthan and West Bengal."57

3.Thailand
Thailand is a source, transit, and destination
country for men, women and children trafficked
for the purposes of commercial sexual
exploitation and forced labor. Thailands relative
prosperity attracts migrants from neighboring
countries who flee conditions of poverty and, in
the case of Burma, military repression. Significant
illegal migration to Thailand presents traffickers
with opportunities to coerce or defraud
undocumented migrants into involuntary
55 http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2012/10/16/indias-missing-children-by-the-numbers/

56 http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2010/08/indi-a02.html

57 http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/india-hub-of-child-trafficking-in-southasia_556545.html

124 | P a g e

servitude or sexual exploitation. Women and

children are trafficked
from Burma, Cambodia, Laos, the Peoples
Republic of
China (P.R.C.), Vietnam, Russia and Uzbekistan for
commercial sexual exploitation in Thailand. A
number of women and girls from Burma,
Cambodia and Vietnam are trafficked through
Thailands southern border to Malaysia for sexual
exploitation. Ethnic minorities such as northern
hill tribe peoples who have not received legal
residency or citizenship are at high risk for
trafficking internally and abroad, including
to Bahrain, Australia, South
Africa, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Hong
Kong, Europe and the United States. Some Thai
men who migrate for low-skilled contract work
to Taiwan, South Korea, Israel, the United States
and Gulf states are subjected to conditions of
forced labor and debt bondage after arrival.
Following voluntary migration to Thailand,
men, women, and children, primarily from Burma,
are subjected to conditions of forced labor in
agriculture, factories, construction, commercial
fisheries and fish processing, domestic work and
begging. Thai laborers working abroad in Taiwan,
Malaysia, the United States and the Middle
East often pay large recruitment fees prior to
departure, creating a debt which in some cases
may be unlawfully exploited to coerce them into
very long terms of involuntary labor. Children
from Burma, Laos and Cambodia are trafficked
into forced begging and exploitative labor in
Thailand.
Four key sectors of the Thai economy
(fishing, construction, commercial agriculture and
125 | P a g e

domestic work) rely heavily on undocumented

Burmese migrants, including children, as cheap
and exploitable laborers. The Government of
Thailand does not fully comply with the minimum
standards for the elimination of trafficking;
however, it is making significant eforts to do so.
In November 2007, the Thai National Legislative
Assembly passed a new comprehensive antitrafficking law which the Thai government
reported would take efect in June 2008. While
there were no criminal prosecutions of forced
labor cases during the reporting period, Thai
authorities in March 2008 conducted a raid on a
shrimp processing factory in Samut Sakhon
province, rescuing 300 Burmese victims of forced
labor. The Ministry of Labor subsequently
released guidelines on how it will apply stronger
measures to identified labor trafficking cases in
the future. Nevertheless, the Thai government
has yet to initiate prosecutions of the owners of a
separate Samut Sakhon shrimp processing
factory from which 800 Burmese men, women
and children were rescued from conditions of
involuntary servitude, including physical and
psychological abuse and confinement, in
September 2006. The factory remains in
operation.58 However, according to the
trafficking in Persons reports by the State
Department, which ranks countries in terms of
the eforts to stop the practice of human
trafficking or the modern day slavery, Thailand
status was downgraded in 2014. Thailand was in
the tier 2 watch list for four years and recently
had been downgraded to the tier 3 as the
58 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2008/105389.htm

126 | P a g e

improvement were not shown(Tier placements,

2014).59
Prosecution

The Royal Thai Government demonstrated

progress in its law enforcement eforts to combat
trafficking in persons. Thailand passed new
comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation in
November 2007, which the Thai government
reported would go into force in June 2008. The
new law would criminally prohibit all forms of
trafficking in personscovering labor forms of
trafficking and the trafficking of males for the first
timeand prescribe penalties that are sufficiently
stringent and that are commensurate with
penalties prescribed for other grave crimes, such
as rape. It will also make trafficking in persons a
predicate crime for prosecution under the AntiMoney Laundering Act.
Previous Thai anti-trafficking legislation that
was used during the reporting period defined
trafficking only in terms of sexual exploitation and
allowed only females and children to be classified
as victims eligible to receive shelter or social
services from the government. The Royal Thai
Police reported that 144 sex trafficking cases had
been prosecuted in the two-year period ending in
June 2007. In April 2007, a Thai employer was
sentenced to more than 10 years imprisonment
for forced child labor in the first-ever conviction
under Thailands 1951 anti-slavery law. The
victim, a female domestic worker, worked for the
employer for four years without pay and was
physically abused. In December, a Thai Criminal
59 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2014/226649.htm

127 | P a g e

Court sentenced two traffickers to seven years

imprisonment for luring a 15-year old girl to
enter prostitution in Singapore under false
pretenses. In May 2007, the Thailand Attorney
Generals Office created a Center Against
International Human Trafficking (CAHT).
There are an estimated 15 million child laborers
worldwide starving to death.[citation needed] The
children are reportedly compelled to eat grass
and dead cockroaches. Located within the
Attorney Generals office, the CAHT has eight fulltime attorneys devoted to coordinating the
prosecution of all trafficking cases in Thailand.
Corruption is still sometimes a problem with local
police or immigration officials protecting brothels,
seafood, and sweatshop facilities from raids and
occasionally facilitating the movement of women
into or through Thailand.
Two police officials faced prosecution for
trafficking in Burmese migrant workers in Tak
province in April 2007. In March 2008, a team of
Labor Ministry, immigration, police and NGO
representatives raided a shrimp processing
factory in Samut Sakhon and found 300 Burmese
migrant workers confined to the premises and
working in exploitative conditions. For the first
time, the government included 20 males amongst
the classified 74 trafficking victims and referred
them to a government-run shelter. However, the
government handcufed and detained other
illegal male Burmese migrant laborers at the
factory and sent them to a holding cell to await
deportation. These workers, who experienced the
same exploitation as those deemed victims by
the Thai government, were reportedly treated as
criminals. They were not allowed to retrieve
128 | P a g e

