Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking by Ronald Weitzer

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4 Modern slavery and human trafficking by Ronald Weitzer

Children fetch water from the bottom of a 25-foot well. At the surface, they use the water to pan for gold. (LARRY C. PRICE/PULITZER CENTER ON CRISIS REPORTING)

uman trafficking and modern slavery have become Definitions major public issues over the past two decades. Al- Definitional problems plague discussions of trafficking and most every nation has enacted laws criminalizing modern slavery. Among the issues are whether a person’s humanH trafficking, and international organizations, govern- consent is relevant; whether slavery is distinct from or over- ments, and NGOs sponsor a large variety of projects to curb laps with human trafficking; the meaning of “exploitation”; trafficking and slavery. Billions of dollars have been allocated to these efforts. Between fiscal years 2001 and 2010, for example, the U.S. government spent more than $1.45 billion RONALD WEITZER is a professor of sociology at George on domestic and international antitrafficking programs, and Washington University. He has researched domestic policies the funds allocated for FY2019–FY2021 total $430 million. regarding sex trafficking in the United States and in 2014 co- Expenditures by other governments and by international edited a special issue on human trafficking for The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. organizations have been substantial as well.

41 4 GREAT DECISIONS  2020 and whether bonded labor and coerced taining” of (1) an adult for purposes Modern slavery is not defined in marriage qualify as slavery. of labor or sexual commerce through U.S. or international law, and the lack One of the biggest problems is the means of “force, fraud, or coercion,” of a universal standard means that the lack of clarity and consensus on the (2) a person under age 18 for labor via term is used inconsistently. The League very definition of human trafficking, “force, fraud, or coercion,” and (3) a of Nations’ 1926 Slavery Convention as well as the troubling conflation of minor for commercial sex acts irrespec- defined slavery as “the status or con- trafficking and slavery. The U.S. Con- tive of whether coercion or deception dition of a person over whom any or gress and government agencies and are involved. In other words, to qual- all of the power attaching to the right leading international organizations ify as trafficking some kind of abuse of ownership are exercised.” Today, increasingly use the terms “traffick- is central for adults and for minors in- owning another person is not included ing” and “slavery” interchangeably. volved in non-sexual labor, but is not a in definitions of slavery, because legal And a few governments equate traf- requirement for minors involved in the ownership is now outlawed through- ficking with unauthorized, assisted sex trade. Adults who willingly engage out the world. Instead, slavery is now migration regardless of whether the in commercial sex are not trafficking considered a regime of maximum eco- individual consented or sought out victims under TVPA. nomic exploitation, social isolation, such assistance. Some governments The premier international traffick- and total coercive control over the mix human smuggling and trafficking ing convention, the U.N.’s Palermo workers. Some analysts use the term in their official figures or in law. In Protocol (2000), likewise centers on slavery-like conditions to describe cir- Brazil, for example, sex trafficking is coercion and deception but is broader cumstances that are less onerous and legally defined as “promoting, inter- than TVPA in prohibiting “the abuse of comprehensive than outright slavery. mediating, or facilitating the entry of power or of a position of vulnerability These conditions include confiscation women who practice prostitution into or of the giving or receiving of pay- of legal documents, restrictions on national territory or the exit of wom- ments or benefits to achieve the consent one’s freedom, harsh working condi- en who practice prostitution abroad.” of a person having control over another tions, meager pay, and debt that mush- As the U.S. State Department points person, for the purpose of exploita- rooms over time. out, “These statutes encompass activ- tion.” Remarkably, core indicators— Although TVPA contains language ity that does not constitute trafficking “exploitation,” “abuse of power,” portraying trafficking as a “manifesta- . . . such as consensual smuggling or “benefits,” “control,” and “vulner- tion of slavery,” U.S. government re- movement for the purpose of prosti- ability”—are left undefined. Vulner- ports and official pronouncements in tution.” ability may include risk factors such the 2000s focused on trafficking per Most governments distinguish be- as being poor, unemployed, indebted, se or distinguished it from slavery. By tween human smuggling (where a fa- drug dependent, a minor, or an illegal 2012, however, the State Department cilitator helps a person illegally cross immigrant, but it is imperative that had begun equating trafficking with a national border and where the two such key terms be precisely defined in slavery, forced labor, and bonded labor parties have relatively brief contact) a legal instrument of such international – resulting in a huge spike in the alleged and trafficking (where at least some importance. The Palermo Protocol is number of trafficking victims (27 mil- deception or coercion is involved in the model for some nations’ domestic lion in 2012). The growing conflation recruitment or transit and where the trafficking laws, but states have found of distinct problems has been driven by victim may have protracted ties to the it harder to implement than the more activists’ interest in drawing greater at- trafficker). The two types may overlap, precise TVPA. tention to the problem. such as when a person first enters into Although the term “trafficking” sug- To simplify matters, it seems prudent a voluntary agreement with a smuggler gests movement from one place to an- to treat human trafficking as acts of co- but later experiences abuse from that other, relocation is not required by law. ercion or deception occurring at the handler or a third party – thus qualify- Both the Palermo Protocol and TVPA recruitment or transit stage, and slav- ing as trafficking. include in the definition recruitment, ery as forced labor and comprehensive In the United States the 2000 Traf- receipt, or harboring of persons, any control of a person inside and outside of ficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) one of which qualifies as trafficking the work setting. As other experts have criminalizes the “recruitment, harbor- provided that other conditions (coer- noted, trafficking is aprocess of recruiting, transportation, provision, or ob- cion, deception, exploitation) are met, ment into a labor arena and slavery is a regardless of whether geographical potential outcome of trafficking. Bond- Before you read, download the companion movement occurred. Many victims are ed labor – when a person incurs a debt Glossary that includes definitions, a guide recruited and put to work locally, and with a middleman or employer in return ! to acronyms and abbreviations used in the “harboring” consists of maintaining or for a job opportunity – is included under article, and other material. Go to www. housing a person in compelled work. slave-like conditions only if it involves fpa.org/great_decisions and select a Human trafficking does not require at least some coercion, deception, eco- topic in the Resources section. (Top Right) travel. nomic exploitation, or other abuse.

