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Trafficking in Human Misery
Although slavery has been formally
abolished from the world, the trade in human misery
continues. Women, still considered property in some
places, may be sold into marriage. Men or women may
be coerced into working in brothels, sweatshops, construction
sites and fields. As illegal migrant workers, they may
be subjected to sexual violence, horrific living conditions,
threats against their families and dangerous workplaces.
Because of their subordinate position,
women and girls are most vulnerable. In view of the
clear link between trafficking and the violation reproductive health and rights, UNFPA is
working to draw attention to and address the problem.
Trafficking in women and girls was the topic of an international workshop in Bratislava organized by UNFPA in October 2002. More than 60 parliamentarians, government officials and NGO representatives from 25 countries attested to the detrimental effects of trafficking on their populations and agreed that its elimination should be a matter of national policy. However, eliminating this widespread and clandestine
activity, which often involves organized crime and political
corruption, will require collaborative efforts, with
participation from international organizations, governments,
NGOs and communities.
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In a protocol supplementing the
United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized
Crime, trafficking has been defined as:
"…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." |
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Statistics about trafficking are
unreliable for a number of reasons, including the clandestine
nature of the activity. However, rough estimates suggest
that between 700,000 and 2 million women are trafficked
across international borders annually. Adding domestic
trafficking would bring the total much higher, to perhaps
4 million persons per year.
Human trafficking has become a global
business generating huge profits for traffickers. New
trafficking routes are regularly established and the
market for fraudulent travel documents, clandestine
transportation and border crossing has become increasingly
well-organized.
Some victims are lured into subjugation
by advertisements for good jobs. Others are sold into
service by a relative, acquaintance or family friend.
Traffickers target poor communities, and may show up
during a drought or before the harvest, when food is
scarce, to persuade poor families to sell their daughters
for small amounts of money.
The problem is widespread. Although
the greatest volume of trafficking occurs in Asia, it
also exists in Africa and Latin America. Recently, the
European Commission raised concerns about a growing
'slave trade' in Eastern European women -- some 500,000
may have been forced into commercial sex. As many as
50,000 women and children are brought to the United
States under false pretences each year and forced to
work as prostitutes, abused labourers or servants, according
to a report by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
Few cases are prosecuted.
Trafficked migrants are vulnerable
because of their irregular legal status, and may face
deportation. They often cannot access legal assistance
and medical care, and remain dependent on their agents
and employers. Trafficking may also occur within countries,
however, often spurred by commercial demand for young
women in the sex trade.
Poverty and inequity are root causes
of trafficking. Gender discrimination within the family
and the community, as well as a tolerance of violence
against women and children, also come into play. Lack
of appropriate legislation and political will to address
the problem, restrictive immigration policies, globalization
of the sex industry, and the involvement of transnational
organized criminal networks are other causal factors.
Governments and the international
community have been responding to the growing incidence
of trafficking. Several West African countries, for
instance, recently formed a network to combat the problem.
However, more concerted action is needed.
UNFPA is positioned to take a larger
role in addressing this issue, particularly by strengthening
the capacities of its programme countries. Strategies and interventions to address trafficking should include:
- information and awareness raising campaigns about the health consequences of trafficking
- campaigns targeting males
- provision of reproductive health services and counselling to victims of trafficking
- technical assistance and training for governments, and cooperation between countries who are receivers and senders of trafficked individuals.
UNFPA is one of several United Nation agencies
working on trafficking, both through partnerships and
by promoting dialogue to bring greater visibility to
the issue and share information about it.
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