personal belongings or identity papers left at the

factories and were remanded to a detention
facility. Police filed criminal charges against the
owners of the shrimp processing factory within 24
hours and are investigating the labor brokers who
supplied the Burmese workers.
The Ministry of Labor in April 2008 released
new guidelines on how it will apply stronger
measures in dealing with identified labor
trafficking cases in the future. A Thai Labor Court
awarded $106,000 in damages to 66 trafficking
victims rescued in the September 2006 raid of a
separate shrimp processing factory in Samut
Sakhon. However, as of March 2008, the
government has yet to initiate a criminal
prosecution of the factorys operators. In other
cases involving possible trafficking for labor
exploitation, law enforcement reported 41 cases
of labor fraud and 16 cases of illegal labor
recruitment. The Ministry of Labors Department
of Employment reported that 28 labor recruiting
firms were prosecuted in administrative labor
courts in 2007 for violating regulations on labor
recruitment rendering workers vulnerable to
trafficking. These prosecutions mostly resulted in
monetary fines, with only one license suspension.
Department of Social Welfare officials and NGOs
use the threat of punitive sanctions under the
1998 Labor Protection Act to negotiate
settlements with abusive employers exploiting
foreign trafficking victims in sweatshops and in
domestic work. A total of 189 individual
facilitators or brokers received fines and other
administrative sanctions for violating labor
recruiting regulations in 2007.
Protection
129 | P a g e

The Thai government continued to provide

impressive protection to foreign victims of sex
trafficking in Thailand and Thai citizens who have
returned after facing labor or sex trafficking
conditions abroad. However, protections ofered
to foreign victims of forced labor in Thailand were
considerably weaker, as male victims of
trafficking were not yet included under victim
protection provisions of Thai law.
The new comprehensive anti-trafficking
legislation passed in November 2007 promises,
when enacted and implemented in June 2008, to
extend protections to male victims of trafficking
and victims of labor trafficking. The government
allows all female trafficking victims, Thai and
foreign, to receive shelter and social services
pending repatriation to their country of origin or
hometown. It does not, however, ofer legal
alternatives to removal to countries where
victims face hardship or retribution, such as the
repressive conditions found in Burma.
The government encourages female victims
participation in the investigation and prosecution
of sex trafficking crimes. In cases involving forced
labor, the 1998 Labor Protection Act allows for
compensatory damages from the employer,
although the government ofers no legal aid to
encourage workers to avail themselves of this
opportunity; in practice, few foreign laborers are
able to pursue legal cases against their
employers in Thai courts.
Formidable legal costs and language,
bureaucratic and immigration obstacles
efectively prevent most of them from
participating in the Thai legal process. Female
130 | P a g e

victims of sex trafficking are generally

not jailed or deported; foreign victims of labor
trafficking and men may be deported as illegal
migrants. The Thai government refers victims of
sex trafficking and child victims of labor
trafficking to one of seven regional shelters run
by the government, where they receive
psychological counseling, food, board and
medical care.
In April 2008, the Ministry of Labor presented
a series of operational guidelines for handling
future labor trafficking cases. The guidelines
include provisions that grant immunity to
trafficking victims from prosecution arising from
their possible involvement in immigration or
prostitution crimes and provide migrant
trafficking victims temporary residence in
Thailand pending resolution of criminal or civil
court cases. Thai embassies provide consular
protection to Thai citizens who encounter
difficulties overseas.
The Department of Consular Afairs in the
Ministry of Foreign Afairs (MFA) reported that 403
Thai nationals were classified as trafficking
victims abroad and repatriated from a number of
countries including Bahrain (368 victims),
Singapore (14 victims) and Malaysia (12 victims).
In 2007, the governments shelters provided
protection and social services for 179 repatriated
Thai victims and 363 foreigners trafficked to
Thailand. In 2007, the Ministry of Foreign Afairs
Department of Consular Afairs conducted
training in Thailand and abroad for community
leaders, victims and laborers. The MFA
sent psychologists to provide training to Thai
volunteers in Taiwan helping Thai trafficking
131 | P a g e

victims, organized a workshop amongst Thai

translators under the Help Thais program in
Singapore and coordinated translators to assist
36 Thai trafficking victims arrested
in Durban, South Africa. A 2005 cabinet resolution
established guidelines for the return of stateless
residents abroad who have been determined to
be trafficking victims and can prove prior
residency in Thailand. These stateless residents
can efectively be given residency status in
Thailand on a case-by-case basis.
Prevention

The Thai government continued to support

prevention and public awareness activities on sex
and labor trafficking as well as sex tourism during
the year. The involvement of the community
strengthens their awareness of the issues
corresponding to child sex trade. Communal
support increases the efectiveness of law
enforcement. Thai government law enforcement
eforts to reduce domestic demand for illegal
commercial sex acts and child sex tourism have
been limited to occasional police raids to shut
down operating brothels. Greater educational
eforts must occur to warn women and girls about
the reality of human trafficking. At the same time,
awareness-raising campaigns targeting tourists
were conducted by the government to reduce the
prevalence of child sex tourism and prostituted
children. The Thai government also cooperated
with numerous foreign law enforcement agencies
in arresting and deporting foreign nationals found
to have been engaging in child sex tourism. In
2007, the Thai government disseminated
brochures and posts in popular tourist
areas warning tourists of severe criminal charges
132 | P a g e

for the procurement of minors for sex. Thailand

has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol. At the
local level, advocacy organization must be
included in the development of informational
programs and awareness campaigns about the
rights of trafficked persons, and how they can
obtain help and services to meet their physical
and mental health needs.60

