1. Introduction

The crime of trafficking in persons is a serious and grave violation of human rights. Women and children are the most common victims, and every year, thousands of them fall into the hands of traffickers, both in their own countries and abroad. Trafficking affects almost every country in the world, whether as a country of origin, transit, or destination for the victims. It is the third largest source of profit for organized crime, following arms and drug trafficking, and generates billions of dollars annually at the global level. Victims are trafficked for various reasons, including begging, organ trade, drug smuggling, bonded labour, domestic work, agricultural labour, construction work, carpet industry, forced prostitution, sex tourism, pornography, and even for entertainment and sports, such as beer bars, camel jockey, and circus troops.

Human Trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of people through force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them for profit. Men, women and children of all ages and from all backgrounds can become victims of this crime, which occurs in every region of the world. The traffickers often use violence or fraudulent employment agencies and fake promises of education and job opportunities to trick and coerce their victims.[1]

2. What is Human Trafficking?

Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation. Human trafficking can occur within a country or trans-nationally. It is distinct from people smuggling, which is characterized by the consent of the person being smuggled.[2]

Human trafficking is condemned as a violation of human rights by international conventions, but legal protection varies globally. The practice has millions of victims around the world.[3]

Definition:

• Generally human trafficking is defined as the unlawfulact of transporting or coercing people in order to benefit from their work or service, typically in the form of forced labour or sexual exploitation.

• The UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, defines human trafficking as: "Trafficking in persons" shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs... The consent of a victim of trafficking in persons to the intended exploitation set forth [above] shall be irrelevant where any of the means set forth [above] have been used.[4]

3. Types of Human Trafficking

Trafficking arrangements can take on the form of a work contract, but with little or no payment, or under terms that are highly exploitative. They may also take on the form of debt bondage, where the victim is not allowed or able to pay off the debt. It can also involve providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage, or the extraction of organs or tissues, including for surrogacy and ova removal.

Human trafficking is often broken into two broad categories – sex trafficking and labor trafficking.  In reality, sex trafficking is also a form of forced labor and labor trafficking, however they are often treated and discussed as distinct from each other.

The different types of trafficking are:

• Child Trafficking: Trafficking of children involves the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of children for the purpose of exploitation. Commercial sexual exploitation of children can take many forms, including forcing a child into prostitution or other forms of sexual activity or child pornography. Child exploitation may also involve forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude, the removal of organs, illicit  international adoption, trafficking for early marriage, recruitment as child soldiers, for use in begging or as athletes (such as child camel jockeys or football trafficking).[5]

• Sex Trafficking and Child Sex Trafficking: Sex trafficking is when an individual engages in a commercial sex act as a result of force, fraud, or coercion. If the individual is under the age of eighteen, any commercial sex act is considered trafficking even if there is no force, fraud, or coercion.  Sexual exploitation occurs in various settings, including (but not limited to) brothels, strip clubs, massage parlors, on the street (sometimes coined “track”), or in private homes. Individuals can be trafficked domestically and across international borders. According to the ILO, 6.3 million individuals are exploited for sex. Over half of all children in forced labour are in commercial sexual exploitation. Women and children are the most common victims found to be trafficked for sex, but men and boys are also trafficked for sex.  LGBT identifying individuals, especially transgender individuals, have increasingly been found to be victims of sexual exploitation. Accurate numbers for LGBT identifying individuals and for men and boys who have been sex trafficked are hard to find. For the LGBT community there is a lack of focused research. Men and boys who are victims of sex trafficking often do not come forward due to the social and cultural stigmas in most communities around the world.[6]

• Forced Marriage: Forced marriage refers to a union in which one or both parties are married against their will, without their freely given consent. Such marriages are considered a violation of human rights and are often associated with coercion, violence, and abuse. In contrast, servile marriage denotes a form of marriage that involves an individual being sold, transferred, or inherited into that marriage, often against their will. This practice is also considered a violation of human rights and is illegal in many countries. It is essential to recognize and address forced and servile marriages as they pose a significant threat to the personal autonomy, safety, and well-being of those involved.

