Michael Grasso
December 13, 2009
Y200 - Samuel Brazys
A Violation of every Human right: Sex Trafficking
Human trafficking is a clear and gross violation of Human rights more importantly the rights to security, freedom from torture and freedom from slavery. Sever forms of Human trafficking are roughly defined as “sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age; or … the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision or obtaining of a person for labor services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, dept bondage, or slavery.” (VTPA) Although human trafficking is a general term and can include the trafficking of the purpose of forced labor I will predominantly be focusing on the acts involving sex slavery in my report. The US government estimates some 800,000 to 900,000 people are trafficked across borders each year worldwide. (TROUBNIKOFF-5) Trafficking of woman and children has become a global industry and a transnational criminal phenomenon. Several factors are facilitating the growth of the problem, including the globalization of the world economy, the increase demand for trafficking service in industrialized states, shortage of jobs and opportunities for woman in developing countries and connections with organized crime. To combat this problem sates would need to agree upon an overlapping consensus on what human trafficking is and how to the problem should be handled additionally a treaty needs to be drawn and states need to ratify and
enforced the protection and prevention on human trafficking. Additionally, we need to come to a consensus that human trafficking is an extreme violation of human rights and needs to be eliminated. Thailand and the Market of Human Trafficking
Accounts in Thailand give us evidence to the extent of abuse of human rights that are currently happening around the globe. The article “Trafficking of Burmese Women and Girls into
Brothels in Thailand” provides firsthand accounts of the violations taking place. In connection to the events taking place in Thailand, the trade of woman would involve agents acting on behalf of brothels infiltrating remote villages, usually from neighboring Burma, seeking unsuspecting young female recruits. Agents would tell the girls fantasies of a better life as a working woman in Thailand with good pay and better living conditions. Once the woman or girls brought to Thailand and are confined in the brothels escape is impossible. Attempt to escape risked possible punishment, retribution against their family or arrest as an illegal immigrant. Corrupt police forces usually play a substantial roll in confining and intimidating the woman, often times becoming the brothels best customers. The women face a wide range of abuse, including debt bondage, illegal confinement, forced labor, rape, physical abuse, exposure to HIV/AIDS; and in some cases murder. The women are often forced to work 10 hours a day and 25 days a month. Girls would be forced to take drugs and perform many unprotected sex acts on several customers. Many times the woman targeted are virgins to lower the risk of HIV and infections. Reports have shown that girls as young as 7 have been targeted in the past. Parents give the children up because of low economic status and the belief that the children would be entering a better life. Parents of the Children would receive a cash payment
that would be carried over as debt to the working girl. Debts bondage is slavery-related practice the girl would owe money to the brothel owner and would pay it back as she worked. The little, sometimes nonexistent pay, they make after expenses are taken out by the owners would keep the girls working for years before they ever paid back the debt.
In addition to the gross misconducts of brothel owners, the Thai government did little to