4.vietnam
Vietnam is primarily a source country for
women and children trafficked for
commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.
Women and children are trafficked to Europe for
sexual exploitation. Vietnamese women are
trafficked via fraudulent or misrepresented
marriages for commercial exploitation or forced
labor. Vietnam is also a source country for men
and women who migrate willingly and legally for
work in the construction, fishing, or
manufacturing sectors in Malaysia, Taiwan, P.R.C.,
Thailand, and the Middle East but subsequently
face conditions of forced labor or debt bondage.
Vietnam is a destination country for Cambodian
children trafficked to urban centers for forced
labor or commercial sexual exploitation. Vietnam
has an internal trafficking problem with women
and children from rural areas trafficked to urban
centers for commercial sexual exploitation and
forced labor. Vietnam is increasingly a destination
for child sex tourism, with perpetrators from
Japan, Australia, Europe, and the U.S. In 2007, an
60http://tagv.mohw.gov.tw/TAGVResources/upload/Resources/2013/1/Human%20trafficking
%20between%20Thailand%20and%20Japan-lessons%20in%20recruitment,transit%20and
%20control.pdf

133 | P a g e

Australian non-governmental organization (NGO)

uncovered 80 cases of commercial sexual
exploitation of children by foreign tourists in
the Sa Pa tourist area of Vietnam alone.
The Government of Vietnam does not fully
comply with the minimum standards for the
elimination of trafficking; however, it is making
significant eforts to do so. The government
stepped up prosecutions and strengthened crossborder cooperation on sex trafficking with
Cambodia, China, and Thailand to rescue victims
and arrest traffickers. At the same time, there
were some cases in which Vietnamese workers on
contracts brokered by recruiters linked to statelicensed companies were exploited and, in its
intervention, the government may have focused
on upholding its image of Vietnam as an
attractive source of guest workers, to the
detriment of investigating complaints of
trafficking. Vietnam collaborated with law
enforcement from Cambodia, the P.R.C,
and Laos to rescue victims and arrest traffickers
suspected of sex trafficking.
Prosecution

The Vietnamese government demonstrated

increased law enforcement eforts to combat
trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation and
uneven eforts to combat labor trafficking.
Existing laws do not comprehensively cover
trafficking in persons; however, various statutes
in the Penal Code allow for all forms to be
prosecuted. The governments July 2007 Prime
Ministerial Directive 16 directed to the Ministry of
Justice to propose draft legislation to the National
Assembly on a comprehensive new anti-TIP law
134 | P a g e

and broadened the definition of trafficking in

Vietnam to include men, not just women and
children. The Directive also imposed a level of
accountability on all provincial Peoples
Committee chairmen for combating trafficking in
persons. Penalties prescribed for trafficking both
for sexual and labor exploitation are sufficiently
stringent and those for sexual exploitation are
commensurate with those for other grave crimes,
such as rape. The majority of traffickers are
prosecuted under Articles 119, 120, and 275 of
the Penal Code, which deal with trafficking for
commercial sexual exploitation. The government
did not report any prosecutions or convictions for
crimes of labor trafficking such as forced labor or
debt bondage. According to Vietnams National
Steering Committee on trafficking in persons, in
2007, police investigated 369 cases of sex
trafficking involving 930 women and children
victims. Police arrested 606 suspected traffickers
and prosecuted 178 cases, obtaining 339
individual convictions of trafficking ofenders.
Nineteen traffickers were sentenced to 1520
years in prison. The remaining 320 received
convictions with sentencing of less than 15 years.
The level of involvement by officials in
facilitating trafficking appears to be low. There
are occasional reports of border guards taking
bribes to look the other way. In April 2007 in Ho
Chi MinhCity, police disrupted a Korean trafficking
ring that fraudulently recruited Vietnamese for
marriages, rescuing 118 women. Three separate
traffickers were convicted and sentenced from 6
12 years for trafficking women to Macau to
allegedly work as masseuses and then forced
them into prostitution. Police from Vietnam and
135 | P a g e

Laos cooperated in rescuing eleven women and

breaking up a sex trafficking ring that moved
women and girls to Malaysia, the Philippines,
and Indonesia. In July, the Ho Chi Minh Peoples
Court convicted six Vietnamese with sentences
ranging from 512 years for trafficking 126
women to Malaysia under the guise of
a matchmaking agency.
Protection

The Vietnamese government demonstrated

growing eforts at protecting victims in 2007,
especially for victims of sex trafficking. A number
of victim assistance and assessment centers were
established in particular border areas. Sex
trafficking victims were encouraged to assist in
the investigation and prosecution process, as well
as file civil suit against sex traffickers. There were
no reports of sex trafficking victims being
punished or otherwise penalized for acts
committed as a direct result of being trafficked.
The government still has no formal system of
identifying victims of any type of trafficking, but
the Vietnam Womens Union (VWU) and
international organizations, including IOM[expand
acronym] and UNICEF, continue training the
Border Guard Command and local Vietnamese
authorities to identify, process, and treat victims.
In 2007, the Government issued Decision No.
17, on receiving and providing assistance to sex
trafficking victims returning from abroad. There
were reports in February 2008 of a group of over
200 Vietnamese men and women recruited by
Vietnamese state-run labor agencies for work in
apparel factories in Jordan, who were allegedly
subjected to conditions of fraudulent recruitment,
136 | P a g e

