Good Essay On Do Adequate Strategies Exist To Combat Human Trafficking?

Introduction

Human trafficking is defined as the recruitment, transportation, transfer and receipt of persons by means of threat and other forms of coercion like abduction, deception, fraudulent activities, and the abuse of power, or of a position of vulnerability. It can also be by means of giving and receiving of payments or other benefits to achieve the permission of a person having control over persons, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation may take any of the following forms: prostitution, slavery, forced labor or other forms of servitude. People are abducted or recruited from their country of origin and transferred to a country of destination where they are exploited.
The issue has been a global problem since ancient times, and nations have tried to emancipate it through the United Nations. For example, the reports on ways of curbing the problem have been articulated through the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime, in April 2006. The issues addressed by the nations, among others, are; the implementation of the Protocol to prevent and punish human traffickers (three Ps). The national governments worldwide were called upon to prevent human trafficking, to prosecute the violators, and to protect the victims.

The above question has both positive and negative responses.

YES, selection
Adequate strategies exist to combat human trafficking. United Nations through its Secretary Ban Ki-Moon, has brought their concern into the global domain. It put forward that all forms of human trafficking should be criminalized, and the victims of all forms are protected and prevention of all forms be done. This concept is covered in the Palermo Protocol under the umbrella called "trafficking in persons," and responded through the ‘three Ps.' This is an instrument that the international community and United States came up with to vigorously enforced approach to harm enslavement in all its forms. The Palermo Protocol, more interestingly, has been adopted by 137 countries around the world. In addition, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) was signed into law in the United States under Clinton Administration. The move has, however, helped thousands of the victims, and thousands of traffickers have been arrested and prosecuted. President Obama too has built another ten years of the ‘three Ps' in practice that has provided an assurance for the future protection.
According to the laws set in the protocol, prosecution of the violators alone cannot provide victims with compassion that meet their immediate needs, but they should be assisted to ensure that none of them is victimized. A victim-centered approach allows victims' voices be heard, and not just winning the case. Protecting the victims means setting and applying policies to their best interests (United Nations 234). These interests can be counseling, education, legal services and provision of economic opportunities. Palermo Protocol further described protection to include creation of public awareness campaigns, addressing the root causes and conducting law enforcement-related activities. It holds that the legal policies that should be implemented include birth registration, checking of labor recruiting companies and restricting visas that can be coercive. This helps to protect all the vulnerable groups of people.

NO selection

There are no adequate strategies to combat human trafficking. Despite the increasing awareness of and efforts to curb human trafficking, it remains as a crime that is less risky with high profits. The United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT) has done a lot as much as a war against this heinous act is concerned. But there is need to know more about its nature, the underlying condition, and the profiles of the traffickers and victims as well. Lack of data on severity and nature of this act is still a problem. The available information is often based on estimation and little explanation of how the figures at hand were calculated.
Among those who are reported to be trafficked, most often, adult women are in higher numbers then followed by children. Some of the factors that make people unprotected to trafficking and exploitation is not determined prior this act, but shamefully, the factors are known, but partially after people are already victims (United Nations 236). There are conditions that lead to vulnerabilities in their countries of origin that need to be established. Some of the people are faced with instabilities in their countries of origin like wars and poverty, and they hope to flee to other countries hoping for the better.
Recruiters, transporter, and exploiters carry out some activities during the trafficking process that the governments have tried to overcome but in vain. These activities include forging of corruption, forgery of documents, and withholding of the victims’ documents. With all these activities, it is quite challenging for governments and states to combat human trafficking.

Conclusion

It is evident that despite all the efforts put by all the concerned bodies and governments, traffickers still face little risk in their activity. Challenges facing eradication of this crime that can be addressed include; lack of information, lack of national legal framework, lack of policy and capacity to respond, limited protection and assistance of the victims among others.

Works Cited

Toolkit to Combat Trafficking in Persons. New York: United Nations, 2006. Print.