According to the UN, “Human trafficking is the acquisition of people by improper means such as force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them.”
Basically, it is when a person is placed into a situation that exploits them (i.e. slave labor, prostitution) without their knowledge or consent. Often in the U.S. teenage girls are promised a modeling career or really “amazing” job opportunity only to be forced into sexual acts unwillingly. In some poverty-stricken countries, young girls are even sold by their parents … only to end up in the brothels. By definition, it actually does not require the person to be physically transported.
There are certain tactics that the traffickers use, but the criminal enterprise is so large that each situation varies quite a bit. There’s no “one way” that it happens. It could be a beautiful, young girl of a starving family up in the remote areas of Nepal or it could be your upper-class neighbor’s daughter. None of us are immune. The sad part is that not every country has a judicial system in place to effectively enforce laws that prevent this … yet. It certainly makes me appreciate that our Nation was founded on “liberty and justice for all” … definitely something we tend to take for granted!
Here are a few facts:
• Worldwide, there are nearly two million children in the commercial sex trade. (UNICEF)
• There are an estimated 600,000 to 800,000 children, women and men trafficked across international borders annually. (U.S. Department of State)
• Human trafficking is the third most profitable industry in the world, following only drugs and arms trafficking. (U.S. Department of State)
• The total market value of illicit human trafficking is estimated to be in excess of $32 billion. (U.N.)
• More than 80% of trafficking victims are female, and up to 50% are minors. (U.S. Department of State)
• More than 2/3 of sex trafficked children suffer additional abuse at the hands of their traffickers. (Klain, E.J.) 1999.
• Children who are victims of trafficking are more than twice as likely to develop serious mental health problems, including clinical depression, personality disorders, and dissociative disorders. (Klain.) 1999.
