Each June the United States Department of State releases the Trafficking in Persons Report. The TIP Report is part recap of worldwide successes during the previous calendar year, part update on promising practices, and part diplomacy tool in which countries are measured on the effectiveness of their anti-trafficking efforts. The release of the TIP Report is always eagerly anticipated by anti-trafficking professionals, and those who simply follow the fight against slavery, alike.
Written by the staff of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (aka: G/TIP), the report also includes insightful commentary on promising practices, and the evolution of our understanding of modern-day slavery. These elements of the report make some of the most interesting reading in my estimation; they show our collective progression since the passage of the TVPA, challenge outdated assumptions, and, hopefully, spur us on to develop new tools and techniques to incorporate in our response to this gross violation of human rights.
This year’s report gives us much to think about and to, potentially, debate. In any case, it stretches the mind and makes for a great blog topic! So here, in no particular order, are five things I like from the 2011 Trafficking in Persons Report.
People are Not Collateral (page 24). Victims of trafficking are routinely assumed – wrongly - to come from the lowest socio-economic and educational levels of their respective communities. Too often we paint those who are exploited by traffickers as weak, illiterate, and perhaps too naive to avoid their fate. Yet, according to the report, studies show that the incidence of trafficking in some countries of origin are highest among those who have become empowered, and have some tools (education or skills) with which to seek a better life. These victims are, in many ways, no different from my grandparents who came to America looking for a better life in this nation of potential opportunities. The lure of a job, no matter how simple, is often all that is needed to enslave a human being. Even the smartest of individuals are victims of crime.
Promulgating Business Standards (page 22). The clothes we wear, the food we eat, the products we purchase all have supply chains that need to be examined or monitored to ensure forced or child labor is not involved. From the report: “Given the complexity of today’s supply chains, however, the most effective solutions for ending forced labor will come from collaboration among governments, corporations, civil society, and consumers.” As with all elements of the anti-trafficking response, collaboration is critical. Great things are being done in the area of ethical codes of conduct and corporate social responsibility. If you are interested in this area of response, I suggest you attend the Global Forum on Human Trafficking where, among addressing other anti-trafficking issues, the role of corporations is an important theme.
Techniques of Control Used by Sex Traffickers and Pimps (page 25). It is important to recognize that trafficking victims are controlled through “soft” means more often than “hard” means. The power of psychological coercion is tremendous, often negating the need for locks, barred doors, or barbed wire. Acknowledging these forms of control are important if we are to truly “look beneath the surface” to identify victims, and then move forward with effective investigations and prosecutions. As a society (or a jury) we need to understand the power a trafficker can hold over their prey by simply providing shelter, food, or “love”, to those who cannot find these at home.
New Media for a New Fight (page 35). It is awesome to see the application of social media platforms in the fight against slavery. (Hey, you’re reading my blog, right?) Abolitionists seem to be on the forward edge of utilizing new media for the cause, while I am often dismayed by how long it has taken most law enforcement and many service providers to embrace even the most basic platforms, such as Facebook. Referring to new media, the TIP report states, “…it cannot just be a tool for NGOs and civil society to disseminate information. New media must also be a resource for helping governments strengthen their anti-trafficking efforts.” New ways to apply social media are being developed to fight trafficking and other crimes, and we are limited mostly by institutions lacking the agility to utilize these tools.
Proactive Victim Identification (page 40). This is critical, because the TIP is absolutely correct stating, “Many governments provide training to law enforcement on victim identification and then expect that law enforcement will encounter trafficking victims in the course of their regular duties as though by chance. The reality is far different. Victims typically cannot describe what they’ve been trough in simple language, much less the technical terms of the Palermo Protocol or their national legislation; they rarely self-identify.” Training law enforcement cannot focus simply on the definition of trafficking or elements of the crime; it must stress the necessity for law enforcement to change their cultural view to encompass how people become enslaved – especially when examining the commercial sex trade! Other professionals who have the potential to be first-identifiers of trafficking victims must also be trained to spot the clues of a trafficking situation, and we must all be proactively searching for victims. A survey by the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (CAST) determined that, on average, the trafficking survivors they have served came into contact with over ten individuals who could identified these victims of trafficking had those individuals known how to spot a modern-day slave.
I look forward to discussing this year’s TIP report with my colleagues, since this one-of-a-kind document always spurs discussion, debate, and pushes us all forward in the fight against slavery. This year’s TIP report is one of the best. Kudos to the G/TIP staff and Ambassador CdeBaca.