debt bondage, unlawful confiscation of travel

documents, confinement, and manipulation of
employment terms for the purpose of forced labor
at their worksite. These conditions led to a worker
strike and, subsequently, altercations among
workers and with the Jordanian police. Some
reports stated that the workers faced threats of
retaliation by Vietnamese government officials
and employment agency representatives if they
did not return to work. The Vietnamese
government repatriated the group, after labor
negotiations with the Taiwanese employer and
Jordanian authorities on behalf of the workers.
None of the workers who returned to Vietnam has
been detained by the Vietnamese government,
which has stated that the workers will not be
prosecuted criminally, although they could be
subject to civil financial penalties from the
recruitment firms due to the breaking of their
contracts. There were no reported eforts by the
Vietnamese government to consider any of the
repatriated workers as possible victims of
trafficking. In March 2007, the VWU opened the
national Center for Women and Development
in Hanoi to provide shelter, counseling, financial
and vocational support to sex trafficking and
domestic violence victims.
The Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social
Afairs (MOLISA) reported that 422 women and
child victims of sex trafficking were repatriated.
Officials assigned to Taiwan and the Republic of
Korea received briefings on assisting Vietnamese
brides. Under the Prime Ministers Decree 69,
steps to protect Vietnamese women from sham or
trafficked situations as a result of brokered
marriages included heightened due diligence in
137 | P a g e

issuing marriage certificates and steps to ensure

that the marriage is voluntary. The Vietnam
Womens Union began a program with its
counterpart in South Korea to set up pre-marriage
counseling centers and hotlines in key source
areas of Vietnam.
Prevention

The Vietnamese government continued to

demonstrate progress in eforts to prevent
trafficking through public awareness.
International organizations and NGOs continued
collaboration with the government to provide
training and technical assistance to various
ministry officials as well as partnering in public
awareness campaigns. The VWU and the Vietnam
Youth Union conducted events including
advertisements, radio and television campaigns
as well as targeted events at schools in high-risk
areas. The VWU collaborated with its counterpart
in the Republic of Korea to conduct awareness
campaigns and establish a hotline for Vietnamese
brides. It sponsored a television documentary for
women planning to marry foreigners that
depicted positive and negative outcomes.
Vietnam Television occasionally addresses
trafficking in a popular home economics program
by featuring returnees who discuss their
experiences and how to avoid trafficking. In 2007,
Vietnam television worked with MTV EXIT to
broadcast a U.S. Government-funded antitrafficking documentary and awareness
campaign.
There were no visible measures undertaken
by the government to reduce demand for
commercial sex acts. In late 2007, Vietnam
138 | P a g e

established a child sex tourism investigative unit

within its Ministry of Public Security. Vietnam
actively worked with the USG on a successful
prosecution of an American citizen who was a
promoter of child sex tourism in Vietnam. A
requirement that all tourists staying in hotels
register their passports could assist in keeping
child sex tourists away from Vietnam; however,
many short-stay hotels geared towards
prostitution and typically do not require
registration. Vietnam has not ratified the 2000 UN
TIP Protocol.61

5. Pakistan
Pakistan is a source, transit, and destination
country for men, women, and children subjected
to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor
and prostitution. The largest human trafficking
problem is bonded labor, concentrated in
the Sind and Punjab provinces in agriculture and
brick making, and to a lesser extent in mining
and carpet-making. Estimates of bonded labor
victims, including men, women, and children,
vary widely, but are likely well over one million. In
extreme scenarios, when laborers speak publicly
against abuse, landowners have kidnapped
laborers and their family members.
Unequal gender relations, poverty, lack of
education and employment opportunities, as well
as the increased foreign demand by men for
sexual services of girls encourage women and girl
trafficking for the sex trade. The global HIV/AIDS
crisis has also generated an increased demand
61 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2008/105389.htm

139 | P a g e

for young girls, who being virgin are perceived to

be free of the virus.
Women and girls are trafficked to Pakistan
from Bangladesh and Central Asian countries for
forced commercial sexual exploitation and
bonded labor. Girls and women from rural areas
are trafficked to Pakistans urban centers to share
the same fate and women trafficked from East
Asian countries and Bangladesh to the Middle
East often transit through Pakistan.
Girls under the age of 18 are forced into
marriages for debt release and to settle disputes,
often under the mantle of Wolver, a primitive
custom of \'selling\' brides for a price. We are told
that in some areas of the North West Frontier
Province (NWFP), the custom is gradually
encroaching upon mainstream settled districts,
said World Vision Country Director Sigurd Hanson.
Girls under the age of 18 are forced into
marriages for debt release and to settle disputes
Practices such as these are reflected in Pakistans
ranking in the UNDP\'s gender-related
development index in the 2004 Human
Development Report, which places the country at
a rank of 120 on a scale of 177, below India, and
even Bangladesh.
A law passed in 2002, Prevention and
Control of Human Trafficking Ordinance,
criminalizes all aspects of trafficking, however
rape or forced prostitution cases prosecuted
under the Islamic Hudood ordinances require a
womans testimony, which is tantamount to an
admission of adultery if she lacks proof or the
140 | P a g e

testimonies of four adult Muslim men who

witnessed the assault.
Government-sponsored shelters and
training program provide medical treatment,
limited legal representation and vocational
training, but without the support of a
humanitarian agency, victims are often treated as
criminals and may be detained for long periods,
with no opportunity to make their cases heard.
Therefore, underreporting, the inability of
women to access the judicial system and
insecurity remain prime obstacles to counter
trafficking in the country.
...Underreporting, the inability of women to
access the judicial system and insecurity remain
prime obstacles to counter trafficking in the
country World Vision, as a member of the
Pakistan Thematic Group on Human Trafficking,
led by the International Organization for Migration
(IOM), is appealing for funds to raise awareness
on human trafficking, particularly of women and
girls and to build the governments capacity to
prevent trafficking and prosecute ofenders.
World Vision will conduct rapid assessments
in the NWFP and Punjab provinces, as well as in
Afghan refugee camps near the border. Research
findings will enable World Vision and its partners
to conduct comparative analyses and design a
comprehensive, long-term anti-trafficking
program.
Key to developing a program is information
exchange and cooperation with local and
141 | P a g e

