Human Trafficking: Lives Bought and Sold
Tahinya Sheriff examines the ongoing issue of human trafficking in our society
With an estimated 21 million trafficked people around the world, there is no denying that human trafficking is one of the world’s most profitable and widespread crimes, generating approximately $150 billion in profit. While many consider human trafficking as involving forced labour or sexual exploitation, it is important to note that human trafficking extends far beyond these categories and also includes things like slavery and forced marriage.
Generally, the distribution of human trafficking has been more common in areas such as central and southeastern Europe, however, rapid technological advancements in the last decade have made it much more accessible and, to an extent, even easier for traffickers to reach a greater platform of potential targets through mediums such as social media. As a result, developed countries including Australia are not immune from the dire consequences, and are also subject to being a destination country for a range of human trafficking violations.
This article will firstly aim to understand human trafficking, with an overview of what it is and the types of human trafficking present in the 21st century. An exploration of who is most vulnerable to trafficking and the consequences associated with it will also be discussed briefly. Finally, this article will distill the various efforts undertaken by Australian and international organisations to combat human trafficking at present and, even more importantly, in the future.
What is it?
Human trafficking is a complex crime which violates a multitude of human rights. It involves the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a person – through means such the use of force, coercion, threats, deception, or abuse of power or vulnerability – for the purpose of exploitation. This internationally agreed definition of human rights comes from the United Nation’s Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (often referred to as ‘the Trafficking Protocol’ or ‘the Palermo Protocol’).
Types of Human Trafficking
There are several categories of human trafficking, which involve the exploitation of individuals for various purposes. Some of these include slavery, servitude, forced labour, sexual exploitation, forced marriage, debt bondage, and harvesting body organs. Trafficking is a hidden crime and it occurs in various global industries such as agriculture, sex industries, construction and hospitality, but the full scale of this brutal trade cannot be definitively detected.
Slavery
Slavery in Australia can be defined as ‘the condition of a person over whom any or all of the powers attaching to the right of ownership are exercised, including where such a condition results from a debt or contract made by the person’. It is a crime against humanity and is prohibited under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as by international treaties that Australia has ratified, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Slavery Convention 1926.
It can involve subtle forms of control and possession, rather than the physical force or restraint we would normally expect, and may also include psychological control; measures taken (such as threats, force or coercion) to prevent or deter escape, subjection to cruel treatment and abuse, control of sexuality and forced labour. These factors were set out in The Queen v Tang [2008] HCA 39, Australia’s first case on slavery.
Servitude
If an individual does not consider themselves free to stop working or to leave the place or area where they work because they are coerced, threatened or deceived, this may amount to servitude. As such, to reach the level of servitude, one must be significantly deprived in aspects relating to their individual personal lives, disparate from their work.
Forced Labour
According to the International Labour Office (‘ILO’), it is estimated that up to 21 million individuals globally are subjected to forced labour. In Australia, forced labour refers to situations where a person is not free to stop working for an employer or leave the place or area where they work because they are coerced, threatened or deceived.
Forced labour is a serious criminal offence and can occur in array of industries extending from hospitality to agriculture and construction. Working conditions can range from mediocre to severe violations of human rights, which may involve the removal of identity documents or threats of deportation from the employer. It is important to note that forced labour can exist even if the individual is working legally, however, people with temporary visas, such as 457 work visas, student visas, or visas that do not allow worker’s rights are particularly vulnerable to exploitation in the workplace.
Sex Trafficking
Trafficking for sexual exploitation, or sex trafficking, occurs when a person is coerced or deceived into working in conditions of servitude, slavery or debt bondage. Poverty is a common bondage among the countries which have the highest rates of sex trafficking, such as India, Bangladesh and Uganda, with many women and young males becoming more susceptible due to increasing unemployment and an unstable social and political environment.
It is a form of modern slavery, which most commonly exploits young women and children for the purpose of forced sex. Commercial sexual exploitation includes pornography, prostitution and sex trafficking of women and girls, and is characterised by the exploitation of a human being in exchange for goods or money. Sex trafficking can occur in public, namely through street prostitution, or in private, with much of the industry operating out of unmarked brothels and even locations such as massage parlours, spas and strip clubs.
Forced Marriage
Forced marriage generally describes a marriage entered into without the full and free consent of both parties, and may involve physical, emotional or financial duress, deception, or the use of force, threats or severe pressure. Following the event of the forced marriage, it is possible that a victim may then be subject to other forms of serious exploitation, such as servitude.
However, it is important to understand the difference between arranged marriage and forced marriage, and ensure that these terms are not used interchangeably. This is because arranged marriage is a type of marriage in which both parties consent to the assistance of their parents or a third party (such as a matchmaker) in identifying a spouse. As such, the vital human right of individual consent is negated in forced marriage.
