Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women

Last updated
Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women
AbbreviationGAATW
Purpose human trafficking, migration, human rights
Headquarters Bangkok
Region served
Worldwide
Main organ
International Board
Website gaatw.org

Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) is a network of more than 80 non-governmental organizations from all regions of the world that fight against trafficking in persons. GAATW is committed to work for changes in the political, economic, social, and legal systems and structures which contribute to the persistence of trafficking in persons and other human rights violations in the context of migratory movements for diverse purposes, including security of labour and livelihood. It was founded in 1994 by several activists. [1] [2]

Contents

Method

GAATW applies a human rights approach to trafficking, which means:

Activities

GAATW's work is structured around three main strategic thematic directions:[ citation needed ]

GAATW also serves its members through international advocacy, research, and strategic communications.[ citation needed ]

Publications by GAATW include:

Since 2015, GAATW publishes the Anti-Trafficking Review - an open access, peer-reviewed journal dedicated specifically to human trafficking. [8] [9] The journal's editor is GAATW advocacy officer Borislav Gerasimov. [10] GAATW partnered with the Royal Society of Edinburgh in December 2019 to launch a special issue of Anti-Trafficking Review titled 'Public Perceptions and Responses to Human Trafficking'. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">La Strada International Association</span> Organisation combatting the trafficking of persons in Europe.

La Strada International (LSI) is an international NGO network addressing the trafficking of persons in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trafficking of children</span> Form of human trafficking

Trafficking of children is a form of human trafficking and is defined by the United Nations as the "recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, and/or receipt" kidnapping of a child for the purpose of slavery, forced labour, and exploitation. This definition is substantially wider than the same document's definition of "trafficking in persons". Children may also be trafficked for adoption.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking</span> Trade of sexual slaves

Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. It has been called a form of modern slavery because of the way victims are forced into sexual acts non-consensually, in a form of sexual slavery. Perpetrators of the crime are called sex traffickers or pimps—people who manipulate victims to engage in various forms of commercial sex with paying customers. Sex traffickers use force, fraud, and coercion as they recruit, transport, and provide their victims as prostitutes. Sometimes victims are brought into a situation of dependency on their trafficker(s), financially or emotionally. Every aspect of sex trafficking is considered a crime, from acquisition to transportation and exploitation of victims. This includes any sexual exploitation of adults or minors, including child sex tourism (CST) and domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST).

According to the United States Department of State, "Thailand is a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to forced labour and sex trafficking." Thailand's 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 servitude or sexual exploitation. Police who investigated reaching high-profile authorities also received death threats in 2015.

The Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, officially designated as Republic Act No. 9208, is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 2444 and House Bill No. 4432. It was enacted and passed by Congress of the Philippines' Senate of the Philippines and House of Representatives of the Philippines assembled on May 12, 2003, and signed into law by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on May 26, 2003. It institutes policies to eliminate and punish human trafficking, especially women and children, establishing the necessary institutional mechanisms for the protection and support of trafficked persons. It aims "to promote human dignity, protect the people from any threat of violence and exploitation, and mitigate pressures for involuntary migration and servitude of persons, not only to support trafficked persons but more importantly, to ensure their recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration into the mainstream of society."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking</span> Trade of humans for exploitation

Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Australia</span>

Human trafficking in Australia is illegal under Divisions 270 and 271 of the Criminal Code (Cth). In September 2005, Australia ratified the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, which supplemented the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. Amendments to the Criminal Code were made in 2005 to implement the Protocol.

Human trafficking in Canada is prohibited by law, and is considered a criminal offence whether it occurs entirely within Canada or involves the "transporting of persons across Canadian borders. Public Safety Canada (PSC) defines human trafficking as "the recruitment, transportation, harbouring and/or exercising control, direction or influence over the movements of a person in order to exploit that person, typically through sexual exploitation or forced labour. It is often described as a modern form of slavery."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Child trafficking in India</span>

India has a very high volume of child trafficking. As many as one child disappears every eight minutes, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. In some cases, children are taken from their homes to be bought and sold in the market. In other cases, children are tricked into the hands of traffickers by being presented an opportunity for a job, when in reality, upon arrival they become enslaved. In India, there are many children trafficked for various reasons such as labor, begging, and sexual exploitation. Because of the nature of this crime, it is hard to track; due to the poor enforcement of laws, it is difficult to prevent. As such, there are only vague estimates of figures regarding the 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. There are many different causes that lead to child trafficking, with the primary reasons being poverty, weak law enforcement, and a lack of good quality public education. The traffickers that take advantage of children can be from another area in India, or could even know the child personally. Children who return home after being trafficked often face shame in their communities, rather than being welcomed home.

Sex trafficking in Thailand is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Kingdom of Thailand. Thailand is a country of origin, destination, and transit for sex trafficking. The sexual exploitation of children in Thailand is a problem. In Thailand, close to 40,000 children under the age of 16 are believed to be in the sex trade, working in clubs, bars, and brothels.

Human trafficking in Nepal is a growing criminal industry affecting multiple other countries beyond Nepal, primarily across Asia and the Middle East. Nepal is mainly a source country for men, women and children subjected to the forced labor and sex trafficking. U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2" in 2017.