42 HUMAN TRAFFICKING 4 How many victims?

stimates of the number of victims of assuming that all forced marriages services. IOM’s interviews with about worldwide vary widely and have qualify as slavery, it is important, as the 100,000 such individuals over the past Echanged radically over time. In 2000, State Department points out, to exam- 20 years can be used by authorities to TVPA declared that “at least 700,000” ine specific cases and “look particularly target the main “hot spots” where they persons were trafficked into slavery at the terms of the marriage and the pos- are recruited and enslaved. annually worldwide. For several years sible conditions of exploitation encoun- There are international figures on thereafter, the State Department’s Traf- tered afterward.” certified victims: i.e., those officially ficking in Persons Reports put the total The shifting worldwide numbers confirmed as victims by government at 600,000–800,000. In 2012, however, mentioned above are troubling in their authorities. However, as the table on the figure skyrocketed to 27 million, own right, raising questions about at- the next page shows, the two leading comparable to the Global Slavery In- tempts to quantify globally a prob- sources differ substantially: the number dex’s (GSI) figure of 29.8 million in lem that is largely hidden from view. of confirmed victims in one source is 2013. GSI’s total ballooned to 45.8 mil- While the State Department asserted in double or triple that of the other source! lion in 2016, but two years later was cut 2010 that 0.18% of the world’s popu- It is not known which is more reliable, to 40.3 million. GSI explains both the lation had been trafficked, the agency but both show that the number of of- 2013-2016 increase and the 2016-2018 no longer provides national or global ficially-identified victims is but a tiny decrease as a result of changes in the prevalence figures in its annual reports, fraction of the alleged millions of un- methodology it uses to arrive at esti- now using the default term “millions” detected victims worldwide. Either the mates. Regarding the overall increase instead. Some leading analysts argue latter claim is grossly exaggerated or from 2013 to 2018, GSI cautions that that we should dispense entirely with detection efforts have been immensely “we are not asserting that modern slav- expensive big-data projects (like GSI’s) unsuccessful, or both. ery has increased in the intervening and focus instead on the ground: spe- period.” cific cities or small regions of a country Victim experiences Part of the overall increase is due with the goal of identifying and rescu- There is no such thing as a “typical” to the inclusion of “forced marriage” ing victims in those places. The IOM, victim. Victims’ experiences range in GSI’s total – an alleged 15.4 million for example, restricts its figures to in- along a broad spectrum and depend on people in its 2018 report. It is question- dividuals that it directly assists. These the amount and duration of economic able whether the notion of a culturally individuals are interviewed at IOM field exploitation, working and living condi- ordained but not fully consensual mar- offices before they are deemed credible tions, the victim’s age and gender, and riage is tantamount to slavery. Instead trafficking victims and provided with the extent and kind of control exercised

Global Slavery Index

There are serious problems with the Global Slavery Index: GSI uses a bizarre “imputation” procedure. For coun- n It is based on miscellaneous, unstandardized sources tries where there is no information whatsoever, GSI ap- across countries: estimates come from NGOs, the media, plies a “regional average” estimate to that country. This government reports, or population surveys. procedure obviously assumes that the regional estimates n One of the main sources, a poll of households, is are themselves reliable (a dubious assumption), but also deficient because so many countries are left out. Only creates potential error in extrapolating from a region to 48 countries were polled in the 2018 GSI, and only one a single nation. Southeast Asian and two Arab nations. Countries experi- For these and other reasons, some analysts and encing armed conflict are not surveyed, although slavery NGOs like Anti-Slavery International consider GSI’s may be prevalent there. prevalence estimates totally unreliable. This does not n Poll respondents are asked whether they or any family necessarily mean that GSI’s overall categorization of member has experienced forced labor, forced marriage, countries is erroneous, however. It should come as no deception about work, and some other questions. Surveys surprise that countries where slavery is most pervasive on such sensitive issues risk immense under-reporting by are in the Third World, with the second highest preva- victims, and respondents may know nothing about their lence in developing nations and the best record in the family members’ experiences. developed world.

