Preventing human trafficking.

Byline: Irfan Nawaz

HUMAN trafficking is a serious crime and amongst the fastest growing areas of international crime activity. It is unlawful act and grave violation of human rights. Its existence in almost every country of the world cannot deny but its nature and intensity may be different. Pakistan is also striving to prevent and control human trafficking. Due to insufficient empirical evidences, it is difficult to know the current magnitude and trends of human trafficking in the country. However, Article 3, paragraph (a) of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons defines Human trafficking as 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. Human trafficking is a multidimensional phenomenon which is often influenced by socio-economic, cultural and other factors. The casual analysis of human trafficking unveiled that unsatisfactory local condition, meager financial resources, oppression, insufficient socio-economic opportunities are major factors in human trafficking. These factors compel the population to migrate for better livelihood. Nevertheless, civil unrest and internal or extend armed conflict causes the massive displacement which leads to the vulnerability of the population.

This vulnerability encourages the exploitation and abuse of population particularly women and children through trafficking and forced labour. When a person, child, women is trafficked, used in different professions. Women and girls work in brothels, massage parlors, or used to produce pornographic materials. They are sexually exploited. Boys are trafficked for labor exploitation. They work in chemicals and pesticides or operation machines on low wages and cannot report the hazardous work environment due to their illegal status in the host country. It is also reported by Human Rights Organizations that children are recruited worldwide by the terrorist for fighting...