According to ECPAT, "Child trafficking for forced marriage is simply another manifestation of trafficking and is not restricted to particular nationalities or countries".[7]

• Labour Trafficking: Labour trafficking refers to the act of moving individuals for the purpose of exploiting their labor and services against their will. This can include bonded labor, domestic servitude, involuntary servitude, and child labor. Labour trafficking is most common in the fields of domestic work, agriculture, construction, manufacturing, and entertainment. Migrant workers and indigenous people are at a higher risk of becoming victims. People smuggling is a related practice where the person being smuggled provides consent. However, these situations can quickly turn into human trafficking through coercion and exploitation. For instance, smugglers may traffic people for their labor, such as in the transportation industry.

• Debt Bondage: Debt bondage is a type of forced labor where an individual is obligated to work to repay a debt. The Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery defines debt bondage as a condition that arises when a debtor pledges their personal services or those of someone under their control as security for a debt. If the value of those services is not reasonably assessed and applied towards the repayment of the debt or if the length and nature of those services are not respectively limited and defined, it is considered as debt bondage.

The ILO estimates that One-fifth of people in forced labour exploitation are in situations of debt bondage. While the global estimates point to the occurrence of debt bondage across all sectors, its relative importance varies considerably from one to another. Debt bondage is most prominent in mining, agriculture, and construction, where 43%, 31%, and 27%, respectively, of all forced labour cases involve debt bondage.  Debt bondage is also known as peonage, debt slavery, or bonded labor.[8]

• Organ Trade: Organ trafficking is a form of human trafficking that manifests in several ways. In some cases, the victim is coerced into relinquishing an organ, while in others, the victim consents to selling an organ in exchange for remuneration but receives less than promised or nothing at all. In yet other instances, the victim's organ is removed without their knowledge or consent, typically while undergoing medical treatment for a genuine or fabricated ailment. This type of exploitation disproportionately affects vulnerable populations, such as migrant workers, individuals experiencing homelessness, and those with limited literacy. It is paramount to raise awareness about organ trafficking and to implement measures to combat this egregious violation of human rights.

• Involuntary domestic servitude: Involuntary domestic servitude occurs when a domestic worker becomes ensnared in an exploitative situation that he or she is not free to leave. Typically occurring in private homes, the individual is forced to work for little or no pay while confined to the boundaries of their employer’s property. These workers may experience confiscation of travel documents; threats of arrest or deportation; isolation from family or any other type of support network; and subjection to psychological, physical, and sexual abuse.[9]

• Fraud Factories: Most fraud factories operate in Southeast Asia (including Cambodia, Myanmar, or Laos), and are typically run by a criminal gang. Fraud factory operators lure foreign nationals to scam hubs, where they are forced to scam internet users around the world into fraudulently buying cryptocurrencies or withdrawing cash, via social media and online dating apps. Trafficking victims' passports are confiscated, and they are threatened with organ theft, organ harvesting or forced prostitution if they do not scam sufficiently successfully.[10]

4. Current Human Trafficking Statistic in World

World Bank (2022) verify that economic shocks are significant risk factors that increase vulnerability to human trafficking. The report shows that economic vulnerabilities in origin countries—especially those caused by global commodity price shocks— are strongly positively correlated with observed cases of trafficking.[11]

IOM, ILO, and WFF have provided prevalence estimates of various forms of slavery-related abuse, including forced labour, forced marriage, forced recruitment into armed groups and human trafficking among Internally Displaced People (IDPs) and their families. This report was published in 2023, and it focuses on Nigeria, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). 

