A Global Alliance Against Forced Labour - International Labour ...

A GLOBAL ALLIANCE AGAINST FORCED LABOURFigure 2.5.12.50Circumstances of exit from employment (sample of 644 returned migrants from Albania,Republic of Moldova, Romania and Ukraine)Forced labour victims2.3614.5313.77Successful migrants3.598.088.781.2018.9210.1813.510.903.0412.8413.5162.28The employer wanted me to goI decided to goI had paid back my debtsI fled without helpI fled with help from someoneAfter a police raid I was arrested and deportedAfter a police raid I was referred to an organizationMy contract endedNo answerSource: SAP-FL.that, of the forced labour victims interviewed, 52 percent exited employment by escaping, being releasedthrough a police raid or only after repaying theirdebts. The fact that some of them (19 per cent, comparedto 62 per cent of successful migrants) endedthe forced labour situation of their own volition becausethey “decided to go” points to some agencyby the victim. Nonetheless, in doing so they riskeddeportation, loss of wages or reprisals against themor family members.279. Victims are reluctant under present circumstancesto denounce forced labour practices to policeor labour inspectors, as they are afraid of deportationand the loss of any wages that might be due tothem. Those irregular migrant workers most likelyto become victims of forced labour are generally wellaware that they have violated immigration laws (andin some countries, anti-prostitution laws as well) andare thus afraid to reveal themselves to the authorities.Law enforcement authorities in turn are insufficientlytrained to recognize possible forced laboursituations and undertake investigations, except by relyingmainly on the testimony of potential victims.While many countries provide some protection toidentified victims of trafficking, this is usually offeredon condition that the victim testify in court. Whereanti-trafficking legislation is still confined to sexualexploitation, victims generally receive no protectionat all against forced labour exploitation. To encouragevictims to denounce forced labour practices, Statescould lower sanctions against migrants in breach ofimmigration regulations (already often done in practice);enlarge the scope of existing victim protectionprogrammes; and foster cooperation between serviceproviders, law enforcement agencies and the socialpartners.280. National law and policy approaches vary withregard to the protection and reintegration of traffickedvictims. Current protection mechanisms in most industrializedcountries tend to cover only women andchildren trafficked for sexual exploitation. Somecountries, such as the United States and Italy, have alreadyamended their legislation to extend protectionto trafficked victims of labour exploitation and forcedlabour. There is growing consensus that all traffickedvictims should be granted a r eflection period followedby a temporary residence permit, if willing totestify in court. Yet such measures do not recognize60