Trafficking in persons is a serious crime and a grave violation of human rights. Every year, thousands of men, women and children fall into the hands of traffickers, in their own countries and abroad. Almost every country in the world is affected by trafficking, whether as a country of origin, transit or destination for victims.
What is human trafficking?
According to Article 3 of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime;
(a) “Trafficking in persons” shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring 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 shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs;
(b) The consent of a victim of trafficking in persons to the intended exploitation set forth in subparagraph (a) of this article shall be irrelevant where any of the means set forth in subparagraph (a) have been used;
(c) The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a child for the purpose of exploitation shall be considered “trafficking in persons” even if this does not involve any of the means set forth in subparagraph (a) of this article;
(d) “Child” shall mean any person under eighteen years of age.
Elements of human trafficking
On the basis of the definition given in the Trafficking in Persons Protocol, it is evident that trafficking in persons has three constituent elements;
The Act (What is done): Recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons
The Means (How it is done): Threat or use of force, coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of power or vulnerability, or giving payments or benefits to a person in control of the victim
The Purpose (Why it is done): For the purpose of exploitation, which includes exploiting the prostitution of others, sexual exploitation, forced labour, slavery or similar practices and the removal of organs.
To ascertain whether a particular circumstance constitutes trafficking in persons, consider the definition of trafficking in the Trafficking in Persons Protocol and the constituent elements of the offense, as defined by relevant domestic legislation in your jurisdiction.
Forms of human trafficking
Human trafficking can occur in many variations, but the most common types of human trafficking are debt bondage, forced labor, sex trafficking and organ trafficking.
The most frequently used strategy to employ against victims of human trafficking is debt bondage. It is used against victims of labor and sex trafficking. Specifically, agricultural workers are frequently exploited in this manner, as they are led to migrant labor camps and kept from contact with the outside world. Eliminating their debt is impossible for these workers, as prices for everything cost more and more money. Their initial debt, rent, food, and even the tools they work with, are rigged in a way to never be compensated by their wages. Occasionally, victims are “fined,” so that they remain in debt. Victims often have very few resources to turn to, as many are illiterate and impoverished. In poor countries, children are sometimes sold into bondage to eliminate debt.
Forced labor, or labor trafficking, is a type of modern slavery. Over 14.2 million people across the globe are victims of this, one of the most common types of human trafficking. Victims are lured in the prospects of high-paying jobs and life-altering opportunities. The reality for labor trafficked victims is far different from what they were promised. With little to no payments, their supposed “employers” assert both psychological and physical control over victims. Seizure of passports and money, physical abuse and countless other methods are used to give victims no other choice than to continue working in these terrible conditions.
Sex trafficking occurs when someone uses force, fraud or coercion to cause a commercial sex act with an adult or causes a minor to commit a commercial sex act. A commercial sex act is considered to be pornography, sexual performance, or prostitution. The exchange can be done monetarily or to fulfill basic human needs such as food and shelter. As one of the most common types of human trafficking, sex trafficking is thriving because there is such a large demand for these types of services. Traffickers utilize several strategies to lure in the victims, as internet and social media being one of the most frequently used ones. The most common age range of victims of human sex trafficking is 14 to 16. Victims are encouraged by the false hopes of adventure, protection, opportunity and love.
Trafficking in persons for the purpose of organ removal is a growing international problem and sits uneasily within the normal trafficking in person framework. The global demand for transplantable organs continues to increase with the development of modern transplantation procedures and immunosuppressant drugs (Scheper-Hughes 2005). The organ most commonly procured illegally is the kidney, as it can be retrieved from living donors.
How to identify a victim
HUMAN TRAFFICKING IS HAPPENING ALL AROUND US.
Victims are often hidden away, but it is possible you will encounter individuals or situations of concern. Knowing how to ‘identify victims” could save lives.