43 4 Table 1: Tra cking victimsGREAT worldwide DECISIONS  2020 or being occasionally subjected to ver- place. An initial employer who treats TRAFFICKING VICTIMS WORLDWIDE bal abuse, demeaning tasks, or arbitrary someone properly and fully abides by Year Victims Victims fines, but not physical or sexual assault. a prior agreement may be followed by Identi ed Detected Some migrants do not fully appreci- one who subjects the worker to at least (STATE DEPT.1) (UNODC2) ate the terms of their agreement with some wage exploitation or other mis- 2008 30,961 N/A a facilitator, are not informed about treatment. And some victims switch working conditions or risks of arrest roles, becoming traffickers or slave 2009 49,105 N/A in a new locale, or how difficult it can managers themselves. 2010 33,113 12,500 be to pay off a debt to a broker or boss. Moreover, a worker’s assessment 2011 42,291 14,000 For those who performed the same of and feelings about a job can flip 2012 46,570 15,500 kind of work at home, working and over time. For example, women who 2013 44,758 17,000 living conditions at the new worksite are recruited to work as waitresses in 2014 44,462 20,500 may be quite different than what they bars along the Lao-Thai border have 2015 77,823 24,000 are accustomed to. And other laborers been pressured to engage in prostitu- 2016 68,453 24,500 agree to perform a certain type of job tion. They initially found sexual com- 2017 96.960 N/A reluctantly – a diluted form of consent merce distasteful and refused to en- 2018 85,613 N/A – out of an obligation to support their gage in it, but once they discover that 1 U.S. Department of State, Trafficking in Persons families or because of pressure from it is far more lucrative than waitress- Report 2019 (p.38) and prior years. Figures based relatives. ing and interact with women who like on data provided “by foreign governments and other sources and reviewed by the Department of Filipinas working in Japanese host- the work, many begin to normalize it State.” The “victims identified” category is not ess clubs enter into a standard debt- and end up preferring it over low-pay- further defined in the report but apparently refers to victims who have been officially certified as such by based arrangement with a middleman ing jobs. This illustrates how a situa- state officials, not alleged victims. who facilitates their travel and employ- tion that is initially perceived as un- 2 U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, Global Report on ment in Japan. Many of the brokers and desirable may be gradually redefined Trafficking in Persons 2018 (p.21). Regarding the term “victims detected”: “UNODC surveys bar managers exploit the hostesses by and embraced. Not only the working governments on trafficking victims identified in their inflating the debt owed; holding pass- conditions but also the worker’s atti- respective countries using a common questionnaire with a standard set of indicators, and then ports until the woman returns home; tude toward those conditions may shift aggregates the results.” The figures presented here retaining earnings they are not entitled radically over time. are rounded, based on a UNODC bar chart. to; and overcharging for food and hous- Extreme or Polymorphous ing. Yet despite these arrangements, Victimization. A victim can be by traffickers and bosses.At one pole many of the women consider this bar subject to any or all imaginable types are those who have been kidnapped and work preferable to living in poverty of serious abuse, including beatings, forced into work, lack all freedom of back home. humiliation, denial of health care, and movement, receive little or no pay, suf- A questionnaire administered to total confinement. Determining which fer physical or sexual assault, or labor 476 Bangladeshi labor migrants who kinds of mistreatment are most preva- under extremely unhealthy or danger- worked abroad found that 81% qualified lent in any given setting is tricky, given as trafficking victims: the lack of representative victim sam- ous conditions. Others face none of n these. Between these two extremes are Two thirds of the victims discov- ples, but a rough sense of the experi- those who have shifting experiences ered during transit that their travel ential dimension can be obtained from documents were fraudulent interviews with confirmed victims and over time or are subjected to milder n forms of mistreatment. The following Four fifths had their passport con- calls to hotlines. For example, the five fiscated by their employer main kinds of abuse recorded in 10,615 examples illustrate these types. n Moderate Mistreatment/ Three quarters were forced to work calls to a hotline staffed by the Polaris Mixed Experiences. An unknown excessive hours and/or were poorly Project in the U.S. in 2017 were isola- number of victims (1) endure moder- paid. tion or confinement, emotional abuse, ate levels of abuse or (2) have mixed Compared to what many other mi- economic abuse, threats, and physical or shifting experiences over time. grants and workers experience, these abuse. Examples of “moderate” victimiza- violations may be considered “moder- Victims can be recruited and en- tion include being informed about the ate,” but one pattern was especially dis- slaved in bizarre ways. Nigeria is a case kind of work awaiting them but not the turbing: 96% of the female respondents in point. Women and girls began to be actual working conditions; receiving experienced sexual harassment and/or trafficked into prostitution in Europe in somewhat less pay or working longer sexual assault by a broker or employer. the late 1980s, and the number has sky- hours than what was agreed to; hav- One’s experiences can change dra- rocketed in recent years. The number of ing a passport confiscated but enjoying matically over time. A positive experi- Nigerian females arriving in Italy grew some freedom outside working hours; ence during recruitment or transit may from about 1,500 in 2014 to 11,000 in be inverted after one arrives at a work- 2016. Most are recruited in one region

44 HUMAN TRAFFICKING 4 Sex Trafficking

Multiple victimization is revealed in a survey of 4,559 n Medical care was denied to 58% woman subjected to sexual exploitation, who were inter- n They worked seven days a week and served an aver- viewed at IOM field missions in Europe and Central Asia: age of five clients per day n 96% were denied the freedom to choose clients and n On average, they were allowed to keep just one sixth 88% were not allowed to determine the kinds of sexual of their earnings services they would provide These findings – which qualify as slavery-like condi- n 40% were regularly prevented from using condoms tions if not outright slavery – demonstrate both intense and 9% were never allowed to use them and polymorphous mistreatment. It should be noted, n 9% experienced psychological abuse, 17% sexual however, that the data were drawn from individuals who assault, and 31% physical assault managed to access IOM field missions, not a represen- n 60% were denied all freedom of movement, while tative sample of victims. People who contact service 36% were allowed some mobility but only if accompa- providers may over-represent those who have had the nied by a handler worst experiences.