international partners, including the IOM, United

Nations agencies, the Ministry of Womens
Development, the Human Rights University of
Peshawar and local NGOs DELTA and SACH.
Advertisements, talk shows, seminars,
school activities and workshops for
parliamentarians, district level administrators and
NGOs will raise awareness and strengthen
advocacy eforts.
Training will be conducted amongst low-level
law enforcement and border control personnel,
prosecutors and judges to recognize and
appropriately respond to trafficked persons.
World Vision will also collaborate with
partners to expand and strengthen victim and
witness support and advise on re-drafting
relevant legislation.
"This fight against trafficking has to be
aggressive and sustainable. That is why we will
explore ways of working with neighboring World
Vision country offices with an intent to increase
awareness and build the capacity of staf to
implement long-term cross border initiatives, in
cooperation with national and international
agencies"62
Pakistan sits at a very uncomfortable
position when it comes to human trafficking and
slavery. The Global Slavery Index 2013
highlighted the country as the third worst place
62 http://www.wvi.org/pakistan/article/modern-day-slavery-pakistan-women-child-trafficking

142 | P a g e

for forced and bondage labor, falling only behind

India and China.
Slavery of course isnt as simple as buying
or selling a human being in Pakistan it takes
the shape of bonded labor. The population of
slaves is made up of members of religious
minorities and the lower castes, children,
refugees, and most importantly, women. Most
cases of bonded labor are a result of a versatile
mix of problems. Poverty, illiteracy and
unemployment often push people into debt. That
debt is paid of by bonded laborers who are
looking to work of their debt. Often the debts are
not as high as the amount of work such people
are forced to do. The alarming part of this
equation is the sexual abuse that takes place.
While provisions have been put into place by the
government to deal with the issue of slavery,
there is little to no implementation of most of the
laws. Any progress is sluggish at best, and results
stemming from these laws are yet to be seen.
Despite this, in some cases, even the laws can
achieve very little. This is especially true in the
case of slaves that are sexually abused and/or
forced into prostitution.
The worrying part is that we have no real
statistics on the number of women that are
living as slaves or bounded laborers. We
additionally have no real statistics on how
many of these women are forced to live as
sex slaves.
The worrying part is that we have no real
statistics on the number of women that are living
as slaves or bounded laborers. We additionally
143 | P a g e

have no real statistics on how many of these

women are forced to live as sex slaves. Running
away or quitting is often not an option as it is
met with dire consequences. Its a chain of abuse
that cannot be broken easily. During 2002,
Pakistan passed the Prevention and Control of
Human Trafficking Ordinance, which sees all
forms of trafficking as illegal. The ordinance
outlines ofences of a sexual nature under
exploitative entertainment. It states that,
exploitative entertainment means all activities in
connection with human sports or sexual practices
or sex and related abusive practices. In spite of
its provisions, the ordinance fails to practically
perform the task it was meant to.
Sexual slavery is actually even advocated at
times by some who take to citing religious
scriptures, although that does not change the fact
that it is absolutely illegal as per the law in
Pakistan. It is a large problem much like the issue
of child marriages which is often swept under the
rug because of support from the religious
quarters. Of course, bonded labor and sexy
slaves do not by any margin enjoy the same
support, but they are also not as vehemently
opposed as they should be.
Women who are raped would traditionally
appeal to the courts under section 375 and 376
that deal with the subject. 375 outlines rape as
sexual intercourse that occurs against a womans
will, without her consent, through consent that
was acquired by threat or through fear tactics,
and when she consents believing the man to be
her husband. The punishment for rape is not less
than 10 years and can go up to 25. Rape can also
be punished through death. Gang rapes will be
144 | P a g e

punished through life imprisonment or death. In

theory these laws make sense, in theory these
laws seem adequate, however, the practical
world we live in is quite diferent.
Earlier this year PPP Senator Syeda Sughra
Imam raised the issue of conviction rates
when it comes to rape cases. In the past
five years weve had no convictions. And
the numbers that we have are not for
bonded labor cases, or forced prostitution
cases.

Pakistans current situation is made trickier

because slaves arent just trafficked from within
the country to other areas, or to other countries
Pakistan also has to deal with the influx of
trafficked women and girls from Central Asian
countries and Bangladesh. So we arent just
dealing with Pakistani women that we have put in
these positions, we have a wider spectrum of
abuse going on.
There is the added problem of widespread
underreporting of rape or sexual violence in every
province. Punjab has the highest number of rape
cases reported and even those figures are
thought to be a mere fraction of the actual
numbers. In the case of bonded laborers, we
dont even know how many of these women exist,
all we have are estimates. The likelihood is that
they have never been able to find a voice, and as
things stand the situation doesnt seem as
though it would go in their favor if they chose to
speak up.
145 | P a g e

Pakistan has to get serious about the provisions it

has set in place for slaves, trafficking and bonded
labor. Even though UN trafficking protocols exist,
Pakistan has neither implemented them nor
attempted to adopt them. It is the need of the
hour for it to do so. Apart from this, the existing
laws need to be revisited in terms of their
practicality. The best laws in the world become
useless if they are not being implemented.
It is also important that there is an actual
study of the prevalence of slavery in the country.
At present all we have got are estimates and not
any concrete numbers. There is no way to access
or help women that are stuck in bonded labor
unless we know how many there are. These
women also need to be educated as to their
rights as human beings. Telling them what sexual
abuse is and what they should do will simply not
be enough, however. Till rape laws and attitudes
toward sexual violence change there is no helping
any woman, bonded labor or not.63

Provisions
related
to
Human
Trafficking from the Pakistan Penal
Code
Kidnapping
Kidnapping is of two kinds: Kidnapping from
Pakistan
and
kidnapping
from
lawful
guardianship.

