Human trafficking in the United Kingdom

Last updated

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 labour, 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. [1] "Tier 1" countries are those whose governments fully comply with The Trafficking Victims Protection Act's minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. The TVPA is a federal statute of the United States. [2] 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 labour in agriculture, construction, food processing, domestic servitude, and food service. Source countries for trafficking victims in the UK include the United Arab Emirates, [3] 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 validity [4] [5] of 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). In 2020, the US State Department estimated that there were 13,000 trafficking victims in the UK. [6]

Contents

UK authorities began to launch aggressive anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts 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. [7] 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. [8] 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 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. U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 1" in 2017. [9]

Definitions

Involuntary domestic servitude

Involuntary domestic servitude is a form of human trafficking found in unique circumstances—informal work in a private residence—these circumstances create unique vulnerabilities for victims. Domestic workplaces are informal, connected to off-duty living quarters, and often not shared with other workers. Such an environment, which can isolate domestic workers, is conducive to exploitation because authorities cannot inspect homes as easily as they can compared to 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. [10] Many victims live in fear of going to the authorities. They believe that they will only be recognized as illegal immigrants and punished for it. Some victims don't know that they are victims because of the isolation from the world and/or cultural or language barriers. [11]

Recruiting

There are different forms of recruitment in the United Kingdom for trafficking. A woman in the United Kingdom might be recruited by someone who uses physical/sexual violence, deceived into coming to the UK by someone who convinces her she can study or work there, or by someone who has a position of power over her. In these power difference situations, the woman cannot refuse this persons control. It is possible for women who are physically or emotionally harmed to be easily influenced by prostitution enforcers who take control of their vulnerability. This recruitment process will most likely involve more than one person due to the travelling that some trafficked women will have to do. The recruiters could be one who recruits women, one who arranges traveling documents, and another might meet her in the United Kingdom. [12]

As of 2018 gangs force children to commit crimes and rough sleepers are recruited into slavery. [13]

Methods

The UK action plan on tackling human trafficking has discovered that many victims arrive into the United Kingdom on inexpensive airlines and often into small airports where there is less security surveillance. Other methods of transportation for victims of trafficking are by train, boat, bus, car, and even on foot. There are many different routes, including the Albanian, Nigerian, Moldavian, Russian-Ukrainian, and the Eastern Mediterranean route to name a few. Children victims of trafficking have been known to enter into the UK through different airports such as London City, Stansted, and Belfast International airport. They have also been discovered to have traveled to England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland airports. Before entering into the United Kingdom, victims of trafficking generally pass through transit countries. A transit country is a country that a trafficker will pass through on the way to their final destination. Countries that have very high volumes of traffickers being transited include Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Poland, and Thailand. Children from China have the highest proportion of victims according to studies, and travel on different routes before reaching the United Kingdom. Some of the countries that they travel through include Russia, Bolivia, Brazil, Indonesia, and Kenya. [14] The most prominent and recent case of human trafficking was seen within the Essex lorry deaths of 2019 [15]

How traffickers control their victims

It is important to traffickers that their victims are cooperative when doing business. In order to keep their workers in line, traffickers have different methods of control that they practice. Some of these include drugging them, removing documentation, preventing the victims from learning the language, isolation, moving them from place to place, threatening them, and accommodating them in a way that they will become homeless if they leave. By moving victims from place to place, they are unable to become familiar with their surroundings. This keeps the victims detached from the world in a physical and mental way. With this kind of control, the victims become helpless, and have almost no chance of escaping from their traffickers. [14]

Traffickers also stay in control of their victims with the use of intimidation, threats and violence, although in some cases victims have some freedom of movement since the traffickers have gained a psychological hold over their victims. Examples of control methods include: threats of intimidation/violence, threat to inflict violence upon their families at home, threat to inform victims family of their involvement in prostitution, removal of documentation, debt bondage, ritual oaths, drugs and alcohol, curtailment of freedom and movement, consistent change of location, fear of authorities, isolation, threats of deportation and some victims simply don't recognise they are a victim of human trafficking. [16]

Frequency of trafficking

Since the secretive nature of the criminal world, it is hard to tell the true number of victims of human trafficking. What can be said is that human trafficking is more prominent now than it has ever been. [16] The National Crime Agency believes the number of victims is in the tens of thousands within the UK. [16]

