Where does human trafficking take place?

Dressember Reading Day #6

Every day during the month of December, we’re answering common questions and breaking down different aspects of human trafficking on our blog and Instagram. Join us in raising awareness about the injustice of human trafficking by sharing, donating, or joining the Dressember campaign (it’s not too late!).

One of the biggest myths surrounding human trafficking is the assumption that trafficking only occurs in developing countries. In reality, human trafficking happens worldwide. And while the data collected on trafficking is convoluted and often difficult to interpret, the numbers that we have gathered are staggering. Trafficking occurs in six continents and over 125 countries. Yes, this includes the United States, the UK, and Canada. Let’s learn more.

The United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC) collects statistics every year from countries worldwide showing how prevalent trafficking is in each country and what governments are doing to fight back against it. This report helps show how trafficking takes different shapes depending on the region. For example, statistics indicate that labor trafficking is more prevalent in Eastern European and Asian countries. Sex trafficking abounds in African nations, and in much of the western world, many impoverished children find themselves homeless and subsequently at risk for trafficking. Regardless of the region, human traffickers prey on the vulnerable and accost their victims by means of force, fraud, or coercion.

Africa and the Middle East

In recent years, trafficking has been most prevalent in African countries like Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania, Eritrea, and the Central African Republics. In the CAR, young women can be coerced into marriages that force them into domestic servitude and sexual slavery. And in countries like Eritrea, where citizens are proximate to much violence and upheaval, international trafficking groups kidnap vulnerable refugee populations and often detain them for ransom. Many African countries also have a history of exploiting children to be used as soldiers.

Asia

China experiences a great deal of labor trafficking, particularly in sweatshops. In addition, China’s one-child-policy, which began in 1979 and has since been abolished, hasn’t helped. The struggle of Chinese men who want to get married yet find a shortage of women in their own country has opened up a market for trafficking. Women and girls from the neighboring country of Myanmar are lured in with the promise of good jobs only to find themselves caught in a slavery situation, often forced to bear children. These are just two examples of the presence of human trafficking in Asia.

In Russia and Belarus, millions of citizens are caught in labor trafficking in various industries. Slavery conditions exist in garment factories, public transport positions, and in construction and agriculture, and Russian officials have even been known to turn a blind eye to exploitation that foreign migrants face in their country.

South America

Sex trafficking is the most common form of human trafficking in Latin America due to the presence of traffickers that will prey on young women in brothels, bars, and cantinas. They will often target those with a history of sexual or physical abuse as well as those without opportunity, falsely offering them work or support.

Australia

According to the Australian government, Australia is primarily a destination country for people trafficked from Asian countries such as Thailand, Korea, the Philippines, and Malaysia. Studies in Australia have also found that as much as fifty percent of human traffickers are women, most of whom were at one time trafficked themselves.

North America

While North American countries have passed significant legislation and encouraged action against trafficking, trafficking is still a real and present threat.

In the United States, trafficking is most prevalent in Texas, Florida, New York, California and Georgia. While human trafficking can happen all over the US, it tends to be concentrated to international travel hubs. It affects both immigrant populations as well as native-born United States citizens.

Especially vulnerable to trafficking in the US are runaways and homeless populations. Adolescents who find themselves on the streets are at risk for being lured into trafficking by pimps or those who aid them. Vulnerable young men and boys are also at risk for labor trafficking and being lured into drug rings or petty crime.

In Canada, data gathered indicates that young women and girls are most likely to be trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation.

Why do we have trouble pinpointing exact numbers?

The majority of statistics regarding trafficking are estimates at best. The truth is that many people in human trafficking situations go unidentified because of obstacles preventing their rescue and recovery. Often, the individual that is trafficked must voluntarily go into recovery, and the dependency that forms between trafficked and trafficker can prevent this from happening. Additionally, language barriers can pose many difficulties and obstruct communication between trafficking survivors and law enforcement. And thirdly, because of a lack of awareness, those in human trafficking situations might not see themselves as such and have little interest in cooperating with police out of fear.

What now?
While the public is much more aware and alert to the presence of trafficking across the world, there is much work to be done. I encourage readers to seek more information. Further thorough reading can be found by directly accessing the UNDOC global report. And to stay up to date with efforts that are being made to fight trafficking, be sure to subscribe to Dressember’s email newsletter.