of Nigeria (Edo State) and most were conducting these ceremonies – as much to seal a “contract.” A woman’s hair or trafficked into European sex markets. as $1,000 – a strong incentive for do- fingernails may be mixed with pow- Some of the women fly to Europe, ing so often. The following techniques dered animal bone and then rolled into but most travel overland through Lib- have been used: a bundle bearing the woman’s name. ya and then cross the Mediterranean n a woman is presented with photos The scroll is retained by the madam into Italy. After arriving in Europe, of other girls who live the good life in or at a shrine, tangible evidence of the the women quickly discover that they Europe; naïve women believe these contractual agreement. Alternatives must sell sex in order to pay off their fake representations are genuine include eating a kola nut and chicken enormous debt, up to 10 times the ini- n the girl is told that her relocation heart, drinking a brew of blood and gin, tial agreement. It typically costs a traf- debt is small, or told nothing about it or symbolic cutting of the woman’s ficker about $2,000 to buy a fake pass- at all skin. During the ritual the priest casts port and transport someone to Europe, n the ceremony involves the use of a a spell on the woman. and they make colossal profits off these woman’s personal effects and an oath To ensure compliance, the women investments, to the tune of $40,000 to $80,000 per victim. A woman working in a Paris park, for example, was shocked to learn that her debt was €50,000. She was forced to work 12 hours a day; had to earn a minimum of €100 a day; and her handler took all of her income. Some of the victims later return home and graduate to became traffickers themselves (madams), recruiting other women. Madams convince poor and vulnerable young women that a better life awaits them in Eu- rope, where they will be working in a conventional job, such as waitressing or domestic work. Upon arrival they are forced into the sex industry. What makes this process distinctive is the ritualized use of the supernatural. Be- fore they leave for Europe, a madam and village priest perform a voodoo Sex workers of Sonagachi Kolkata, West Bengal, India, the Largest red light area of South ceremony whose purpose to secure East Asia, took part in a torch rally April 30, 2019, demanding dignity, labor rights and spiritual leverage over the victim. The social protection on the eve of International Labor Day. (AVISHEK DAS/SOPA IMAGES/LIGHT- ROCKET/ GETTY IMAGES) voodoo priest is paid by the madam for

45 4 GREAT DECISIONS  2020 are instructed that if they tell anyone that victims were now freed of their n work underground, under water, in about the oath and debt a “juju curse” oaths. It remains to be seen if this confined spaces, or at risky altitudes will be activated, resulting in insanity, recent intervention will make a dent n use of dangerous machinery/equip- death, or harm to a family member. The in the lucrative business of sex slav- ment or carrying heavy loads latter is not a mere threat; family mem- ery in Nigeria, but it does illustrate n exposure to hazardous materials, bers have been assaulted when a victim one way in which religious leaders high noise levels, or temperatures that puts up resistance or is a poor earner. can play a constructive role in plac- jeopardize health. Concern for family members, cou- es where trafficking is grounded in ILO estimates that currently 152 pled with an abiding belief in the power mysticism elsewhere in the world. million minors worldwide are involved of the oath and the victim’s traumatic in forbidden forms of child labor, half experiences abroad, present huge ob- Child victims of whom (73 million) work under haz- stacles for law enforcement. In 2018, Under international legal instruments, ardous conditions. for instance, Nigeria’s Agency for the the employment of minors in the sex With so much of their populations Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons industry differs from employment in living below the poverty line, it is not reviewed 662 cases but prosecuted other sectors. As noted above, any in- surprising that African nations have the only 43 suspects and convicted 26. volvement of minors in commercial highest concentrations of child labor, In a recent, rare trial, 16 Nigerian sex is criminalized in U.S. and inter- half the worldwide total. Most of the traffickers (11 women and 5 men) national law. They are deemed victims victims work in agriculture, fishing, were prosecuted in Paris for enslav- irrespective of whether they seek out or and forestry. ing 49 women. Some of the victims consent to work in this sector. The mining industry in West Africa testified that they were beaten, raped, For other types of labor, however, illustrates the challenge of ending un- denied medical care, or forced to have age and working conditions determine derage labor victimization. The arduous an abortion. The court convicted 15 of whether a minor is deemed abused or and risky nature of this work clearly fit the defendants, imposed heavy fines on exploited. The ILO considers laborers the ILO’s “worst forms of child labor” them, and meted out sentences ranging under 15 years of age victims by defi- category (long hours, heavy loads, hot from 2 to 11 years in prison. nition: their labor is considered both temperatures, use of mercury to amal- Perhaps some good news comes harmful and unethical. For the 15-17 gamate gold, work in underground mine from Edo State. On March 9, 2018, age group, a 1999 ILO convention per- shafts). The problem is that most of its revered traditional king, Oba mits them to work provided that they these youths are encouraged to migrate Ewuare II, convened a meeting with do not engage in the “worst forms of by their parents, normalize the working about 500 juju priests in an attempt child labor” – e.g., forced labor, debt conditions, and view their labor as an to curb the practice. The king de- bondage, prostitution, armed conflict, opportunity: it is one of the few options clared that he had nullified all pacts drug trafficking or other illicit activi- to earn money to support their families – used in human trafficking and had ties, or hazardous work. Hazardous given the lack of work in their home vil- also placed a royal curse on any work endangers a person’s health and lages – and also provides the boys with priest, madam, or parent involved safety and includes: prestige and social capital that helps in in these rituals. He also proclaimed n long hours or night work attracting marriage partners.