Chinese, Nigerian and Vietnamese individuals are the most commonly reported nationalised for potential victims of human trafficking. [16]

Benefits for traffickers

Usually traffickers know the risk that they are taking when entering into this business, but continue to do so because of the benefits that they receive. The maximum jail sentence for a human trafficking violation is 14 years, [17] but this amount of time is usually not threatening to traffickers because of their financial benefits. In this business, the amount of money that can be made is far beyond a day job, and can be made through many different routes. The money that a trafficker can make off of selling one victim in the United Kingdom can range from £500 to £8,000. The amount of money that traffickers make per day is also a huge benefit to continue their business. Per day in the United Kingdom, a trafficker can make between £150 and £1,000. Usually the traffickers pay their prostitutes little to nothing for their services and keep the profits for themselves. Another way that traffickers make money is by paying for their victims travel charges and demanding the money back once they arrive in the United Kingdom. [14]

Cost and revenue of a human trafficker

In 2012, a report showed that most victims being trafficked into the United Kingdom were from China, Vietnam and Eastern Europe. According to Rosa Silverman, the revenue generated by one sex worker was estimated to be £48,000, therefore, the market is worth tens of millions of pounds. [18] The costs of travel and obtaining fake documentation can be very costly. This can range from £500 to £12,000 for fake documentation and £2,000 to £3,000 for travel from Europe. If the victim is travelling from a farther location, the cost of travel can be much more. Studies show that the travel cost from China is between £25,000 and £50,000 for one victim. The methods of transportation can also have an effect on the cost of travel. Some traffickers purchase their victims, which can become very costly to their business. Depending on different factors including race, location, and age of the victim, the cost can vary. One trafficker reported to have paid as little as £800 for a girl from South Africa, but another paid £20,000 for a different girl. The reported sales value of a victim in the United Kingdom is usually between £3000 and £4000. [14]

Prosecution

The British government continued its proactive law enforcement efforts to combat trafficking. [19] The UK prohibited all forms of trafficking through the Sexual Offences Act 2003, [20] the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003 and the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc.) Act 2004. [21] These prescribed penalties of a maximum of 14 years’ imprisonment, although the specific punishments prescribed for sex trafficking are less severe than those prescribed for rape. [22] The Modern Slavery Act 2015, [23] which became law in March 2015, and the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015 [24] which became law in November 2015 consolidated existing offences relating to trafficking and slavery.

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 offenders. Although the government reported 75 ongoing prosecutions during the previous reporting period, it convicted only ten trafficking offenders in 2007, a significant decrease from 28 convictions obtained in 2006. Sentences imposed on convicted trafficking offenders in 2007 ranged from 20 months’ to 10 years’ imprisonment, with an average sentence of four years. [19] In one case in 2008 in the U.K., girls were trafficked for forced prostitution and a man was sentenced to 10 years in prison [25] 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. [19] The Rochdale sex trafficking gang, a group of paedophiles who preyed on under-age girls in Rochdale, were the first people in Britain to be convicted of sex trafficking, on 8 May 2012 [26]

Protection

A system that is currently in place for helping trafficked people is the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). In order to protect trafficked people, a first responder must refer the person 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 trafficked, the Competent Authority will grant the victim a 30-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 30-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 30-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 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. [12]

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. [12]

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 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, offense 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. [27]

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 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." [28]

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 different indicators of forced labor and prostitution. [11] 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 another issue that arises when women are passed across international borders. [28]

Risk assessment

Government policy relies on a robust approach to risk assessment to help ensure that modern slavery and human trafficking are eliminated as far as possible within government commercial operations and supply chains. [29]

In Scotland

Scottish cities with the highest incidence of trafficking include Glasgow, Stirling, Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen. According to studies, the individuals’ experiences were varied. Most of the individuals claimed that they knew that they were being trafficked and were content with their situation. But others were deceived into the work that they would be doing. They were generally introduced to individuals who offered them a job in Scotland and were exploited into sex trafficking once they arrived. The victims were discovered in private flats and houses that were being used to house traffickers. These kinds of locations are used because they are not high risk in Scotland. The main trafficking route into Scotland has been discovered to be from London and the victims are usually escorted by someone connected with their trafficking organization. Other routes into Scotland included Northern Ireland, western Scotland and Dublin. The immigrant population has grown in recent years in Scotland, which can be connected to the increase in trafficking in Scotland. Glasgow, which is one of the largest trafficking locations in Scotland, has over 77 nationalities living there. Many of the victims nationalities are unknown in Scotland, but those that are known are generally from Asian and African countries. [30]

See also

Related Research Articles

<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).

