Rwanda National Police

BY SSP C MURIGO

Human trafficking is a worldwide epidemic that deprives women, men and children of their basic rights each day. It has been recognized as one of the fastest growing crimes in the world that profits from the exploitation and victimization of human beings and undermines national economies and human safety.

Virtually, all countries are affected either as the source, transit, destination or a combination thereof.

Over the last decades, human trafficking has captured significant attention worldwide and raised awareness on the different forms of exploitation and its consequences.

While it is clear that the global community is committed to counter human trafficking, there is still much to be done to eradicate this crime.

The multifaceted and clandestine trafficking in human beings poses a challenge to effective prevention, victim protection and perpetrators’ prosecution related measures, and policies.

Its linkages with illegal migration, labor issues and health problems underline the complexity of the problem and demand different approaches from all actors.

It is crucial now more than ever, for actors at the international, regional and local levels to cooperate, coordinate and share the responsibility in the fight against human trafficking. Law enforcers, local and national governments, international organizations and non-governmental organizations are among the key actors at the forefront of this fight.
 
In particular, local governments play a significant role in reducing the vulnerability of potential victims, providing support and assistance to presumed and current victims and implementing development strategies that address the root causes of trafficking, all in alignment with international human rights standards.

No one knows the true numbers, but even conservative estimates suggest that at least 2.5 million children, women, and men are lured or forced across international borders every year and many more are trafficked within their home countries and put to work against their will, often under deplorable and unsafe conditions, held captive by physical, psychological, or financial threats.

Human trafficking, as it is defined by international law, subsumes all forms of nonconsensual exploitation.

That is, whenever people are forced or lured into exploitation, no matter if movement of victims is involved, it is considered human trafficking.

Since nonconsensual exploitation is usually illegal, fighting nonconsensual exploitation falls mostly in the arena of criminal justice.

There is, however, a large overlap with consensual exploitation, namely when economic vulnerabilities force victims to accept exploitative work arrangements.

The fight against human trafficking has been hampered by the lack of a common vocabulary and framework for discussing the problem.

The term exploitation is used as the overarching theme that subsumes all forms of human trafficking, slavery, forced labor, bonded labor, child labor, forced prostitution, economic exploitation, and so on.

Conceptually, exploitation can take two different forms; nonconsensual and consensual.
Nonconsensual forms of exploitation involve an element of coercion, fraud, or deception; whereas consensual exploitation typically results from a lack of other economic opportunities and leads to the unfair treatment of the exploited.

Many people associate human trafficking with forced prostitution in industrialized countries.

Local and national authorities as well as the citizenry are essential actors in the fight against human trafficking. While national authorities are recognized as key actors to preventing trafficking through national law enforcement and implementation, local authorities and the general public are recognized as crucial for victim protection and support, with the latter considered a key player in information sharing.

The collaboration between local authority staff, immigration officials and police officers also play a crucial role to effectively identify potential victims, provide necessary assistance to current victims to help them undergo the rehabilitation process.

Human trafficking is one of the most extreme forms of exploitation in the modern world that deny women, men and children of their basic rights each day.

Despite the growing concerns expressed by the global community, human trafficking is still considered as low priority within the criminal justice system of many countries. The fight against such a multi-faceted crime is a complex policy arena and law enforcement initiatives cannot solve this issue alone.

It is therefore important for people to beware of its prevalence, double-check and authenticate the "heaven-on-earth" promises by strangers, family members and friends on better offers in Europe and Asia, where majority victims end up.

Talk to people, ask concerned institutions, inform law enforcement agencies and that way you will have taken preventive measures and at the same time facilitate in identifying and bringing to justice these coordinated human trafficking rings.