The indicators below should be considered together and even if you are able to apply one or two or even three of the indicators to a person they are not necessarily trafficked. However, if you have any reasonable suspicions about human trafficking in your area you should report it.
General Indicators:
People who have been trafficked may:
• Believe that they must work against their will
• Be unable to leave their work environment
• Show signs that their movements are being controlled
• Feel that they cannot leave
• Show fear or anxiety
• Be subjected to violence or threats of violence against themselves
or against their family members and loved ones
• Suffer injuries that appear to be the result of an assault
• Be distrustful of the authorities
• Be threatened with being handed over to the authorities
• Be afraid of revealing their immigration status
• Not be in possession of their passports or other travel or identity documents, as those documents are being held by someone else
• Have false identity or travel documents
• Be found in or connected to a type of location likely to be used
for exploiting people
• Be unfamiliar with the local language
• Not know their home or work address
• Allow others to speak for them when addressed directly
• Act as if they were instructed by someone else
• Be forced to work under certain conditions
• Be disciplined through punishment
• Be unable to negotiate working conditions
• Receive little or no payment
• Have no access to their earnings
• Work excessively long hours over long periods
• Not have any days off
• Live in poor or substandard accommodations
• Have no access to medical care
• Have limited or no social interaction
• Have limited contact with their families or with people outside of
their immediate environment
• Be unable to communicate freely with others
• Be under the perception that they are bonded by debt
• Be in a situation of dependence
• Come from a place known to be a source of human trafficking
• Have had the fees for their transport to the country of destination
paid for by facilitators, whom they must payback by working or
providing services in the destination
• Have acted on the basis of false promises
SEXUAL EXPLOITATION
People who have been trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation may:
• Be of any age, although the age may vary according to the location and the market
• Move from one brothel to the next or work in various locations
• Be escorted whenever they go to and return from work and other outside activities
• Have tattoos or other marks indicating “ownership” by their exploiters
• Work long hours or have few if any days off
• Sleep where they work
• Live or travel in a group, sometimes with other women who do not speak the same language
• Have very few items of clothing
• Have clothes that are mostly the kind typically worn for doing sex work
• Only know how to say sex-related words in the local language or in the language of the client group
• Have no cash of their own
• Be unable to show an identity document
• There is evidence that a person has been bought and sold.
• There is evidence that groups of women are under the control of others.
• Advertisements are placed for brothels or similar places offering the services of women of a particular ethnicity or nationality.
LABOUR EXPLOITAION
People who have been trafficked for the purpose of labour exploitation are typically made to work in sectors such as the following: agriculture, construction, entertainment, service industry and manufacturing (in sweatshops). People who have been trafficked for labour exploitation may:
• Live in groups in the same place where they work and leave those premises infrequently, if at all
• Live in degraded, unsuitable places, such as in agricultural or industrial buildings
• Not be dressed adequately for the work they do: for example, they may lack protective equipment or warm clothing
• Be given only leftovers to eat
• Have no access to their earnings
• Have no labour contract
• Work excessively long hours
• Depend on their employer for a number of services, including work, transportation and accommodation
CHILDREN
Children who have been trafficked may:
• Have no access to their parents or guardians
• Look intimidated and behave in a way that does not correspond with behaviour typical of children their age
• Have no friends of their own age outside of work
• Have no access to education
• Have no time for playing
• Live apart from other children and in substandard accommodations
• Eat apart from other members of the “family”
• Be given only leftovers to eat
• Be engaged in work that is not suitable for children
• Travel unaccompanied by adults
• Travel in groups with persons who are not relatives
DOMESTIC SERVITUDE
People who have been trafficked for the purpose of domestic servitude may:
• Live with a family
• Not eat with the rest of the family
• Have no private space
• Sleep in a shared or inappropriate space
• Be reported missing by their employer even though they are still living in their employer’s house
• Never or rarely leave the house for social reasons
• Never leave the house without their employer
• Be given only leftovers to eat
• Be subjected to insults, abuse, threats or violence