Commercial fishing

Commercial fishing is a known slavery site. Ships that rest, and were paid little or nothing. Some had been kid- spend long periods of time at sea can literally imprison napped by brokers and sold to captains of fishing boats workers, with no option to leave even when they become or the companies that own the boats, and some were sick or injured. Reports of extreme fraud in recruitment later abandoned and died on an island far from home. and horrendous working conditions are commonplace. Once the boats return home, a parallel cycle of abuse In Russian and Turkish waters, commercial fishermen takes place in the shrimp-processing industry, victim- were forced to work 18–22 hours 7 days a week, and izing the women and children who peel shrimp for a liv- were beaten, often denied water, not paid, and injured ing. They were slapped and cursed, denied part of their by the traps they used. Similar crimes against commer- wages, given short lunch breaks, and accumulated debts cial shrimpers in Southeast Asia were documented in an while working. A 16-year old girl who labored under Associated Press exposé in 2015. Thai men and boys these conditions from 3am until 7pm every day showed were forced to work 20-24 hours a day 7 days a week, the reporters arms that “were a patchwork of scars from were beaten and whipped if they complained or tried to infections and allergies caused by the shrimp.”

46 ILO Fever Chart HUMAN TRAFFICKING 4 These push and pull factors are mir- rored elsewhere in the Third World, EXPLOITATION TYPES AMONG IDENTIFIED VICTIMS where minors suffer under slave-like OF TRAFFICKING, 2005 – 2016 (by percentage) conditions but do not perceive themselves as victims. Their decision to migrate for work stems from econom- 100% ic desperation and either filial obligation or outright pressure from family FORCED LABOR members. 80% SEXUAL EXPLOITATION It is clear that combatting such BOTH “consensual victimization” faces tre- OTHER* mendous obstacles for both national 60% governments and the international community. The good news is that the number of youths working in slave-like 40% or hazardous conditions has decreased somewhat in recent years. According to the ILO, the number of minors in- 20% volved in hazardous work fell from 170 million in 2000 to 73 million in 2016, with a comparable decline (245 million 0 to 152 million) involved in impermis- sible but non-hazardous child labor. 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

*NOTE: “OTHER” INCLUDES: FORCED MARRIAGE, MILITARY SERVICE, LOW LEVEL CRIMINAL ACTIVITY, AND TRAFFICKING FOR BLOOD, ORGANS OR Industry sectors OTHER BODY PARTS. SOURCE: IOM HUMAN TRAFFICKING GLOBAL DATABASE, 2017 Victims are trafficked into many different industries: mining, agriculture, manufacturing, domestic work, fishing, construction, and the sex industry. alized; and it is gendered: women and sex market pales in comparison to the Regarding the latter, it is important to girls are the vast majority of victims, size of all other labor arenas, such as stress that voluntary involvement in which seems to generate more sympa- agriculture, manufacturing, domestic sexual commerce does not constitute thy than for male victims. Many people work, etc. In 2010, the State Depart- trafficking. As the State Department view labor trafficking, by contrast, as ment proclaimed that “the majority of points out, “Prostitution by willing “boring” or see it as a subset of disrepu- human trafficking in the world takes adults is not human trafficking regard- table illegal immigration, contributing the form of forced labor,” a conclusion less of whether it is legalized, decrimi- to muted empathy for those involved. echoed by international and non-gov- nalized, or criminalized.” What is missing here is recognition ernmental organizations such as Anti- Yet, sex trafficking has received the that victimization in labor trafficking Slavery International. The Internation- lion’s share of attention over the past and forced work can be just as severe al Labour Organization has consistent- two decades. Indeed, it is typically the and life-altering as what sex traffick- ly estimated that about four-fifths of all only focus in news reporting, feature ing victims may experience. This may persons involved in forced or exploit- films, television documentaries, and explain why some activists now prefer ative work worldwide were engaged many anti-trafficking projects run by the term slavery over labor trafficking; in non-sexual commerce: 78% in 2012 international organizations, NGOs, and slavery is much more stigmatized and and 81% in 2017. Another indicator of governments. Moreover, most of the thus more likely to generate publicity this pattern is that the number of labor- victims who have been rescued and and activism. trafficking victims seeking assistance most of the perpetrators arrested world- Whereas sex trafficking remains the at IOM field offices now eclipses the wide were involved in sex trafficking. main focus and some nations have only number of assisted sex-trafficking vic- Over the past three years (FY 2016– recently criminalized labor trafficking, tims, the latter comprising about 13% 18), for example, the Justice Depart- today the latter is receiving slightly in 2016 (see graph above). Labor traf- ment prosecuted 753 cases of human more attention from governments and ficking is therefore much more perva- trafficking, 94% of which involved sex international organizations. One of the sive than sex trafficking. trafficking. most important facts is that the global Another important fact is that sex Why? Sex trafficking is uniquely market for exploited non-sexual labor workers – more than many other labor- disturbing for many people, pulling at far exceeds the market for sexual ser- ers –have routine contact with custom- the heartstrings; it is easily sensation- vices. In other words, the commercial ers and typically work and live near