Debt Bondage
In Australia, debt bondage relates to situations where a person’s personal services are used to repay a debt, and the debt owed or claimed to be owed is manifestly excessive, or the reasonable value of the person’s services is not applied to repay the debt, or the length and nature of the person’s services are not limited and defined. Debt is widely considered as a tool used by traffickers to control a person they have trafficked and is often inflated or artificial.
Who is vulnerable to human trafficking?
Human trafficking is a complex crime that may be exercised in varying degrees of sophistication. This can range from a highly organised and sophisticated criminal network to unsophisticated groups or individuals who may attack victims of opportunity or those in a vulnerable state. In poor or developing countries, family and friends of the victims may also play a part in the process for financial gain or being threatened to oblige.
There are a range of factors that may increase one’s chances of being exposed to or involved in human trafficking and exploitation. Typically, individuals from countries with low socio-economic backgrounds, such as India and Thailand, may look to pursue a better standard of living overseas. This makes them a vulnerable target as traffickers can use the common ruse of a promise of better work or study options that are unavailable in their home country. Further, the economic hardship of an individual may make them consider riskier options, which then enable traffickers to take advantage of their personal circumstance, in an attempt to escape it.
Factors such as gender roles and expectations, existing patterns of movement, weak border and immigration controls, poor governance, the failing rule of law, corruption, and the impact of cultural practices entwined with poverty are also significant ways in which traffickers may target potential victims for their own gain.
Often those who are trafficked are unable to escape their traffickers due to the threat of violence or death to themselves or their families back home. Others may be told that they were purchased for a particular purpose and until their debt is repaid, they are unable to leave. More commonly, the removal of identity documents such as passports and ID cards are used to instil in victims that there is no possibility of return to their home.
This torturous cycle can cause extreme emotional, physical and psychological distress as victims who try to escape may be punished brutally, and those who have attempted escape consecutively often lose hope and may commit self-harm.
Efforts to combat Human Trafficking
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that people from 136 different countries are trafficked into 118 countries. The ILO estimates that there are almost 21 million people in situations of forced labour (but not all of them are trafficked) around the world, with 56% of these in the Asia-Pacific region. Legislation criminalising human trafficking has been enacted by 134 countries and territories, however conviction rates around the globe are low as human trafficking remains a largely underreported crime that occurs across and within national borders.
Currently, 154 countries have ratified the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children that supplements the United Nation’s Convention Against Transnational Organised Crime. Australia ratified the Trafficking Protocol in 2005, which sets out the internationally agreed definition of human trafficking. It aims to facilitate international cooperation to combat trafficking in persons and to protect and assist people who have been trafficked.
Further, the Australian Government initiated a national response to combat human trafficking in 2003, led by the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department through the Interdepartmental Committee on Human Trafficking and Slavery (‘IDC’). Some measures implemented under this strategy include ratifying the Trafficking Protocol in 2005, creating specialist teams within the Australian Federal Police, devising an Australian Policing Strategy to Combat Trafficking in Persons, drafting legislation to criminalise people trafficking and trafficking-related activities, and directing funding to prosecute trafficking matters.
These measures, both domestic and international, are also aided by many not-for-profit organisations such as Red Cross, The United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT), A21 Campaign and Anti-Slavery Australia.
Conclusion
Human trafficking remains one of the most serious violations of human rights in the 21st century. It is essential to understand that while many organisations have driven substantial law reform in this area, much more work needs to be done if we are to work towards abolishing human trafficking across the globe. Greater education is needed in areas of low socio-economic backgrounds, and public interest in this area must be heightened if we are to expose the harsh reality of these industries. Human trafficking is not just limited to developing countries – it is currently occurring in Australia as well. As such, increasing knowledge in this area and being vigilant for any signs of this crime is essential to ensure justice to those affected.
Bibliography
Legislation
Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth)
Websites
Anti-Slavery Australia, Slavery, <http://www.antislavery.org.au/images/stories/Factsheets/01%20-%20What%20is%20slavery.pdf>.
Anti-Slavery Australia, Forced Labour, <http://www.antislavery.org.au/images/stories/Factsheets/04%20-%20Forced%20labour.pdf>.
Anti-Slavery Australia, Sexual Exploitation, <http://www.antislavery.org.au/images/stories/Factsheets/06%20-%20Trafficking%20for%20Sexual%20Exploitation.pdf>.
Red Cross, Trafficking, <http://www.redcross.org.au/files/Trafficking_FAQs.PDF>.
Soroptimist, Sex Slavery/Trafficking, <http://www.soroptimist.org/trafficking/faq.html>.
World Vision, Child Trafficking and Slavery, <https://www.worldvision.com.au/global-issues/work-we-do/child-slavery>.
