Trafficking: A Global Phenomenon

Trafficking in persons has evolved into one of the most tragic features of contemporary global migration with as many as 800 000 people estimated to have been trafficked cross-border in the last year alone. Lured by promises of well-paying jobs, marriage, or educational opportunities abroad, many people are easily seduced by the attractive offers made by agents of criminal networks without realizing the full nature of their future employment, or the conditions in which they will work.

Once firmly trapped within an illegal migration environment, or otherwise disoriented and disadvantaged by their foreign surroundings, they are controlled most commonly by violence or threats of violence, either to themselves or their friends and family members, by unconscionable contracts and debt arrangements, or by having their identity documents withheld – all to facilitate their exploitation for the benefit of their traffickers.

Trafficking in persons is now considered one of the largest sources of profit for transnational criminal groups with only drug trafficking and, possibly, the weapons trade being more lucrative. In contrast to these other criminal activities, however, the penalties for human trafficking in most countries are much less severe, or non-existent, and many countries have yet to ratify, or even sign, the UN Optional Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Person, Especially Women and Children.

Trafficking in America

"More than 150 years ago, the United States fought a devastating war that culminated in the elimination of slavery in this country. Although most nations have eliminated servitude as a state-sanctioned practice, a modern form of human slavery has emerged. It is a growing global threat to the lives and freedom of millions of men, women, and children. Today, only in the most brutal and repressive regimes, such as Burma and North Korea, is slavery still state sponsored. Instead, human trafficking often involves organized crime groups who make huge sums of money at the expense of trafficking victims and our societies."

—U.S. State Department, Trafficking in Persons Report 2006

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has been working to counter the trafficking in persons since 1994. The Organization has implemented almost 500 projects in 85 countries since that time, and has provided assistance to approximately 15,000 trafficked persons. IOM’s primary aims are to prevent trafficking in persons and to protect victims of the trade while offering them options of safe and sustainable reintegration and/or return to their home countries.

IOM conducts both quantitative and qualitative research of human trafficking to better inform its own work and the work of others. Specific areas of focus have included human trafficking routes and trends, the causes and consequences of human trafficking both for the individual trafficked person and for society at large, as well as the structures, motivations, and modus operandi of organized criminal groups. IOM has also done considerable research in the areas of legislation and policy. While the Organization has done much of its research work at national level, it increasingly conducts research of human trafficking at regional level to support cooperation between states in combating cross border manifestations of this trade in human beings.

As in all things, prevention is better than cure, and IOM carries out information campaigns in both source and destination countries to educate the general public about trafficking in persons, encourage people to report suspected cases, and equip vulnerable populations with the information necessary to better protect themselves from the recruitment tactics of traffickers. Mass media ensures that the information reaches large sections of the population quickly, while IOM also uses small media, such as community theatre, posters, and interpersonal communicative methods to target particular populations with more sophisticated messages.

IOM’s technical cooperation activities build the capacity of both government and civil society institutions to better address the challenges posed by human trafficking. This includes the training of non-governmental organizations and government officials, such as police, technical support in the development of counter-trafficking legislation, policies and procedures, and infrastructural upgrades.

IOM offers direct assistance to victims of trafficking in collaboration with its partners. This includes accommodation in places of safety, medical and psychosocial support, skills development and vocational training, reintegration assistance, and the options of voluntary, safe and dignified return to countries of origin or resettlement to third countries in extreme cases. All IOM counter-trafficking activities are developed and implemented within a framework centred on the well being of the trafficked person.

Only with the generous contributions of the donor community is IOM able to carry out its work and continue making progress in the fight against human trafficking.

Funding examples:

• $60 covers medical and operational costs of one bed per day, including meals and medical services, at a rehabilitation center in the Russian Federation
• $4,000 - IOM is able to cover the rescue, rehabilitation, reunification and reintegration of 1 child in Ghana for 2.5 years           
• $12,000 is the estimated amount needed per month to operate a shelter for trafficked persons in Turkey           
• $15,000 funded the production of an awareness-raising documentary film on ‘Human Trafficking in Ethiopia’           

TO DONATE: Please mail or fax donations to the address below, or use the online donation button above.

USAIM
1752 N Street NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 862-1826
Fax: (202) 862-1879
Email: info@usaim.org