Syria is a destination and transit country for women and children trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. A significant number of women and children in the large and expanding Iraqi refugee community in Syria are reportedly forced into commercial sexual exploitation by Iraqi gangs or, in some cases, their families. Similarly, women from Somalia and Eastern Europe are trafficked into commercial sexual exploitation. Foreign women recruited for work in Syria as cabaret dancers are not permitted to leave their work premises without permission, and they have their passports withheld—indicators of involuntary servitude. Some of these women may also be forced into prostitution. Anecdotal evidence suggests that Syria may be a destination for sex tourism from other countries in the region. In addition, women from Indonesia, the Philippines, Ethiopia, and Sierra Leone are recruited for work in Syria as domestic servants, but some face conditions of involuntary servitude, including long hours, non-payment of wages, withholding of passports, restrictions on movement, threats, and physical or sexual abuse. Syria may also be a transit point for Iraqi women and girls trafficked to Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), and Lebanon for forced prostitution. The Government of Syria does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so. Syria again failed to report any law enforcement efforts to punish trafficking offenses over the last year. In addition, the government did not offer protection services to victims of trafficking and may have arrested, prosecuted, or deported some victims for prostitution or immigration violations.

Taiwan is primarily a destination for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. It is also a source of women trafficked to Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Women and girls from the People's Republic of China (P.R.C.) and Southeast Asian countries are trafficked to Taiwan through fraudulent marriages, deceptive employment offers, and illegal smuggling for sexual exploitation and forced labor. Many trafficking victims are workers from rural areas of Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, employed through recruitment agencies and brokers to perform low skilled work in Taiwan’s construction, fishing, and manufacturing industries, or to work as domestic servants. Such workers are often charged high job placement and service fees, up to $14,000, resulting in substantial debt that labor brokers or employers use as a tool for involuntary servitude. Many foreign workers remain vulnerable to trafficking because legal protections, oversight by authorities and enforcement efforts are inadequate.

Tanzania is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. Boys are trafficked within the country for forced labor on farms, in mines, and in the informal business sector. Tanzanian girls from rural areas are trafficked to urban centers and the island of Zanzibar for domestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation; some domestic workers fleeing abusive employers fall prey to forced prostitution. In some regions, unregistered employment agencies are involved in recruiting minors from rural areas to work as domestic helpers in the capital, where they are subject to exploitation. Tanzanian children and adults are reportedly trafficked to other countries including Mozambique, Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, Ethiopia, Yemen, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Italy and China. Trafficked children from Burundi and Kenya, as well as adults from Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Yemen, are trafficked for forced labor in Tanzania's mining, agricultural and domestic service sectors, and are sometimes also subjected to sex trafficking. The Government of Tanzania does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so.

Zimbabwe is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation. Large scale migration of Zimbabweans to surrounding countries—as they flee a progressively more desperate situation at home—has increased, and NGOs, international organizations, and governments in neighboring countries are reporting an upsurge in these Zimbabweans facing conditions of exploitation, including human trafficking. Rural Zimbabwean men, women, and children are trafficked internally to farms for agricultural labor and domestic servitude and to cities for domestic labor and commercial sexual exploitation. Women and children are trafficked for domestic labor and sexual exploitation, including in brothels, along both sides of the borders with Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zambia. Young men and boys are trafficked to South Africa for farm work, often laboring for months in South Africa without pay before "employers" have them arrested and deported as illegal immigrants. Young women and girls are lured to South Africa, the People's Republic of China, Egypt, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada with false employment offers that result in involuntary domestic servitude or commercial sexual exploitation. Men, women, and children from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia are trafficked through Zimbabwe en route to South Africa. Small numbers of South African girls are trafficked to Zimbabwe for domestic servitude. The government’s efforts to address trafficking at home have increased with the introduction of the National Action Plan (NAP) as well as the 2014 Trafficking in Persons Act. In addition, the trafficking situation in the country is worsening as more of the population is made vulnerable by declining socio-economic conditions.