Kidnapping from Pakistan

63 http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2014/09/27/comment/pakistans-closeted-humantrafficking-slavery-problem/

146 | P a g e

Whoever conveys any person beyond the

limits of Pakistan without the consent of that
person, or of some person legally authorized to
consent on behalf of that person is said to kidnap
that person from Pakistan.

Kidnapping from lawful guardianship

Whoever takes or entices any minor under
fourteen years of age if a male, or under sixteen
years of age if a female, or any person of
unsound mind, out of the keeping of the lawful
guardian of such minor or person of unsound
mind, without the consent of such guardian, said
to kidnap such minor or person from lawful
guardianship.
Explanation: The words "lawful guardian" in this
section include any person lawfully entrusted
with the care or custody of such minor or other
person.
Exception: This section does not extend to the
act of any person who in good faith believes
himself to be the father of an illegitimate child or
who in good faith believes himself to be entitled
to the lawful custody of such child, unless such
act is committed for an immoral or unlawful
purpose.

Abduction
Whoever by force compels, or by any
deceitful means induces, any person to go from
any place, is said to abduct that person.

Punishment for kidnapping

Whoever kidnaps any person from Pakistan
or from lawful guardianship, shall be punished
with imprisonment of either description for a term
147 | P a g e

which may extend to seven years, and shall also

be liable to fine.

Kidnapping or abducting in order to

murder
Whoever kidnaps or abducts any person in
order that such person may be murdered or may
be so disposed of as to be put in danger of being
murdered, shall be punished with imprisonment
for life or rigorous imprisonment for a term which
may extend to ten years and shall also be liable
to fine,

Kidnapping or abducting with intent

secretly and wrongfully to confine
person
Whoever kidnaps or abducts any person with
intent to cause that person to be secretly and
wrongfully confined, shall be punished with
imprisonment of either description for a term
which may extend to seven years, and shall also
be liable to fine.

Kidnapping or abducting in order to

subject person to grievous hurt,
slavery, etc.
Whoever kidnaps or abducts any person in
order that such person may be subjected, or may
be so disposed of as to be put in danger of being
subjected to grievous hurt, or slavery or knowing
it to be likely that such person will be so
subjected or disposed of shall be punished with
imprisonment of either description for a term
148 | P a g e

which may extend to ten years, and shall also be

liable to fine.

Wrongfully concealing or keeping in

confinement, kidnapped or abducted
person
Whoever knowing that any person has been
kidnapped or has been abducted wrongfully
conceals or confines such person shall be
punished in the same manner as if he had
kidnapped or abducted Such person with the
same intention or knowledge, or for the same
purposes as that with or for which he conceals or
detains such person in confinement.

Kidnapping or abducting child under

ten years with intent to steal from its
person
Whoever kidnaps or abducts any child under
the age of ten years with the intention of taking
dishonestly any movable property from the
person of such child, shall be punished with
imprisonment of either description for a term
which may extend to seven years, and shall also
be liable to fine.

Buying or disposing of any person as a

slave
Whoever imports, exports, removes, buys,
sells or disposes of any person as a slave, or
accepts, receives or detains against his will any
person as a slave, shall be punished with
imprisonment of either description for a term
which may extend to seven years, and shall also
be liable to fine.

Habitual dealing in slaves

149 | P a g e

Whoever habitually imports, exports,

removes, buys, sells, traffics or deals in slaves.
Shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or
with imprisonment of either description for a term
not exceeding ten years, shall also be liable to
fine.64

Trafficking of children
Boys and girls are also bought, sold, rented,
or kidnapped to work in organized,
illegal begging rings, domestic
servitude, prostitution, and in agriculture in
bonded labor. Illegal labor agents charge high
fees to parents with false promises of decent
work for their children, who are later exploited
and subject to forced labor in domestic servitude,
unskilled labor, small shops and other sectors.
Agents who had previously trafficked children for
camel jockeying in the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) were not convicted and continue
to engage in child trafficking. Girls and women
are also sold into forced marriages; in some cases
their new "husbands" move them across Pakistani
borders and force them into prostitution.
NGOs and police reported markets in
Pakistan where girls and women are bought and
sold for sex and labor. Non-state militant groups
kidnap children or coerce parents with fraudulent
promises into giving away children as young as
12 to spy, fight, or die as suicide bombers. The
militants often sexually and physically abuse the
children and use psychological coercion to
convince the children that the acts they commit
are justified.
64 http://serl.pk/lawfile/19/PPC-HT.pdf

150 | P a g e

Abuse
Many Pakistani women and men migrate
voluntarily to the Persian Gulf
States, Iran, Turkey, South
Africa, Uganda, Greece, and other European
countries for low-skilled employment such as
domestic work, driving or construction work; once
abroad, some become victims of labor trafficking.
False job ofers and high fees charged by illegal
labor agents or sub-agents of licensed Pakistani
Overseas Employment Promoters increase
Pakistani laborers vulnerabilities and some
laborers abroad find themselves in involuntary
servitude or debt bondage. Employers abroad use
practices including restrictions on movement,
non-payment of wages, threats, and physical or
sexual abuse. Moreover, traffickers use violence,
psychological coercion and isolation, often seizing
travel and identification documents, to force
Pakistani women and girls into prostitution in the
Middle East and Europe. There are reports of child
and sex trafficking between Iran and Pakistan;
Pakistan is a destination for men, women and
children
from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan and Iran who are
subjected to forced labor and prostitution.
The Government of Pakistan does not fully
comply with the minimum standards for the
elimination of human trafficking, but is making
significant eforts to do so. The governments
prosecutions of transnational labor trafficking
ofenders and substantive eforts to prevent and
combat bonded labor a form of human
trafficking demonstrated increased
commitment, but there were no criminal
151 | P a g e

convictions of bonded labor ofenders or officials

who facilitated trafficking in persons. It also
continued to lack adequate procedures to identify
trafficking victims among vulnerable populations
and to protect these victims.

