Human Trafficking in South Asia

In India, human trafficking

In India, human trafficking is among the main social problems that have not been adequately addressed by the legal framework and the policy interventions. The dilemma of human trafficking in the country is affecting the sanction norms and the cultural values of the Indians. Human trafficking violates the victim’s human rights due to the attempt to take control over their bodies without their conscience. United Nations defines trafficking as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, receipt or harbouring of people through the use of threat, force and other forms of coercion, deception, abduction, fraud, abuse of power, giving or receiving payments so that one can have control over others with the aim of exploitation. In India, the main target of trafficking in women and children especially ones who are from poor backgrounds (Sarkar, 2014). According to the UN, more than 30 million individuals in Asia have been victims of trafficking of women and children for CSE (Commercialized Sexual Exploitation). India has the largest proportion among the countries in Asia which have a severe problem concerning this issue. The research proposal looks into the human trafficking of women and children in South Asia and specifically India and its relation to the media. It also addresses how women are using the media to address the issue, how the media presents the issue to the public and the solutions to the problem.

Causal factors

One of the factors contributing to the increase in CSE induced human trafficking in India is economic factors. In this, there is widespread poverty in the country, and hence many families are not able to meet their basic needs. Most of the families heads are females, and they do not have any assets due to underemployment, long-term unemployment and the sudden economic shocks in the country thus making it hard for the families to stabilize financially. Increased migration, high unemployment rates, especially in the rural areas, makes many families relocate to places that seem to be better, and this makes them more vulnerable to trafficking. Increasing level of tourism activities in regions such as Kerala and Goa, rising globalization and the income disparities between the people living in the rural areas plus the desire to improve their lives are also factors that contribute to increasing human trafficking in the country. The traffickers usually lure the victims by offering them promises of offering them economic opportunities or kidnap them using force or drugs especially when they are in public settings (Sarkar et al., 2008)

Environmental factors

Environmental factors also contribute to the increase in human trafficking in India due to the lack of sustainable livelihood in the long-term. These factors include; drought for instance in Rajasthan, floods and cyclones, 2004 tsunami and earthquakes in the North Eastern Zones which contributes to the absence of a sustainable livelihood for the people living in these areas in the long-term. Also, the closure of the tea gardens and subsequently laying off in West Bengal also contributed to the suicide of children and women, deaths and some of the women and children were forced to engage in some types of work that are exploitative and trafficking.

Social-cultural factors

Social-cultural factors also promote the increase in the instances of human trafficking of women and children in India. Many women in the country tend to tolerate domestic violence, and a large number of the people do not respect the human rights especially the children and women rights. As a result of this, the victims are pushed to move out of the abusive situations even though they lack economic recourses. Other social-cultural factors which contribute to human trafficking include; caste-related discrimination, coerced early marriages, customary prostitution and gender discrimination whereby men view women as a burden, have few or no economic opportunities and low levels of education. The belief that having sex with women who are virgins is likely to cure sexual dysfunctions and STDs is a great issue. Stigmatization and victimization of the women who are divorced, women and girls who are illegal immigrants in the country and those who are divorced and raped also contributes to the problem (Bagchi, & Sinha, 2016).

Governance issues

The other factor which contributes to increasing human trafficking of women and children in India is governance issues. The civil conflicts, drug trafficking, wars and the strong presence of the armed forces in the country forces many of the women and children to flee the country to avoid the pressure of joining the military, and this exposes them to human trafficking. The laws in the country also tend to ignore the exploitation of the children in their families. Other factors that contribute to this issue include; ineffective policies and initiatives, porous borders and unsafe migration and also law enforcement procedures are inadequate to prevent trafficking and corruption and also bring the people who are involved in trafficking to justice.

