An Introduction to Human Trafficking - United Nations Office on ...

AN INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING: VULNERABILITY, IMPACT AND ACTION
Do prevention programmes as currently implemented address all the potential areas of
vulnerability addressed in the <strong>Trafficking</strong> Pro<strong>to</strong>col? If so, have they been effective? It is hard
<strong>to</strong> answer these questions because the evaluation of trafficking prevention programmes in
general remains limited. 16 Furthermore, most programmes focus on trafficking for sexual
exploitation despite the growing recognition of trafficking for forced and bonded labour,
among others. 17 One measure of effectiveness is that laws have been enacted. In some cases,
perpetra<strong>to</strong>rs have been brought <strong>to</strong> justice. Most importantly, some individuals have been
helped. However, it is not possible <strong>to</strong> say with certainty that fewer vulnerable individuals are
being trafficked.
Although broad categories of prevention programmes include awareness-raising and
education, employment, empowerment and community life, crisis prevention, safe migration
and job-vetting activities, demand reduction and policies and legislation regarding
prevention, 17 in practice these activities tend <strong>to</strong> be focused on the development of smalland
large-scale public awareness campaigns directed at potential victims of trafficking. 18
Awareness-raising activities have predominantly taken the form of large- and small-scale
public education and awareness campaigns, usually aimed at individuals/social groups
considered <strong>to</strong> be at risk of being trafficked. There has also been a recent increase in
awareness campaigns directed at men, the clients of women trafficked for prostitution. For
initiatives funded by the <strong>United</strong> States Government, assistance is generally aimed <strong>to</strong>
enhance efforts <strong>to</strong> prevent human trafficking through public awareness, outreach,
education efforts and advocacy campaigns. 19
Public awareness campaigns are developed on the premise that increased awareness of potential
harm will help an individual <strong>to</strong> choose an alternative course of action. Although efforts
<strong>to</strong> evaluate such programmes indicate that target audiences report an increase in knowledge,
no studies have shown that they actually influence choices, in large part because they are
not able <strong>to</strong> provide potential trafficked persons with viable alternatives. A telling illustration
of this was provided by an NGO outreach worker in a large Western European city, who
asked several trafficked youth whether or not they had been warned about the dangers of
accepting foreign job offers. One young person responded, “Yes, but the nightmare I don’t
know is preferable <strong>to</strong> the nightmare I live every day at home.” 20
16
The challenges of evaluating anti-trafficking programmes are documented in numerous reports and studies (see
Ruth Rosenberg and others, Best Practices for Programming <strong>to</strong> Prevent <strong>Trafficking</strong> in <strong>Human</strong> Beings in Europe and Eurasia
(Bethesda, Maryland, Development Alternatives Inc., 2004) and Asia Foundation and Horizons Project Population
Council, Prevention of <strong>Trafficking</strong> and the Care and Support of Trafficked Persons: in the Context of an Emerging HIV/AIDS
Epidemic in Nepal (Kathmandu, Creative Press, February 2001)).
17
Rosenberg and others, op. cit., p. 2.
18
Discussions of the prevalence of awareness-raising campaigns within the broader context of prevention can
be found in numerous sources (see Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, <strong>Office</strong> of the Special
Representative and Coordina<strong>to</strong>r for Combating <strong>Trafficking</strong> in <strong>Human</strong> Beings, From Policy <strong>to</strong> Practice … and Rosenberg
and others, op. cit.).
19
<strong>United</strong> States of America, Government Accountability <strong>Office</strong>, <strong>Human</strong> <strong>Trafficking</strong>: Moni<strong>to</strong>ring …, p. 7.
20
Author’s notes.
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