sea_traffickingforsexualexploitationvictimprotectionininternationalanddomesticasylumlaw_unhcr_april2011.pdf

It is extremely difficult to assess the worldwide scale of human trafficking because of the clandestine nature of the crime. The UN Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that there are, at a minimum, approximately 2.5 million victims of human trafficking at any given time.

According to the UNODC, approximately 79 per cent of all human trafficking is for the purpose of sexual exploitation, while the ILO estimates that 98 per cent of the people trafficked for sexual exploitation are women and girls.

Women fall victim to trafficking for many reasons. Primarily, they search out work in wealthier countries and are promised jobs as waitresses or nannies and are subsequently forced into sexually exploitative situations upon arrival in the country of destination.

It is unquestionable that inequality and economic disadvantage play a prominent role in rendering people vulnerable
to trafficking.

An equally important contributing factor is the ability to draw vast profits from the exploitation of humans and the relatively low risk of being held accountable for these crimes.

The ILO estimates that illicit profits from forced labour total almost $32 billion a year, of which an estimated 67 per cent is derived from the sex industry.

The US State Department has gathered statistics on the total number of trafficking-related prosecutions and convictions around
the globe. In 2008 there were 5,212 prosecutions and 3,427 convictions, relatively insignificant numbers.

It is often asked why trafficking victims do not attempt to escape from the exploitative situations in which they find themselves. This is largely because traffickers use a variety of methods to manipulate and control their victims, including:

• deception, including offers of employment abroad which result in forced prostitution, or statements indicating that the victim will be punished by national law enforcement or immigration authorities if they find out about her presence in
  the country;
• the use of violence or the threat of violence against the victim or the victim's family members, as well as imprisonment and/or isolation;
• the use of debt bondage; for example, charging the victim for transport, food and lodging costs, as well as charging exorbitant interest on money allegedly owed to traffickers; and
• the use of religious or cultural beliefs, including witchcraft and voodoo, to maintain control over the victim.
  

A recent case in Los Angeles involving the forced prostitution of young women and girls from Guatemala illustrates how traffickers combine such methods so as to ensure control of their victims:

"Evidence showed that the defendants intimidated and controlled their victims by threatening to beat them and kill their loved ones in Guatemala if they tried to escape. Some defendants also used witchdoctors to threaten the girls that a curse would be placed on them and their families if they tried to escape. At least two of the defendants further restrained the victims by locking them in at night and blocking windows and doors. The defendants also used manipulation of debts, verbal abuse and psychological manipulation to reinforce their control over the victims. The scheme included strict controls over the victims' work schedules and ominous comments about consequences that befell the families of other victims who attempted to escape."