Micro-domestic factors

The last factor which contributes to the increase in women and children human trafficking in India is micro-domestic factors. These include; females migrating alone or with their families, single women, women from families that are poverty stricken and females pushed into early marriages. Also prone are the children from families experiencing crises resulting from environmental catastrophes, war and civil unrest, street children and children belonging to victims of trafficking since they are helpless and easy to introduce to it (Bagchi, & Sinha, 2016). Human trafficking trends in India

Human trafficking trends in India

India is considered to be a source, destination as well as a transit county for women and children trafficked with the aim of sexual or labor exploitation. The women in the country get coerced into labor, and at times exposed to conditions that are a slave like in Middle East countries. Children, on the other hand, are usually forced to work as camel jockeys or to beg. Women and children in Bangladeshi are usually trafficked to India or passed through the country as they get transported to Pakistan and the Middle East countries with the aim of domestic servitude, sexual exploitation and instances such as forced labor. Research by UNICEF reveals that there about one million child prostitutes in Asia and among them, the largest number is from India. India is also known for being one of the rapidly growing destinations for the sex tourists from the US, Western Countries and Europe. There is also an increasing rate of trafficking of women and children in the country with the aim of bonded labor, sexual exploitation, indentured servitude and domestic servitude (Huda, 2006).

International and national efforts of preventing women and children trafficking

To fight against women and children trafficking among other organized crimes globally, the United Nations adopted Palermo Convection in 2000. It is a comprehensive international convention against the organized crimes, and it consists of international laws aimed at looking into illegal manufacturing as well as trafficking of firearms and ammunition, women and children trafficking and illegal trafficking and transportation of the migrants. The main aim of this convention is to promote cooperation, prevent as well as combat the transnational crimes in a more effective manner. The main principal areas that the international law addresses to prevent the trafficking of persons both domestically and internationally include; international anti-slavery conventions, international labor law, rights of the child, international anti-prostitution conventions and international human rights law.

India has shown her commitment to the prevention as well as combating of trafficking through being a signatory to the UN protocol put in measures of averting, suppressing and castigating perpetrators of human trafficking. The country thus supplements the UN convention against the Transnational Organized Crime. India has also joined other conventions that are related to this such as (CRC) Conventions of the Rights of the child, (CEDAW) Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and other protocols such as SAARC Convention all aimed at preventing women and children trafficking. The Indian government together with other international organization has adopted some anti-trafficking measures. The constitution of the country is explicitly against forced labor and human trafficking, and thus the two offences are punishable. In article 39(f), the state is responsible for ensuring that its policy directed towards ensuring that children get facilities as well as opportunities to grow healthy and enjoy their freedom and dignity (Nair, & Sen, 2005). The children and the youths should be protected from exploitation and abandonment both morally and materially. The main law that addresses the issue of human trafficking in India is Immoral Traffic Prevention Act of 1956. Other domestic laws such as Indian Penal Code (IPC, 1860) supplement it.

Media and Human Trafficking

The media acts as a window through which the members of the public can obtain information, and it can change the understanding that the members of the public have on important issues in the society such as human trafficking. Journalism is thus supposed to ensure that such issues are well-executed and balanced to avoid the instances of bias and sensationalism from arising. However, in the modern days, many of the news outlets usually prioritize the act of sensationalism when covering trafficking over basing the information offered on facts. The media in India fails when delivering the new stories on human trafficking among women and children in that the news tends to disproportionately dominate the outlets and in most of the cases uses images of women and children that are stylized as an illustration to the stories. The narratives thus bring out stereotypes as well as misconceptions such as trafficking entails the use of restraint or physical force. The act thus tends to go more in empowering the traffickers to continue rather than to offer protection to the victims of human trafficking (Rodrigues, & Ranganathan, 2015).

The people addressing the issue of human trafficking in the society needs to have a clear understanding of the various conditions that intersects hence resulting in the crime. Issues such as political unrest, poverty, natural disasters and domestic turbulences are likely to increase the instances of human trafficking. However, in most of the cases, these stories are usually reduced and attributed to be due to a single cause that is modern-day slavery. As a result of this, the causes of trafficking are left unaddressed, and the creation of awareness to the members of the public is also affected. Exploiting occurs in many ways not only by forcing the victims into acts such as prostitution. The other issue that the media in India fails in when it comes to addressing the issue of human trafficking among women and children is the lack of corroboration. For this reason, many of the cases of human trafficking usually end up undocumented. The media in India needs to come up strongly and bring out the undeniable connection between modern-day slavery and the daily lives of the people. With this, the perpetrators can be held accountable and also the role the consumers, government, and society play unknowingly in the perpetrating of the atrocity can get exposed.