Global Estimates of Modern Slavery: Forced Labour and Forced Marriage, this is a global estimate of the prevalence of the human-trafficking-related crimes of forced labour and forced marriage, produced by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), IOM and the Walk Free Foundation (WFF). The 2022 report estimates that 50 million people were victims of modern slavery in any given day in 2021. Out of these, an estimated 27.6 million people were in situations of forced labour and another 22 million people were in a forced marriage.[12]

According to the CTDC dataset, the proportion of identified cases of trafficking for forced labour is generally higher than trafficking for sexual exploitation. The share of identified cases of trafficking for forced labour increased between 2007 and 2014; decreased between 2014 and 2019; and increased again between 2019 and 2021.[13]

Despite increased international attention and resources from states and other non-governmental institutions, the number of people falling victim to human trafficking around the world continues to grow. Between 2008 and 2019 the number of human trafficking victims identified worldwide more than quadrupled from around 30,000 to nearly 120,000. With the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of trafficking victims fell as travel restrictions made human trafficking more difficult, but were back at pre-pandemic levels in 2022. However, trafficking in persons is an illegal practice that is shaded in secrecy, and it is therefore nearly impossible to measure it in its entirety.[14]

5. Laws against Human Trafficking

UNODC offers practical help to all countries, not only to draft laws and create comprehensive national strategies but also assisting with resources to implement them. The adoption in 2000 by the United Nations General Assembly of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking In Persons, Especially Women and Children, marked a significant milestone in international efforts to stop the trade in people.

The Protocol:

• provides the first internationally agreed definition of trafficking in persons;
• requires countries to criminalize trafficking in persons;
• creates a framework for assisting and protecting victims; and

In January 2008, 117 States had signed the Protocol and 116 countries had ratified it. However, implementing the Protocol into reality remains problematic. Very few criminals are convicted and most victims are probably never identified or assisted. As the custodian of the Protocol, UNODC seeks to address these issues through its Global Programme against Trafficking in Human Beings.

• Human trafficking legislation in different countries of the world:
  • The Trade Facilitation and Enforcement Act of 2015[15]allows for stiffer enforcement by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency of supply chains of goods made by child or forced labor.  The Act enables ICE to investigate the production of any good reported to be a product of child or forced labor and ban the goods from entry into the U.S.

• The National Defense Authorization Act[16](2013) requires a written certification for all grants and contracts over $500,000 that no party involved will engage in or support human trafficking.  It also gives governmental agencies the ability to terminate, without penalty, any contract or grant with any organization or individual that engages in human trafficking.  

• The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act[17] of 2008 (TVPRA of 2008) expanded anti trafficking prevention strategies and expanded protections available with the T Visa. It also regulated that all unaccompanied alien children be screened as potential victims of human trafficking.

• The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005[18](TVPRA of 2005) established a pilot program for sheltering human trafficking victims who are minors and provided grant programs to assist state and local law enforcement combat trafficking. It also included provisions to combat sex tourism and regulated government contracts to ensure they are not made with individuals or organizations that promote or engage in human trafficking.

• The Trafficking Victims Protection Act[19](TVPA) of 2000 established methods of prosecuting traffickers, preventing human trafficking, and protecting victims and survivors of trafficking. The act establishes human trafficking and related offenses as federal crimes. It established the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, which is required to publish a Trafficking In Persons (TIP) report each year. The TIP report describes and ranks the efforts of countries to combat human trafficking. The act also established the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, which assists in the implementation of the TVPA.  It provides for restitution for victims and immigration relief through the T Visa.[20]

• Laws against Human trafficking in India
  • Indian Penal Code[21]: There are around 25 provisions for trafficking but some of the significant among them are as below-
• Section 366A[22]- Inducing any minor girl under the age of eighteen years to go to any such place with intent to forced or seduced illicit intercourse with another person shall be a punishable offence.
• Section 366B[23]- Importing any girl under twenty-one years with the intent that she will be, forced or seduced to illicit intercourse with another person is a punishable offence.
• Section 370[24]- Defines the offence of Trafficking of Persons
• Section 374[25]- Punishes any person who for unlawfully compels any person to labour against his will.

• Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956[26]: The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 is the primary legislation for the prevention of sexual exploitation for women and girls. The word “Trafficking” is defined only by the Goa Children’s Act, 2003[27], which is a state law. Thus, while the ITPA is the main legislation related to the commercial sexual exploitation of children, it does not define trafficking.

