WUNRN
Fighting Human Trafficking: Lessons from the Field - Addressing Inequalities
By Carol Michaels O'Laughlin on 05 December 2012
A woman from a fishing village
in West Bengal in
In
the coming days, an important worldwide campaign against gender-based violence will
come to an end. These “16 Days Against Gender Violence” began on Nov. 25, the
International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and they will
end Dec. 10 on Human Rights Day.
This campaign comes two months after U.S. President Barack Obama,
in an address to Clinton Global Initiative, outlined new measures to tackle
modern slavery in the
The attention to the issue and the new steps to eradicate human
trafficking are timely and critical, as is the discussion on the lessons
already learned about addressing the problem.
Trafficking in persons is a global phenomenon that is an affront
to basic human rights across countries and cultures. Many forms of inequality
are woven into what creates an enabling environment for trafficking, including
income disparities, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, and gender
discrimination. Men, women and children are trafficked for forced labor, sexual
exploitation, their organs, and petty crimes.
As a result, they suffer profound trauma that spreads to their
families and communities. The situation of women and girls is often worsened by
prevalent gender stereotypes and discrimination that makes them more vulnerable
and prevents effective recovery.
For the past two decades, public and private organizations
around the world have been fighting human trafficking. Their work has yielded
important results and lessons for consideration by the international community.
1. Message mishaps
Some messages used around the world to counter human trafficking
have failed to lower women’s vulnerabilities and may have worsened their
situations. In Asia and
Conversely, the following messages have shown to be effective in
reducing stigma and engaging communities in dialogue and joint action: “Safe
migration can lead you to a better future; check all the necessary papers
yourself,” “What do you understand of the suffering of a survivor of human
trafficking?” and “People who have survived trafficking are now fighting
against it; are you with them?”
2. Focus on livelihoods
Economic instability is an important root cause of trafficking
and many anti-trafficking initiatives have failed to address it, partly due to
limited resources. Experience has shown that prevention or reintegration is not
complete until a survivor or at-risk woman is economically self-sufficient.
Skills training, educational support and business start-up assistance have
empowered women to restore their self-confidence and pave the way to a better
future for themselves and their families.
3. Alternatives to full-time shelters
Security and full-time care are critical for survivors’
recovery, but severe restrictions on the freedom of shelter residents can lead
to increased feelings of isolation and despair. Various organizations have
taken steps to offer different models of care suited to the circumstances of
individual survivors, including drop-in centers offering psycho-social support,
job skills training and legal aid. Transit centers, where survivors can stay
for a few days, are currently being piloted in
4. Importance of family counseling
While reintegration standards have been improving over the past
decades, one important aspect often remains unaddressed. It is common for
families in certain regions to be complicit in the exploitation of their
children. Despite this reality, it is not uncommon to see trafficking survivors
being returned to the same vulnerable situation that led them to being
trafficked in the first place – in many cases to an even more unstable
situation, since family culpability and community rejection can be high for a
survivor of trafficking. Initiatives to integrate family and community
counseling into survivor case management are necessary to ensure that survivors
return to supportive environments.
5. Qualified personnel
Another persistent challenge in assisting trafficking survivors
in developing countries is the low qualification and competency of
psychologists and social workers who frequently harbor biases against the women
and girls in their care. In some cases, social workers have urged women to
forget their experience and hide their past, leaving victims with unresolved
feelings of shame and the fear that their past might be uncovered. Some
organizations in
During these 16 Days Against Gender Violence, we thank the
thousands of volunteers and professionals who are empowering communities to
respect and protect the rights of every citizen and who are making a difference
for generations to come.
This article is based on the paper Addressing inter-linkages between
gender-based violence & trafficking in persons to prevent reinforcement of
inequalities, published as part of Global Thematic Consultation on
Addressing Inequalities.