The women use the media to address human trafficking through creating awareness to ensure that the society is informed, to promote transparency and also to catalyze the social pressure. All of these aspects are very crucial in addressing the issue of human trafficking as they will increase the rate of exposure as well as the traction and visibility needed in the public discourse. Women are working towards ensuring that the media prioritize the creation of awareness on the issue of human trafficking among women and children to ensure that the people are sensitized on the issue and ensure that the perpetrators of the act are exposed and charged for violation of the laws in the country.

The other way in which women should use the media to address the issue of human trafficking in India is emphasizing the need for the news outlets to prioritize the safety as well as the privacy of the subjects who are involved. The victims of human trafficking usually remain vulnerable even after freeing them from direct oppression. The women should thus emphasize the media to exercise discretion when handling personal information of the victims. The media should ensure that the anonymity of the victims is put first since it is difficult to reintegrate them into society and there are high chances of them being re-victimized (Women Like Us Foundation, 2017).

Conclusion

To sum up, one of the solutions that need to be adopted to end human trafficking in India among women and children is putting in place strong laws against it. The central government of India should be committed to fighting this vice through making improvements on the legislation to ensure that the offenders prosecuted. Launching of new administrative cells should take place, and an action plan developed to fight trafficking. The organizations formed should work hand in hand with the NGO’s to ensure effectiveness in the destruction and exposure of the networks involved in human trafficking. The other solution that India needs to implement to fight against women and children trafficking in the country is the creation of awareness, educating the people and putting in place measures to eradicate poverty. More efforts should be put in place to ensure the creation of awareness on human trafficking and work toward fostering love and respect for women and children in the different areas in the country. The NGOs should also be fully supported regarding financing, fighting corruption, ensuring political commitment and also protecting them from organized crimes which are likely to interrupt their goodwill activities (Spires, 2015). The other solution to trafficking among children in India is encouraging the businesses operating in the country not to use child labor and put in place strict measures for dealing with law violations. The business of child trafficking tends to flourish in areas where the demand for child labor is high. Trade organizations should thus be sensitized to avoid this as they may face heavy legal charges. Locals should also be encouraged to report businesses that are engaging in child labor practices.

References

Bagchi, S., & Sinha, A. (2016). Human Trafficking in India: Theoretical Perspectives with special reference to the Human Trafficking scenarios in The North Eastern Part of India. International Journal of Research in Economics and Social Sciences (IJRESS).

http://euroasiapub.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/10ESSSept-4027-1.pdf

Huda, S. (2006). Sex Trafficking in South Asia. International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics. Retrieved from https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1016/j.ijgo.2006.04.027

Nair, P. & Sen, S. (2005). Trafficking in women and children in India. New Delhi: Orient Longman.

Rodrigues, U. & Ranganathan, M. (2015). Indian news media: from observer to participant. Los Angeles: SAGE.

Sarkar, K., Bal, B., Mukherjee, R., Chakraborty, S., Saha, S., Ghosh, A., & Parsons, S. (2008). Sex-trafficking, Violence, Negotiating Skill, and HIV Infection in Brothel-based Sex Workers of Eastern India, Adjoining Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh. Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition,

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Sarkar, S. (2014). Rethinking Human Trafficking in India: Nature, Extent and Identification of Survivors. The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs. Retrieved from  https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00358533.2014.966499

Spires, R. (2015). Preventing human trafficking: education and NGOs in Thailand. Farnham, Surrey, England Burlington, VT: Ashgate.

Women Like Us Foundation, (2017). Human Trafficking and the role that the media has to play. Retrieved from http://www.womenlikeusfoundation.org/the-latest/2017/8/31/human-trafficking-and-the-role-that-the-media-has-to-play