Nigeria is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children subjected to trafficking in persons including forced labour and forced prostitution. The U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2 Watchlist" in 2017. Trafficked people, particularly women and children, are recruited from within and outside the country's borders – for involuntary domestic servitude, sexual exploitation, street hawking, domestic servitude, mining, begging etc. Some are taken from Nigeria to other West and Central African countries, primarily Gabon, Cameroon, Ghana, Chad, Benin, Togo, Niger, Burkina Faso, and the Gambia, for the same purposes. Children from other West African states like Benin, Togo, and Ghana – where Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) rules allow for easy entry – are also forced to work in Nigeria, and some are subjected to hazardous jobs in Nigeria's granite mines. Europe, especially Italy and Russia, the Middle East and North Africa, are prime destinations for forced prostitution.Nigerians accounted for 21% of the 181,000 migrants that arrived in Italy through the Mediterranean in 2016 and about 21,000 Nigerian women and girls have been trafficked to Italy since 2015.

Human trafficking is the trade of humans, most commonly for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others. Mexico is a large source, transit, and destination country for victims of human trafficking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Texas</span>

Human trafficking in Texas is the illegal trade of human beings as it occurs in the state of Texas. It is a modern-day form of slavery and usually involves commercial sexual exploitation or forced labor, both domestic and agricultural.

Migrant sex work is sex work done by migrant workers. It is significant because of its role as a dominant demographic of sex work internationally. It has common features across various contexts, such as migration from rural to urban areas and from developing to industrialized nations, and the economic factors that help to determine migrant status. Migrant sex workers have also been the subject of discussions concerning the legality of sex work, its connection to sex trafficking, and the views of national governments and non-governmental organizations about the regulation of sex work and the provision of services for victims of sex trafficking.

Sex trafficking in China is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the People's Republic of China. It is a country of origin, destination, and transit for sexually trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in El Salvador</span>

Sex trafficking in El Salvador is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and slavery that occurs in the Republic of El Salvador. It is a country of origin, transit, and destination for sexually trafficked persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slavery in Nigeria</span> Traditional slave trade in southeastern Nigeria

Slavery has existed in various forms throughout the history of Nigeria, notably during the Atlantic slave trade and Trans-Saharan trade. Slavery is now illegal internationally and in Nigeria. However, legality is often overlooked with different pre-existing cultural traditions, which view certain actions differently. In Nigeria, certain traditions and religious practices have led to "the inevitable overlap between cultural, traditional, and religious practices as well as national legislation in many African states" which has had the power to exert extra-legal control over many lives resulting in modern-day slavery. The most common forms of modern slavery in Nigeria are human trafficking and child labor. Because modern slavery is difficult to recognize, it has been difficult to combat this practice despite international and national efforts.

The rate of Human Trafficking in Edo State is alarming in this region of Nigeria. Located in Nigeria's Southern region, Edo State accounts for the highest proportion of irregular migrants in Nigeria. Young girls in Edo state are enticed with false promises to leave Nigeria and travel abroad for a better life, by the traffickers. The traffickers in this state also use manipulation, diabolical oath and debt bondage to control their victims and force them into slavery, forced labour, sex trafficking, and organ sales.

References

Specific
  1. "Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) - End Slavery Now". www.endslaverynow.org. Archived from the original on 2017-06-29. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
  2. "Canadian Grand Prix: Is Montreal Formula One race really a sex-trade hotbed?". Montreal Gazette. 2017-06-09. Archived from the original on 2017-06-14. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
  3. Marjan., Wijers (1997). Trafficking in women forced labour and slavery-like practices in marriage, domestic labour, and prostitution. Lin, Lap-Chew., Stichting tegen Vrouwenhandel., Global Alliance against Traffic in Women. Utrecht, Netherlands: Foundation against Trafficking in Women (STV). ISBN   9080362018. OCLC   39288021.
  4. Human Rights Standards for the Treatment of Trafficked Persons (PDF). Bangkok: Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women. 1999. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-10-26. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  5. Collateral damage: the impact of anti-trafficking measures on human rights around the world. Global Alliance against Traffic in Women. Bangkok, Thailand: Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women. 2007. ISBN   9789748371924. OCLC   244286837.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  6. Ham, Julie (2011). What's the Cost of a Rumour? A guide to sorting out the myths and the facts about sporting events and trafficking (PDF). Bangkok: Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-07-06. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  7. "Super Bowl Sex Trafficking Myth Gives Good Cover for Federal Security Theater". Reason.com. 2018-02-02. Archived from the original on 2020-02-09. Retrieved 2020-02-12.
  8. "Anti-Trafficking Review". ScienceOpen . Retrieved 2024-06-16.
  9. "Inaugural Dr. Jean Shim Yun Lecture: Beth Lew-Williams: Trafficking, Runaways, and the Law | Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America". Brown University . March 22, 2022. Shih serves on the editorial boards for The Anti-Trafficking Review, a peer-reviewed journal of the Global Alliance to Combat Traffic in Women, and openDemocracy's Beyond Trafficking and Slavery op-ed platform.
  10. "Borislav Gerasimov". openDemocracy .
  11. "Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review". Royal Society of Edinburgh . December 18, 2019.