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Human Trafficking

APF members cooperate closely and share information to identify and respond to the root causes of trafficking.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of people around the world become the victims of trafficking, a widespread, secretive and destructive criminal enterprise that amounts to modern-day slavery.

Lured by promises of jobs and money, victims of trafficking are often intimidated and manipulated into jobs with long hours, dangerous conditions and poor or non-existent pay. They can become virtual prisoners, unable to escape because of fear of violence, prison or deportation.

The vast majority of trafficked persons come from poor communities and have limited opportunities for education or employment.

Women and children are especially vulnerable to being tricked or coerced by traffickers. They make up nearly 80 per cent of all trafficked persons and are then often forced to work off ‘debts’ in sexually and economically exploitative conditions.

Victims are commonly forced into slavery, labour, prostitution, military and para-military service, marriage and adoption.

Trafficking is a pervasive problem in the Asia Pacific, with estimates placing the prevalence of trafficking victims in our region at nearly twice the global ratio.

Increasing economic hardship, obstacles to legal migration and internal conflict has coincided with a reported rise in the number of cases of people trafficking in all regions of the world.

Role of the APF

National human rights institutions (NHRIs) can play a vital role to counter human trafficking, through:

research to elaborate on the problem in the domestic and regional context
education of key stakeholders including victims; parliamentarians; police; prosecutors and justice sector; and migration and other public officials
monitoring of the incidence and impact of human trafficking in the domestic context
advocacy for domestic ratification of international standards on trafficking and for the effective implementation of rights protections and criminal sanctions.

In 2001, the APF’s Advisory Council of Jurists undertook a major study on human trafficking to provide practical advice to support the work of NHRIs on the issue.

APF members also cooperate closely and share information to identify and respond to the root causes of trafficking.

For example, the NHRIs of the South East Asia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for collaboration on the trafficking of women and children and NHRIs in ‘sending’ and ‘receiving’ countries have also established bilateral arrangements.