47 ILO Tower Graph

4 GREAT DECISIONS  2020 FORCED LABOR BY SECTOR neighbors. This increases the odds that they will be discovered – that some client or neighbor will inform the 100% authorities of someone who appears to be abused or a minor. It can be argued that (1) reporting by a client or 90% neighbor may help to explain, at least 24% DOMESTIC WORK to some extent, why the authorities become aware of sex trafficking more 80% often than labor trafficking and (2) the presence of clients and neighbors may serve as a partial deterrent to mistreat- 70% ment in the sex sector in the first place, 18% CONSTRUCTION insofar as bosses are aware that unfree or abused sex workers may alert others. 60% Sexual commerce is more visible because clients need to know its venues, whereas other industries can be much 50% 15% MANUFACTURING more isolated from public view. There are few if any visitors to mines, fishing ships, agricultural sites, and construc- 40% tion sites. 11% AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY The consensus is that labor trafficking and slavery are most prevalent in 30% AND FISHING domestic work, agriculture, construc- 10% ACCOMMODATION AND tion, and manufacturing. (This is the FOOD SERVICE ACTIVITES 20% global picture; the leading industries naturally vary by country, depending 9% WHOLESALE AND TRADE on their local presence and the govern- 10% ment’s anti-trafficking record.) Traf- 7% PERSONAL SERVICES ficking and forced labor appear to be somewhat less prevalent globally in 4% MINING AND QUARRYING 0% the mining and fishing industries; but, again, this conclusion may be a func- BEGGING: 1% tion of the fact that mining and commercial fishing can be even more iso- Source: International Labour Organization, Global Estimates of Modern Slavery, 2017, p. 32 lated than the top four sectors. NOTE: DUE TO ROUNDING, PERCENTAGES DO NOT ADD UP TO 100% LUCIDITY INFORMATION DESIGN, LLC

Law enforcement

raffickers do not fit a standard pro- The conventional image of a traf- of the offender population. Women are file. Some operate in organized- ficker is a middle-aged male. Yet, more most active as brokers at the recruit- Tcrime networks, others work in very than a third of those arrested, pros- ment stage (trafficking) while men small groups, and yet others are solo ecuted, and convicted of trafficking of- predominate at the exploitation stage entrepreneurs. The proportion in each fenses internationally are females: 37% (forced labor, slavery). And women are category is unknown, but data on traf- of those convicted in 2014 and 38% in more prevalent in sex trafficking than fickers caught by the authorities sug- 2016. In some parts of the world, the labor trafficking enterprises. Remark- gests that the majority are small-scale majority of those convicted of traffick- ably, a sizeable number of female traf- operators. And many victims are re- ing are female: Eastern Europe, Cen- fickers were former victims, as a 2016 cruited by acquaintances, friends, tral Asia, the Caribbean, and Central UNODC report points out: or family members. Because of their America. Women are therefore much “particularly in the field of traffick- strong social ties, it is particularly dif- more involved in human trafficking ing for sexual exploitation, many for- ficult for the authorities to build cases than in almost all other types of crime, mer victims are at some point offered against a victim’s relatives or close friends. where they represent a small fraction the opportunity of recruiting new vic-

48 HUMAN TRAFFICKING 4 Cambodian Trafficking

Accounts from traffickers themselves are scarce and simply in procuring for prostitution (not trafficking) usually anecdotal. An exception is a unique study and the remaining 59% had been “doubtfully con- based on interviews with 91 individuals incarcerated victed” of trafficking – meaning that their accounts for trafficking offenses in Cambodia. By compar- did not fit the legal definition of trafficking. The -nar ing the interview transcripts with other sources, the ratives were cross-checked with other sources in researchers determined that 25% of the respondents some cases, but the researchers could not determine had indeed been involved in trafficking as defined by how many of the “doubtfully convicted” may have Cambodian law. However, 16% had been involved been wrongly convicted.

tims or serving as a “madam.” Victims’ of 181 countries reported no traffick- been instances when individuals were motivation to switch to such roles may ing convictions and 27% reported only prosecuted and convicted for acts that be to reduce their debt to traffickers or 1–10 convictions from 2014 to 2017. do not legally qualify as trafficking of- others, or to end their own exploita- It is not known whether “low” pros- fenses, as the Cambodian study shows. tion. . . . Moreover, once victims are ecution and conviction rates are due to In the United States, a clear trend is to engaged in the enterprise, they become low incidence of trafficking in a coun- prosecute individuals engaged in pimp- accomplices to the trafficking opera- try or to meager enforcement efforts. ing (i.e., supervising or living off the tion and are then less likely to cooper- What is clear is that prosecutions are proceeds of a prostitute) under more se- ate with law enforcement.” inherently difficult everywhere, since vere trafficking statutes, and those con- Prosecutions and convictions of traf- they typically depend on the testimony victed typically receive much longer fickers have steadily increased world- of victims who may distrust the author- sentences than they likely would have wide, doubling between 2007 and 2018 ities, dread recounting traumatic expe- in the past. And in a notorious Seattle (see Table 2). However, law enforce- riences at trial, or fear retaliation from case, clients of Korean massage parlors ment efforts are not evenly distributed traffickers. When the perpetrators are who discussed their experiences on a throughout the world, with some coun- police, military, or other state agents, client-centered website were charged tries much more active than others. In the prospects for prosecution are much with operating a “human trafficking the United States, the Justice Depart- lower than for civilian traffickers. ring.” One of the accused later commit- ment secured convictions against 439 There are no international data on ted suicide. The prosecution was criti- Table 2: Worldwidetraffickers prosecutions in FY and2016, convictions 499 in FY for 2017, human tra ckingthe punishments meted out for persons cized for engaging in a gross misappli- and 526 in FY 2018. At the other end of convicted of trafficking, but we do know cation of trafficking law to individuals the spectrum, UNODC found that 9% that sentences can be as severe as life who had simply purchased sexual ser- imprisonment. In the United States, the vices and discussed this online. federal penalty for someone convicted In both the U.S. and elsewhere in the Worldwide prosecutions and convictions for human traﬃcking of trafficking is a fine and/or imprison- world, relatively little is known about ment for 10 years to life. The punish- the crucial law enforcement dimension. Year Prosecutions Convictions ment for a slavery-like condition (i.e., We need much more research on the holding a person in debt peonage or in- ways in which criminal justice systems, 2007 5,682 3,427 voluntary servitude) ranges from a fine throughout the world, investigate and 2008 5,212 2,983 to incarceration for 20 years. Each of the adjudicate cases of accused traffickers 2009 5,606 4,116 50 states has its own trafficking law, and and slaveholders, as well as the reasons 2010 6,017 3,619 sanctions vary from state to state. why some nations have such a poor re- 2011 7,909 3,969 Of the U.S. federal trafficking cases cord in this domain. 2012 7,705 4,746 that resulted in verdicts in 2015, 98% of 2013 9,460 5,776 those convicted received a prison term U.S. foreign policy 2014 10,051 4,443 and the average length of sentence was Since the passage of TVPA in 2000, the 2015 19,127 6,615 183 months, or 15.3 years. These fig- U.S. Government has taken the lead in- 2016 14,939 9,072 ures combine forced labor, slavery, sex ternationally in efforts to combat human trafficking, and peonage. In FY 2018, trafficking. It does so through its embas- 2017 17,471 7,135 trafficking sentences ranged from 3 sies, collaborative initiatives with other 2018 11,096 7,481 months to life in prison, and more than governments, funding foreign NGOs, Source: U.S. Department of State, Trafficking in 70% exceeded 5 years. and in detailed annual reports on inter- Persons Report 2019 (p.38) and prior years While the global pattern is clearly national trends and country compliance under-enforcement, there have also with a set of best practices.