Offences specified are:

• Keeping a brothel or allowing premises to be used as a brothel
• Living on the earnings of prostitution
• Attempting, procuring or taking person for the sake of prostitution
• Detaining any person in premises for prostitution
• Prostitution in the vicinity of public places
• Seduction of a person in custody

• Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986[28]: The Act prohibits employment of children below specific age and in certain specified occupations. It also imposes punishment for the employment of minor children.

• Information Technology Act, 2000[29]: The act penalises transmission of any such material in electronic form which is inappropriate and lascivious. This act also addresses the problem of pornography.

• Section 67A[30]- Punishes publication or transmission of material containing sexually explicit act in electronic form.
• Section 68B[31]- Punishes publication or transmission of material depicting children in sexual explicit act in electronic form.

• Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000[32]: The law is relevant for children who are vulnerable and are therefore likely to be the victim of trafficking. It protects juveniles in need of care and protection.

6. Conclusion

The notion of human trafficking remains ambiguous, even in contemporary times, leading to uncertainty among the general populace. It is incumbent upon governmental, media, and educational entities to collaborate in disseminating relevant information and creating awareness about this issue. Educating the vulnerable segments of society is especially important in this regard.

Even though, in India there are several provisions against human trafficking, there is no one comprehensive and complete law which would deal with all types of human trafficking and the protection of victims.[33]

[1] United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes, “Human Trafficking” available at: https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-Trafficking/Human-Trafficking.html (last visited on October 17,2023)

[2] “Human trafficking” available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking (last visited on October 17, 2023)

[3] Supra note 2

[4] Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protocol_to_Prevent,_Suppress_and_Punish_Trafficking_in_Persons,_Especially_Women_and_Children (last visited on October 17, 2023)

[5] Supra note 2

[6] Types of trafficking, available at: https://humantraffickingsearch.org/types-of-trafficking/ (last visited on October 17, 2023)

[7] Supra note 2

[8] Supra note 6

[9] Supra note 6

[10] Supra note 2

[11] Migration data portal: human trafficking; available at: https://www.migrationdataportal.org/themes/human-trafficking#:~:text=The%202022%20report%20estimates%20that,were%20in%20a%20forced%20marriage. (last visited on October 17, 2023)

[12] Supra note 11

[13] Supra note 11

[14] Human trafficking - Statistics Facts, available at: https://www.statista.com/topics/4238/human-trafficking/#editorsPicks (last visited on October 17, 2023)

[15] The Trade Facilitation and Enforcement Act of 2015, (Public Law No. 114-125)(Feb 24,2016)

[16] H.R.4310 - National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013,(Public Law No. 112-239)(January 2, 2013)

[17] William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008(Public Law No: 110-457) (December 23, 2008)

[18] Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (Public law No: 109-164) (January 10, 2006)

[19] Victims of Trafficking  and Violence Protection Act of 2000, (Public law No:106-386) (October 28, 2000)

[20] Human Trafficking Legislation,  available at: https://www.americanbar.org/groups/human_rights/human-trafficking/trafficking-legislation/ (last visited on October 18,2023)

[21] The Indian Penal Code, 1860; (Act No. 45 of  1860)

[22] Id., s.366A

[23] Id., s.366B

[24] Id., s.370

[25] Id., s.374

[26] The Immoral  Trafficking (Prevention) Act, 1956; (Act No. 104 of 1956)

[27] The Goa Children’s Act, 2003; ( Goa Act No. 18 of  2003)

[28] The Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act;(Act No. 61 of  1986)

[29] The Information Technology Act, 2000; (Act No. 21 of  2000)

[30] Id., s.67A

[31] Id., s.68B

[32] The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000; ( Act No. 56 of  2000)

[33] Anuli, “ Human Trafficking Laws in India”, available at: https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-3245-human-trafficking-laws-in-india-.html (last visited on October 18, 2023)