When trafficked for sexual exploitation, women are subjected to extraordinary physical, sexual and psychological violence which puts them acutely at risk for developing not just short-term physical ailments but also lasting mental illness that can profoundly alter their ability to…
Anti-trafficking activism has greatly increased since the adoption of the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children in 2000.[1] Anti-trafficking efforts have attracted millions of dollars in funding and the activity of a…
Compared with the estimated number of trafficked persons, the number of criminal prosecutions of trafficking offences is exceedingly low. Globally, there were just over 11,000 prosecutions in 2018, of which just 4% related to labour trafficking.[i] Despite a well-ratified legal…
Vietnam is one of the top source countries for those who are smuggled and trafficked into Europe. The majority are young men and boys from a handful of central-north and northern provinces who undertake the long and dangerous journey primarily…
Due to its position along traditional migration routes through West Africa, mixed flows of migrants and asylum seekers have historically passed through northern Niger. These mixed movements contained migrants searching for employment elsewhere in the region and a range of…
Oaths play a crucial role in Nigerian trafficking networks. By sealing the pact between women who want to migrate to Europe and their traffickers, oaths strengthen the ties between women and their traffickers, their family and the spirit world. Through…
Factors that make migrants vulnerable to exploitation – while on the move or at their place of destination – include displacement and insecurity, lack of legal status, insufficient awareness of rights and potential risks, and inability to understand the language…
Some of the most devastating consequences of COVID-19 will be in the developing world. Among the most vulnerable are refugees, 85% of whom live in low and middle-income countries. Within refugee camps, self-isolation and social distancing measures are nearly impossible…
Like most countries around the world, Uganda has not been immune to COVID-19, and the situation in Arua Municipality highlights some of the most challenging lockdown issues affecting refugees. The district in which Arua Municipality is located hosts more than…
In mid-May 2020, two cases of COVID-19 were reported in the Cox’s Bazar refugee camp in Bangladesh. The news caused great concern because of the potentially devastating implications. Several features characterising the living conditions of forcibly displaced persons can facilitate…