49 4 GREAT DECISIONS  2020 the United States itself in its first nine annual reports; it was first included in 2010, in Tier 1 and retains that ranking today. With its tier-ranking system it is clear that the U.S. is attempting to convert its own standards into global norms. International organizations – such as UNODC, IOM, and ILO – do not routinely reveal which governments are compliant with the Palermo Protocol and do not rank countries. It Migrant workers from Cambodia at work on a fishing boat in Mahachai, on the outskirts has thus fallen to the U.S. to take the of Bangkok, Thailand, February 25, 2010. (NICOLAS ASFOURI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES) lead in the worldwide anti-trafficking Since 2002 the Labor Department rea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and campaign, gradually building consen- has issued its Worst Forms of Child La- Venezuela. sus on key norms and best practices. bor Report, which identifies countries Minimum standards include the ex- The U.S. government also works that have made progress in fighting istence of an anti-trafficking law, on- directly with other governments, fund- child labor, making them eligible for going “serious and sustained efforts” ing and staffing bilateral prevention trade-preference programs. The second to eliminate severe forms of human initiatives, victim-assistance programs, and more comprehensive international trafficking, cooperation with other gov- and enforcement efforts. Regarding assessment is the State Department’s ernments’ anti-trafficking efforts, poli- enforcement, in the past four years annual Trafficking in Persons Report. cies for meaningful protection of and (FY 2015-2018) the State Department The objective is to hold countries ac- assistance to victims, and “stringent” opened 780 human trafficking cases countable for trafficking and to encour- punishment of perpetrators. The State outside the U.S. Other international age them to adopt a set of best practices Department recommends prosecuting investigations and prosecutions are for detecting and combatting it. Since traffickers under trafficking laws, not initiated by the Departments of De- 2001, each country receives a detailed as a civil offense or labor violation. fense and Homeland Security. A major narrative evaluation of its record and Trafficking laws typically stipulate example is ongoing collaboration be- is assigned a tier ranking, subject to re- harsher punishments, and convictions tween Mexican and American authori- vision if conditions change during the under them send a stronger deterrent ties working to dismantle trafficking following year: message to would-be criminals. rings operating along the U.S.-Mexico Tier 1: the government fully meets Tier 3 countries are subject to eco- border. This joint effort has resulted in TVPA’s minimum standards for the nomic sanctions. The TVPA gives the successful prosecutions in both coun- elimination of trafficking; 33 countries U.S. government the power to deny tries, including U.S. federal prosecu- were listed under this tier in 2019, in- foreign assistance to a regime in this tions of over 170 defendants, and the cluding most of Western Europe category, although it has rarely done dismantling of some cross-border traf- Tier 2: the government does not so, preferring soft pressure instead. ficking networks. fully meet TVPA’s minimum stan- Sanctions are usually waived for Tier A policy that overlaps the domestic dards, but is making significant efforts 3 nations unless that country is already and foreign realms is the special visa to comply with them; 93 countries in under U.S. sanctions for other reasons. available in the United States to immi- 2019 From 2005 to 2016, sanctions were grants who are certified as trafficking Tier 2 Watch List: the government imposed on Burma, Iran, North Korea, victims: a T-visa allows the immigrant does not fully meet TVPA’s minimum Russia, and Syria, but only Iran and to remain in the country. TVPA caps standards and is making significant ef- North Korea in recent years. The very the number of T-visas at 5,000 per year, forts to do so, but (a) the number of fact that Tier 3 and Tier 2 Watch List but the number applied for and granted victims is substantial or significantly nations are officially branded as such has fallen well short of that. Under increasing and/or (b) the regime has is intended to “name and shame” and the Obama administration from 2009- failed to provide evidence of enhanced thus encourage greater compliance. 2016, between one-sixth and one-third efforts to combat trafficking in the past Over the past two decades, the threat of such applications by victims were year; 38 countries in 2019 of foreign aid restrictions has indeed denied, depending on the year; during Tier 3: the government does not catalyzed reforms in several nations, the first year of the Trump administra- fully meet TVPA’s minimum standards after which they were rewarded with a tion, one-fifth were denied. and is not making significant efforts to higher tier ranking. But many countries The growing international atten- do so; 22 countries in 2019, including have remained stuck in a low tier. tion to labor trafficking, mentioned Burma, China, Cuba, Iran, North Ko- The State Department did not rank earlier in the article, has prompted in-