<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.

Human trafficking in 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 labour. Although no reliable study of forced and bonded labour has been completed, NGOs estimate this problem affects 20 to 65 million Indians. Men, women and children are trafficked in India for diverse reasons. 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 favour of men. Men and boys are trafficked for the purposes of labour, and may be sexually exploited by traffickers to serve as gigolos, massage experts, escorts, etc. A significant portion of children are subjected to forced labour as factory workers, domestic servants, beggars, and agriculture workers, and have been used as armed combatants by some terrorist and insurgent groups.

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">Human trafficking in the United States</span>

In the United States, human trafficking tends to occur around international travel hubs with large immigrant populations, notably in California, Texas, and Georgia. Those trafficked include young children, teenagers, men, and women; victims can be domestic citizens or foreign nationals.

Austria is a destination and transit country for women, men, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor.

Belgium is a source, destination, and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor and forced prostitution. Victims originate in Eastern Europe, Africa, East Asia, as well as Brazil and India. Some victims are smuggled through Belgium to other European countries, where they are subjected to forced labor and forced prostitution. Male victims are subjected to forced labor and exploitation in restaurants, bars, sweatshops, horticulture sites, fruit farms, construction sites, and retail shops. There were reportedly seven Belgian women subjected to forced prostitution in Luxembourg in 2009. According to a 2009 ECPAT Report, the majority of girls and children subjected to forced prostitution in Belgium originate from Balkan and CIS countries, Eastern Europe, Asia and West Africa ; some young foreign boys are exploited in prostitution in major cities in the country. Local observers also report that a large portion of children trafficked in Belgium are unaccompanied, vulnerable asylum seekers and refugees. Criminal organizations from Thailand use Thai massage parlors in Belgium, which are run by Belgian managers, to sexually exploit young Thai women. These networks are involved in human smuggling and trafficking to exploit victims economically and sexually. Belgium is not only a destination country, but also a transit country for children to be transported to other European country destinations.

Pakistan is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labour and prostitution. The largest human trafficking problem is bonded labour, concentrated in the Sindh and Punjab provinces in agriculture and brick making, and to a lesser extent in mining and carpet-making. Estimates of bonded labour victims, including men, women, and children, vary widely, but are likely well over one million. In extreme scenarios, when labourers speak publicly against abuse, landowners have kidnapped labourers and their family members. U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country in "Tier 2 Watchlist" in 2017.

Nicaragua is principally a source and transit country for women and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Nicaraguan women and children are trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation within the country as well as in neighboring countries, most often to El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and the United States. Trafficking victims are recruited in rural areas for work in urban centers, particularly Managua, and subsequently coerced into prostitution. Adults and children are subjected to conditions of forced labor in agriculture, the fishing industry, and for involuntary domestic servitude within the country and in Costa Rica. There are reports of some Nicaraguans forced to engage in drug trafficking. To a lesser extent, Nicaragua is a destination country for women and children recruited from neighboring countries for forced prostitution. Managua, Granada, Estelí, and San Juan del Sur are destinations for foreign child sex tourists from the United States, Canada, and Western Europe, and some travel agencies are reportedly complicit in promoting child sex tourism. Nicaragua is a transit country for migrants from Africa and East Asia en route to the United States; some may fall victim to human trafficking.

Iraq is both a source and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced prostitution and forced labor. Iraqi women and girls, some as young as 11 years old, are subjected to conditions of human trafficking within the country and in Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Qatar, and possibly Saudi Arabia for forced prostitution and sexual exploitation within households.

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.

