On the 10th anniversary of World Day Against Human Trafficking, the UN is focusing on child trafficking, recognizing that this issue has not been effectively addressed in recent years.
Yet “children are twice as likely as adults to be victims of violence during trafficking”, reports the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Global Report on Trafficking in Persons. Girls are also disproportionately affected.
Child trafficking takes many forms: sexual exploitation, exploitation through forced labor, trafficking of illegal adoption, recruitment into armed forces, violence, crime, begging and online exploitation. In its “Leave no child behind in the fight against human trafficking” campaign, the UN stresses that the proliferation of online platforms multiplies the risks for children, who do not have all the support and knowledge they need to avoid the pitfalls.
Traffickers, for their part, use all online platforms, social networks and even the “dark Web” to extend their influence, increase their audience and disseminate abusive content in order to recruit and exploit children while escaping detection by the authorities. These traffickers manage to maintain control over their victims by multiplying measures of coercion, threats and deception, thereby limiting government intervention.
States, civil society organizations, the private sector and communities are called upon to play their part in raising awareness, advocating effective policy reforms and setting up and maintaining support services for victims. The UN would also like to see prevention efforts targeting the root causes of the phenomenon, starting with poverty and inequality, with the aim of reducing children’s vulnerability, particularly during population displacements.
Instituted in 2013 by the United Nations, this World Day is meant to raise awareness of the situation of the victims of trafficking which affects all countries. Organizations such as the Committee for Action against Internal and International Human Trafficking (CATHII) in Quebec organize activities to make known the plight of the victims of human trafficking. They also promote the importance of protecting their rights.
It is good to recall that the problem of human trafficking is the subject of a corporate stand of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary (SNJM).
Education can play an important role in raising awareness of the impacts of human trafficking among youth. An educational package for 13-18 year olds has been developed in English, Español and French. It also contains a teacher’s guide and video.
In parallel, the Blue Heart campaign was launched to mobilize public opinion to end human trafficking.