CORRUPTION

Between Criminal Justice and Human Rights
Between Criminal Justice and Human Rights:
Protecting Human Trafficking Victims in Italy Under
International and European Frameworks
Dr. Florinda Monacò
Bar Association of Naples
Trafficking in human beings is a complex transnational phenomenon that benefits on the
one hand from globalization (open borders, free markets, and increasingly sophisticated
technologies), and on the other hand from stricter immigration policies, which have
contributed over time to create an illegal market and economic opportunities for organized
crime. Human trafficking is rooted in countries of origin that face such critical issues as: wars;
poverty; violence and cruel practices against women; child labor; discrimination; and an absence of
democratic cultures, social integration, access to education and opportunities for employment. These
factors motivate affected persons to migrate in search of better living conditions, and this can make it
easy for potential victims of human trafficking to fall prey to criminal organizations. Trafficked persons
are usually illegal migrants who are moved across national borders, exploited, and enslaved. They
are victims of terrible violations of fundamental rights. The majority of human trafficking victims are
women and children, trafficked for forced and exploitative labor, including for sexual exploitation.
According to estimates, trafficking in human beings currently represents one of the biggest sources of
profit for organized crime after drugs and weapons. Trafficked people are forced to live as “invisibles”
out of fear of being arrested and expelled by national authorities due to their illegal statuses. They
may even accept exploitation and violence to prevent retaliations on their families, who are often still
in their country of origin. It stands to reason that human trafficking is an issue not only of criminal law,
but above all, of human rights law, and it is important to tackle it through an integrated and proactive
policy at national, international, and European levels. A proactive policy would involve not only policymakers,
but also civil society and non-governmental organizations both in countries of origin and
in host countries. From this point of view, it is necessary to both prosecute traffickers under stricter
guidelines, and to render effective assistance and protection to victims in order to allow them to
recover.
International Affairs Forum
Before analyzing the Italian system of protection for trafficking victims, it is useful to briefly analyze
the extensive international and European frameworks on human trafficking. Both the European
and international frameworks seem to adopt a three-pronged approach, the so-called “Three Ps”
approach, focusing on the three main aspects of prevention, prosecution, and protection. Great
attention is given to prosecution—we find mandatory obligations only with regard to criminal justice
aspects—but not as much to protection and preventative measures (for which states are free to
decide applicable conditions).
At the end of a long legislative evolution which led to the signing of the 2000 United Nations
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