Burundi is a source country for children and possibly women subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically conditions of involuntary domestic servitude and forced prostitution. Children and young adults may also be coerced into forced labor on plantations or small farms in southern Burundi, or to conduct informal commerce in the streets. Child labor is very common in agricultural fields where major exports, like tea and coffee, are harvested. Forced labour of children and adults is also very common in mines due to a large market for valuable stones and ores. Many trafficking victims can be found in mines in the northern area of Burundi, especially around Cibitoke. Some traffickers may be family or acquaintances of victims who, under the pretext of assisting underprivileged children with education or with false promises of lucrative jobs, subject them to forced labor, most commonly as domestic servants. While there is little evidence of large-scale child prostitution, “benevolent” older females offer vulnerable younger girls room and board within their homes, and in some cases eventually push them into prostitution to pay for living expenses; extended family members also financially profit from the commercial sexual exploitation of young relatives residing with them. It is most common for the trafficking of victims to remain internal within the country or to extend only to the surrounding countries. Male tourists from Oman and the United Arab Emirates exploit Burundian girls in prostitution. Businessmen recruit Burundian girls for commercial sexual exploitation in Rwanda, Kenya, and Uganda, and recruit boys and girls for exploitation in various types of forced labor in Tanzania. Unlike in past years, there were no reports of forced or voluntary recruitment of children into government armed forces or rebel groups during the reporting period. If the trafficking of Burundians does extend externally, it is most common for them to be sent to locations in the Middle East and Western Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human trafficking in Costa Rica</span> Trade of people in Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a source, transit, and destination country for goods and products, a great location for trade in the seas. Costa Rica is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea making it a source of imports and exports. Costa Rica is approximately 19,653 square miles of land, making it smaller than West Virginia. To a lesser but increasing extent, Costa Rica is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to conditions of forced labor, particularly in the agriculture, construction, fishing, and domestic service sectors. The economy greatly depends on the exportation of bananas and coffee, making high demands of agriculture work. Costa Rican women and children are forced into commercial sexual exploitation due to high rates of poverty and violence. Women and girls from Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Colombia, and Panama have been identified in as victims of forced prostitution. Child sex tourism is a serious problem, particularly in the provinces of Guanacaste, Limón, Puntarenas, and San José. Child sex tourists arrive mostly from the United States and Europe. Young men from Nicaragua, Vietnam, China and other Asian countries are subjected to conditions of forced labor in Costa Rica. Adults have been identified using trafficked women and children to transport and sell drugs. Neighboring countries and cities are victims as well to forced labor many times trafficked to Costa Rica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex trafficking in Europe</span> Overview of sex trafficking in Europe

Sex trafficking is defined as the transportation of persons by means of coercion, deception and/or forced into exploitative and slavery-like conditions and is commonly associated with organized crime.

<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.

Human Trafficking or "trafficking in persons" is the recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, or obtaining a person for mainly the purposes of forced labor or prostitution. Other reasons for human trafficking are the removal of organs, forced marriage, and other exploitations. South America is one of the biggest source and destination locations in the world and has struggled with the issue for many years. The ILO estimates that of the 20.9 million victims of human trafficking in 2012, 1.8 million were from Latin America. There are many factors that cause human trafficking, like a high demand for domestic servants, sex laborers, and factory workers, the existence of already established trafficking networks that often take advantage of young women and children, corruption in the governments and local law enforcement agencies, a governmental disinterest in the issue and a lack of opportunity for women in South American regions where trafficking occurs. People exploited in human trafficking are often impoverished, members of indigenous peoples, unemployed, victims of abuse, illiterate, substance users, homeless, or involved in gang activity. Research by the United States Department of State has also found that LGBTQ+ and transgender people are vulnerable to human trafficking. By far, sex trafficking is the leading type of human trafficking, making up 79 percent of all human trafficking. This is then followed by forced labor at 18 percent. About 20 percent of trafficking victims are children. Primary destinations for trafficking and illegal immigration are the United States, Spain, Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Canada. Globalization, capitalism and societal attitudes facilitate and reduce the barriers to human trafficking.

