Anti-Trafficking in Humanitarian Responses: A Brief Overview and Analysis of Current Practices and Challenges in Addressing Trafficking in Persons Based on Interviews with Protection Cluster and AOR Coordinators

Trafficking in persons (TIP) is a crime and a grave violation of human rights defined in Article 3(a) of the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons. A growing body of research has shown that humanitarian crises may exacerbate pre-existing trafficking trends and give rise to new ones. While some forms of trafficking are a direct result of crises, such as exploitative sexual services demanded by armed groups or the forced recruitment of child soldiers, others are less evident, with traffickers thriving on the widespread human, material, social and economic losses caused by crises. Moreover, conflict and displacement have a stronger impact on trafficking risks due to the general erosion of the rule of law and the breakdown of social safety nets or the lack of other protection systems. Despite the identification of a link between TIP and emergency contexts, trafficking prevention and response is frequently overlooked or not addressed in a comprehensive manner in humanitarian responses.