Prosecution
The Government of Pakistan made progress
in law enforcement eforts to combat human
trafficking in 2009. While the lack of
comprehensive internal anti-trafficking laws
hindered law enforcement eforts, a number of
other laws were used to address some of these
crimes. Several sections in the Pakistan Penal
Code, as well as provincial laws, criminalize forms
of human trafficking such as slavery, selling a
child for prostitution, and unlawful compulsory
labor, with prescribed ofenses ranging from fines
to life imprisonment. Pakistan prohibits all forms
of transnational trafficking in persons with the
Prevention and Control of Human Trafficking
Ordinance (PACHTO); the penalties range from
seven to 14 years imprisonment. Government
officials and civil society report that judges have
difficulty applying PACHTO and awarding
sufficiently stringent punishments, because of
confusion over definitions and similar ofenses in
the Pakistan Penal Code.
In addition, the Bonded Labor (System)
Abolition Act (BLAA) prohibits bonded labor, with
prescribed penalties ranging from two to five
years imprisonment, a fine, or both.
Pakistani officials have yet to record a single
conviction and have indicated the need to review
and amend the BLAA. Prescribed penalties for
above ofenses vary widely; some are sufficiently
152 | P a g e

stringent and commensurate with those for other

serious crimes such as rape. Others with
minimum sentencing of a fine or less than a year
in prison are not sufficiently stringent.
During 2009, the government convicted
385 criminals under PACHTO 357 more than
2008. The government did not disclose the
punishments given to the trafficking ofenders.
Reported sentences under this law in previous
years were not sufficiently stringent. Moreover,
despite reports of transnational sex trafficking,
the FIA reported fewer than a dozen such cases
under PACHTO. Government officials also often
conflated human smuggling and human
trafficking, particularly in public statements and
data reported to the media.
In 2009, Pakistan reported 2,894
prosecutions and 166 convictions under the
vagrancy ordinances and various penal code
sections which authorities sometimes use to
prosecute trafficking ofenses; it is unclear how
many of these prosecutions and convictions
involved trafficking. It is confirmed that the
government convicted at least three child
traffickers; it is unknown whether these
convictions were for forced prostitution or labor
and what the imposed penalties were. The
government prosecuted at least 500 traffickers:
416 for sex trafficking, 33 for labor trafficking,
and 51 for either sex or labor trafficking. Only one
person was prosecuted under the Bonded Labor
System Abolition Act, with no conviction.
Some feudal landlords are affiliated with
political parties or are officials themselves and
use their social, economic and political influence
153 | P a g e

to protect their involvement in bonded labor.

Furthermore, police lack the personnel, training
and equipment to confront landlords armed
guards when freeing bonded labors. Additionally,
media and NGOs reported that some police
received bribes from brothel owners, landowners,
and factory owners who subject Pakistanis to
forced labor or prostitution, in exchange for police
to ignore these illegal human trafficking activities.
In 2009, 108 officials were disciplined, 34
given minor punishments, four permanently
removed, and one was compulsorily retired for
participating in illegal migration and human
smuggling; some of these officials may have
facilitated human trafficking.
In eforts to enhance victim identification
practices, FIA officials and more than 250 law
enforcement officers participated in anti-human
trafficking training in 2009, provided in
partnership with NGOs and governments of other
countries. Various Pakistani government agencies
provided venue space, materials, and travel and
daily allowances, and law enforcement officers
led and taught some of the training workshops.
Police and FIA officials continued to receive antitrafficking training in their respective training
academies.

Protection
The Government of Pakistan made some
progress in its eforts to protect victims of human
trafficking. The government continued to lack
adequate procedures and resources for
proactively identifying victims of trafficking
among vulnerable persons with whom they come
154 | P a g e

in contact, especially child laborers, women and

children in prostitution, and agricultural and brick
kiln workers.
The FIA and the police referred vulnerable
men, women and children, many of whom were
trafficking victims, to federal and provincial
government shelters and numerous NGOoperated care centers. There are reports,
however, that women were abused in some
government-run shelters. Shelters also faced
resource challenges and were sometimes
crowded and under-stafed. Sind provincial police
freed over 2,000 bonded laborers in 2009 from
feudal landlords; few charges were filed against
the employers. The FIA expanded protection
services overseas and provided medical and
psychological services to Pakistani trafficking
victims in Oman. Some NGOs provided food,
legal, medical, and psychological care to
vulnerable children, including child trafficking
victims, in facilities provided by and partially
stafed by the Government of Pakistan. Some
NGOs and government shelters, like the Punjab
Child Protection and Welfare Bureau, also
rehabilitated and reunited children with their
families. Female trafficking victims could access
26 government-run Shaheed Benazir Bhutto
Centers and the numerous provincial government
Darul Aman centers ofering medical treatment,
vocational training, and legal assistance. In
September 2009, the government opened a
rehabilitation center in Swat, which included a
team of doctors and psychiatrists, to assist child
soldiers rescued from militants.