References

  1. ↑ Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (June 19, 2012). "Country Narratives: Countries N Through Z". Trafficking in Persons Report 2012. US Department of State. Retrieved December 26, 2012. UNITED KINGDOM (Tier 1) The United Kingdom (UK) is a destination country for men, women, and children primarily from Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe who are subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor, including domestic servitude.
  2. ↑ Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (2012). "Definitions and Methodology". Trafficking in Persons Report 2012. US Department of State. Retrieved December 26, 2012. While Tier 1 is the highest ranking, it does not mean that a country has no human trafficking problem. Rather, a Tier 1 ranking indicates that a government has acknowledged the existence of human trafficking, has made efforts to address the problem, and meets the TVPA's minimum standards. Each year, governments need to demonstrate appreciable progress in combating trafficking to maintain a Tier 1 ranking. Indeed, Tier 1 represents a responsibility rather than a reprieve. A country is never finished with the job of fighting trafficking.
  3. ↑ Sophie Mc Bain (14 February 2017). "The maid slaves". New Statesman. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
  4. ↑ Nick Davies (2009-10-20). "Prostitution and trafficking – the anatomy of a moral panic". The Guardian. London.
  5. ↑ Nick Davies (2009-10-20). "Inquiry fails to find single trafficker who forced anybody into prostitution". The Guardian. London.
  6. ↑ "United Kingdom". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2022-06-16.
  7. ↑ "Inquiry fails to find single trafficker who forced anybody into prostitution". The Guardian. 2009-10-20. Retrieved 2021-04-23.
  8. ↑ "Two women charged with brothel-keeping after Gardai/PSNI raids". The Guardian. 2012-05-30. Retrieved 2021-04-20.
  9. ↑ "Trafficking in Persons Report 2017: Tier Placements". www.state.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  10. ↑ Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (2012). "Definitions and Methodology". Trafficking in Persons Report 2012. US Department of State. Retrieved December 26, 2012. Involuntary domestic servitude is a form of human trafficking found in unique circumstances—informal work in a private residence—these circumstances create unique vulnerabilities for victims. Domestic workplaces are informal, connected to off-duty living quarters, and often not shared with other workers. Such an environment, which can isolate domestic workers, is conducive to exploitation because authorities cannot inspect homes as easily as they can compared to 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.
  11. 1 2 "The Trade in Human Beings: Human Trafficking in the UK" (PDF). House of Commons Home Affairs Committee. 14 May 2009. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  12. 1 2 3 Rights of Women. "Seeking Refuge? Trafficking, sexual exploitation, and the law".
  13. ↑ "Modern slavery law review as gangs 'evolve'". BBC News. 2018-07-30. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Marsh & Sarmah, Kevin, Rashmi. "An evidence assessment of the routes of human trafficking into the UK" (PDF). gov.uk/government. Home Office (2012).{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ↑ "Essex lorry deaths: two found guilty over manslaughter of 39 Vietnamese people". The Guardian. 2020-12-21. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  16. 1 2 3 4 "Human trafficking and exploitation: guidance for health workers - gov.scot". www.gov.scot. Retrieved 2021-04-20.
  17. ↑ "Human Trafficking, Smuggling and Slavery | The Crown Prosecution Service". www.cps.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-04-23.
  18. ↑ "Trafficking of women for sex in UK worth £130m". www.telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-04-23.
  19. 1 2 3 Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs (2008-06-10). "Country Narratives -- Countries S through Z". 2001-2009.state.gov. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
  20. ↑ Sexual Offences Act 2003, sections 57-59
  21. ↑ Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc.) Act 2004, sections 4 and 5
  22. ↑ For which section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 prescribes a maximum of life imprisonment; in Scotland, rape is an offence under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009 which also carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment
  23. ↑ Modern Slavery Act 2015.
  24. ↑ Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015.
  25. ↑ "British-born teenagers being trafficked for sexual exploitation within UK, police say". the Guardian. 2008-07-02. Retrieved 2022-12-29.
  26. ↑ Bunyan, Nigel (8 May 2012). "Rochdale grooming trial: gang convicted for sex trafficking". The Telegraph. Retrieved May 8, 2012.
  27. ↑ Cree, Viviene E. (1 November 2008). "Confronting sex trafficking Lessons from history". International Social Work. 51 (6): 763–776. doi:10.1177/0020872808095249. S2CID   144813533.
  28. 1 2 King, Lindsey. "International Law and Human Trafficking" (PDF). Topical Research Digest: Human Rights and Human Trafficking. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  29. ↑ Cabinet Office, PPN 02/23: Tackling Modern Slavery in Government Supply Chains, published 10 February 2023, accessed 5 March 2023
  30. ↑ Lebov, K. (2010). "Human Trafficking in Scotland". European Journal of Criminology. 7: 77–93. doi:10.1177/1477370809347944. S2CID   71400284.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.