Trafficking in Persons

Security sector reform programs restructure police forces to improve how they respond to gender-based violence (GBV). However, significant weaknesses persist in how police officers enforce anti-GBV laws. One area of weakness is the attrition of cases; officers fail to refer the majority of cases to the courts but rather withdraw them at the police station...

Child trafficking, under the guise of intercountry adoption, is a form of human trafficking that is often misunderstood by policy makers, governments, the media, and nongovernmental organizations. The aim of this analysis is to bring awareness and attention to child trafficking disguised as inter-country adoption, to provide an analysis of current policies...

One of the most challenging problems facing researchers is the fact that most of the populations relevant to the study of human trafficking, such as victims/survivors of trafficking for sexual exploitation, traffickers, or illegal migrants are part of a “hidden population”, i.e. it is almost impossible to establish a sampling frame and draw a representative...

The original aim of this review was to collect and synthesize prevalence data. However, as will be discussed, in reviewing the literature it is evident that the current definitions and methods used to measure sex trafficking and sexual exploitation are too heterogeneous to synthesize in a meta-analysis. Instead, this review aims to inform future policy...

The 2018 Global Slavery Index measures the extent of modern slavery country by country, and the steps governments are taking to respond to this issue, to objectively measure progress toward ending modern slavery. The Index draws together findings from across estimates of prevalence, measurement of vulnerability, and assessment of government responses...

Human trafficking is a form of serious exploitation and abuse that is increasingly present in the UN peacekeeping environments. Trafficking exploits human beings for revenue through sex, forced labour and human organs. For peacekeeping (UN and other) there is a crisis of perception in relation to trafficking and the linked issue of sexual exploitation and...

This article addresses sex trafficking committed by the terrorist group Da’esh in the Syrian Arab Republic and its neighboring Republic of Iraq. It proposes primarily that sex trafficking perpetrated by Da’esh falls into at least two unique categories of trafficking — “combat trafficking” and “institutional trafficking” — that require markedly different...

Law enforcement officials play a key role in society, serving and protecting the people and upholding the law. That role is valid at all times, including during armed conflicts and other situations of violence. By engaging in dialogue with police and security forces about the law and their operations, the ICRC supports their efforts to incorporate the rules...

The purpose of this guidance note is to provide Humanitarian Coordinators (HCs) with a specific, clear and field-oriented tool to facilitate the integration of human rights into humanitarian action, and to outline the role of the HC in this context. It is hoped that the guidance note will also facilitate and encourage agencies to clarify their role vis-à-vis...

The findings of the report are the results of a wide-ranging, multistakeholder process that included participation by young people. Despite the considerable achievements of the past 10 years, challenges remain. According to 2006 estimates, more than 1 billion children under the age of 18 were living in areas in conflict or emerging from war. Of these, an...

These Guidelines address implementation of the Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism (MRM) on grave violations against children in situations of armed conflict under Security Council Resolutions 1612 (2005), 1882 (2009), 1998 (2011) 2068 (2012), and 2143 (2014). They describe the purpose and focus of the mechanism; specify the leadership, roles and...

In 2016, the Office of the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (OSR/CTHB) launched the project “Combating Human Trafficking along Migration Routes”. The project sought to develop a training exercise that would improve the investigation and prosecution of cases and enhance the identification and protection of...

The course is structured to move from understanding and knowledge to action, with the vital intermediary stage of planning. It is organized into three textbooks (and a related exercise book): Textbook 1 covers understanding of child trafficking, and aims to cover the main concepts involved so that there is clarity and common understanding but also so that...

This report is one of several studies conducted by UNODC on organized crime threats around the world. These studies describe what is known about the mechanics of contraband trafficking – the what, who, how, and how much of illicit flows – and discuss their potential impact on governance and development. Their primary role is diagnostic, but they also explore...

In a medical context, first aid is the kind of emergency care given to an injured or ill person before treatment by specifically trained medical personnel becomes available. People providing first aid take first steps to identify problems and to stabilize and prepare patients for further treatment by experts.Law enforcement first responders fighting human...

Trafficking in persons constitutes a grave crime against the individual. The absence of comprehensive data presents a major issue, including in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. Many cases go unreported as victims are too afraid to testify, cannot escape exploitation, are expelled once identified or do not seek official protection. Trafficking...

Today, nearly 250 million children are living in countries and areas affected by conflict. An untold number of children are now living in communities besieged by conflict and often cut off from sufficient humanitarian aid. And far too many children have been recruited, forced into, or otherwise used by armed groups. Around the world, millions of children...

Hundreds of thousands of children are associated with armed forces and armed groups in conflicts around the world. Girls and boys are used in a variety of ways from support roles, such as cooking or portering, to active fighting, laying mines or spying and girls are frequently used for sexual purposes. This recruitment and use of children violates their...

Efforts to counter the COVID-19 pandemic have seen unprecedented restrictions on movement being imposed in many countries, both at borders and within countries. Some communities and policymakers have adopted increasingly hostile attitudes towards migrants, whom they perceive as contagion risks. Barriers to movement are therefore not only state-imposed but...

The current refugee “crisis” in Europe has created multiple forms of vulnerability and insecurity for refugee women including various forms of sexual and gender-based violence. Increasing numbers of women, either alone or with family, are attempting to reach Europe to seek protection from conflict and violence in their countries, but these women are subject...