50 HUMAN TRAFFICKING 4 creased concern with working condi- Conclusion ber that migration, trafficking, and labor tions throughout entire supply chains. It is often said that cross-border human conditions vary from one location and Because a product passes through a trafficking is human smuggling gone social network to another and that par- lengthy chain of producers, distribu- awry. For those who cross national ticipants’ lived experiences vary contex- tors, and retailers, determining wheth- borders, social, economic, and politi- tually as well. Relations between worker any given product is slavery-free cal “push factors” in one’s home coun- ers, middlemen, and employers range is extremely difficult. Is the cocoa in try (lack of job opportunities, intense from extreme physical and psychologi- the chocolate bar you are eating or poverty, political persecution, perva- cal abuse, severe economic exploitation, the gold in the ring you are wearing a sive violent crime, widespread disease, and terrible working conditions to less result of slave labor? Major corpora- domestic abuse) are the flipside of a set extreme and less oppressive working tions are beginning to take measures of “pull factors” in other countries (job and living conditions. to decrease the risk of forced labor or educational opportunities, political We have questioned the preoccupa- occurring at each stage in their sup- asylum, enhanced health care, physical tion with “guestimating” the number ply chain, but governments can push security). When people decide to move of victims nationally and worldwide. corporations further. Australia and the across a border, they usually need the Some analysts consider this an inher- UK recently passed legislation that re- assistance of smugglers, some of whom ently flawed exercise, given the clan- quires major corporations to report an- are traffickers who engage in deception destine nature of much trafficking nually on the risks of slavery in their or coercion. The more restrictive the and slavery. Recall that the U.S. State operations and supply chains and to barriers to cross-border migration, the Department has now abandoned nu- make efforts to reduce those risks. The greater the odds that the migrant will be merical estimates and instead simply laws are limited to disclosure; they do victimized by middlemen. notes that there are “millions” of vic- nothing to combat slave-like condi- The circumstances are somewhat tims worldwide. It can be argued that tions other than the required statement different for those who are seeking resources should be shifted downward: of risks and remedies. No similar law opportunities in their native country, away from costly big-data quantifica- exists in the United States, although not crossing a national border. Never- tion of trafficking and slavery at the some bills have been proposed re- theless, these domestic cases share the macro level toward sponsoring micro- cently in Congress. State intervention core characteristic of vulnerability to level research in specific cities and in the corporate world is not a con- economic exploitation and other mis- with distinct victim populations, as ventional foreign policy issue, but treatment at the hands of recruiters and IOM does. Such research on the ground the application of new legal norms to nefarious employers. What ties domes- has important policy and enforcement multinational corporations is clearly tic and cross-border types together is implications: When findings pinpoint an attempt to increase accountability abuse during the recruitment stage and specific “hot spots” of victimization, among entities that operate both do- exploitative or coercive conditions at they can help the authorities locate per- mestically and internationally. the worksite. petrators and disrupt trafficking rings Public shaming is another way to At the same time, we must remem- and slave-based enterprises. compel corporate compliance. An example is the Department of Labor’s annual List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor; the 2018 list identified 148 goods and 76 countries where they are produced. The Depart- ments of State and Homeland Security publish similar lists, blacklisting foreign products that are suspected of being produced with forced labor, child labor, or convict labor. Listed products can be subject to an importation ban. Businesses that appear to be im- plicated in trafficking and slavery, including a lack of supply-chain trans- parency, are vulnerable to grass-roots campaigns and consumer boycotts. One recent opinion poll found that a majority of consumers would stop buy- ing a product if they discovered it was Activists take part in a ‘Walk for Freedom’ to protest against human trafficking in Berlin, produced with forced labor. Germany, October 20, 2018. (FABRIZIO BENSCH/REUTERS)

51 HUMAN TRAFFICKING

discussion questions 1.What are the main differences between human trafficking and 4.What is the difference between slavery and slave-like conditions? human smuggling? 5. Every year the U.S. government ranks nations into one of 2. The author argues that estimates of human trafficking and four tiers and uses the threat of economic sanctions to pressure slavery are inherently flawed, especially at the national and inter- countries into conformity with a set of minimum standards for national level. What is the basis for this argument, and what does combatting trafficking. Many countries have remained stuck the author recommend as an alternative focus. in one tier, while others have improved their ranking. Is this an effective foreign policy method? Are there alternative ways of 3. Sex trafficking receives most of the attention from activists, convincing other nations to crack down on trafficking in their the media, governments, and international organizations. If labor countries? trafficking is far more prevalent throughout the world, why is so much of the focus on sex trafficking, and what can we do to 6. Should minors who willingly engage in hazardous work be rebalance official discourse and policy priorities? considered victims?

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