Bonded laborers
155 | P a g e

The federal government, as part of its

National Plan of Action for Abolition of Bonded
Labor and Rehabilitation of Freed Bonded
Laborers, continued to provide legal aid to
bonded laborers in Punjab and KhyberPakhtunkhwa (formerly the North West Frontier
Province), and expanded services to Baluchistan
and Sind provinces. The Sind provincial
government continued to implement its $116,000
project (launched in 2005) which provided stateowned land for housing camps and constructed
75 low-cost housing units for freed bonded
laborer families.
The government encouraged foreign victims
to participate in investigations against their
traffickers by giving them the option of early
statement recording and repatriation or, if their
presence was required for the trial, by permitting
them to seek employment. During 2009, all
foreign victims opted for early statement
recording and did not have to wait for or testify
during the trial. The government did not provide
foreign victims with legal alternatives to removal
to countries where they may face hardship or
retribution. Foreign victims reportedly were not
prosecuted or deported for unlawful acts
committed as a direct result of being trafficked.
Not all trafficking victims were identified and
adequately protected. Pakistani adults deported
from other countries, some of whom may have
been trafficking victims, were fined up to $95,
higher than one months minimum wages. Due to
lack of sufficient shelter space and resources,
police sometimes had to keep freed bonded
laborers in the police station for one night before
presenting them to a judge the next day.
156 | P a g e

During 2009, the Government of Pakistan

completed a four-year project to repatriate and
rehabilitate child camel jockeys who had been
trafficked to the United Arab Emirates. The
federal and provincial governments also
collaborated with NGOs and international
organizations to provide training on human
trafficking, including victim identification,
protective services, and application of laws.

Prevention
The Pakistani government made progress in
its eforts to prevent human trafficking. The
Punjab provincial government continued
implementation of its $1.4 million project,
Elimination of Bonded Labor in Brick Kilns
(launched in 2008). To date, this project helped
nearly 6,000 bonded laborers obtain
Computerized National Identification Cards, in
collaboration with the government National
Database and Registration Authority. It has also
provided $140,000 in no-interest loans to help
free laborers from debt and established 60 on-site
schools that educated over 1,500 children of brick
kiln laborers.
The Bureau of Emigration continued to give predeparture country-specific briefings to every
Pakistani who traveled abroad legally for work;
these briefings included information on how to
obtain assistance overseas. The Punjab Child
Protection and Welfare Bureau continued to fund
20 community organizations aimed at preventing
child labor trafficking. The federal and provincial
governments developed and began
implementation of the Child Protection
Management Information System, a national
157 | P a g e

monitoring system that collects district-level data

in five thematic areas, including child trafficking.
In 2009, all 250 Pakistani UN Peacekeeping
Mission forces received training in various
government training academies that included
combating human trafficking. The government
also took measures to reduce the demand for
commercial sex acts, some of which may have
been forced prostitution, by prosecuting, but not
convicting, at least 64 clients of prostitution.
Government officials also participated in and led
various public events on human trafficking during
the reporting period. In February 2010, the
federal government hosted an inter-agency
conference for more than 30 federal and
provincial officials that focused on practices for
identifying and combating child trafficking,
transnational trafficking, and bonded labor.
Pakistan is not a party to the 2000 UN TIP
Protocol. 65

Conclusions of the chapter

We live in the 21st century where each and
every individual is free to do whatever they like,
act however they like, and live however they
wish. We talk about freedom but in reality, not all
individuals are free. Slavery is abolished and is
made illegal in all the countries of the world, but
people are still slaves to many things, knowingly
or unknowingly. Human trafficking can be
described as the trade in humans, most
commonly for the purpose of sexual
65 http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2010/142761.htm

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slavery, forced labor . Human trafficking is done

because it ensures that these traffickers get easy
money in no time. It is a very risky job but the
traffickers have established such a strong
network throughout the world that the global
police are finding it very difficult to curb these
activities. Human trafficking is extremely
inhuman and gross and it goes against the very
principles of human rights. It is seen that human
trafficking is carried out more in poor, underdeveloped or developing countries than in the
rich and developed ones. The countries that have
a huge urban-rural diferences are especially
targeted for human trafficking.
Europe is the destination for victims from the
widest range of destinations, while victims from
Asia are trafficked to the widest range of
destinations. The Americas are prominent both as
the origin and destination of victims of human
trafficking.
Human trafficking is a major problem in
India. Although it is illegal in India by law but
these laws are not implemented properly.
Humans are trafficked in, out and across India for
various purposes such as forced labor, forced
prostitution, forced organ implantation etc. Girls
are forced to become surrogate mothers against
their will. Children are trafficked for working into
factories that manufacture dangerous stuf like
gunpowder and firecrackers. Sometimes, rackets
are run by traffickers wherein they force children
to beg. The children are subjected to many
atrocities such as hot oil is poured into their eyes
to blind them, theyre beaten till theyre greatly
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injured. Their organs are sold of in the market.

Indian government is taking action against this
but it does not seem to be working so well.
Pakistan, like India, faces a lot of problems
due to human trafficking. People are trafficked
into the country and are sent out. The biggest
problem in human trafficking that Pakistan faces
is that of bonded labor. Bonded labor can be for
domestic help or for working in industries,
factories or in the mines etc. This takes place
especially in the Sind and Punjab regions of
Pakistan. Prostitution is also a major reason for
human trafficking. Although Pakistan is a very
religious, the rate of prostitution is very high.
Human trafficking afects every country of
the world, as countries of origin, transit or
destination - or even a combination of all.
Trafficking often occurs from less developed
countries to more developed countries, where
people are rendered vulnerable to trafficking by
virtue of poverty, conflict or other conditions.
Most trafficking is national or regional.

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