Sex trafficking

Jhonatan André Aranda
Gösta Viberg
Language & Communication I EN1105
8 January 2010
Inhuman Business: Sex-Trafficking
Because of the illegal multimillion dollar business that the mafia profits from and the enormous amount of money that supports many third world countries, without disregarding the indifference of some developed countries, nowadays it seems that prostitution and peoplesex-trafficking is unstoppable.
One must consider that even though prostitution and sex trafficking are strongly connected to one another, there are certain differences. While the first is legal in many countries and can be seen as matter of choice and also as a profession; the latter is a cruel commercial sex act induced by force, fraud and coercion. Owing to the fact that it attemptson human dignity, is a human rights violation and makes it a crime in which traffickers are the ones being the perpetrators – not the women – it will never be legalized. It is important to make clear that the essential violation of trafficking is not the movement across borders but the sexual exploitation of a human being. One could say, as many are already doing, that by regularizing “migrationfor sex-work” could be used as an antidote to stop or in some way reduce sex trafficking. I personally do not accept those emerging arguments. It would surely be beneficial for those who by their own free will decide to engage in prostitution. But what about those who do not want? Would it not be easier for the mafias to run their illegal activities?
Whether intentionally or by beingdeceived by criminal organizations, there are plenty of reasons to why people get dragged into this business. Social and economic conditions, lack of education and the illusion of pursuing a better life are only a few examples. Mafia groups are well aware of these social issues – mostly present in developing countries, where these women primary come from – and take advantage of them, in order torecruit their victims and afterward commercialize them as merchandise. There is a well elaborated process in how the whole trafficking act is committed. A person, commonly known as the seeker, is in charge of finding, making contact and gaining the victim’s trust. This is accomplished by approaching adolescents in popular places they frequently visit, and by making use of media, through whichpromising ads
are published intentionally to attract young women. In some other cases the girls are swindled into false marriages, sold by their own relatives or simply kidnapped.
Once false promises of escaping from poverty have been made, the girls are transported by carriers to a foreign country, in where they will have to prostitute themselves to cover the debt they have incurred. Adebt they might never be able to pay back due to high interests. When they arrive these women are located in brothels. Their personal documents are taken away from them, and under death threat to both themselves and their families, they are kept isolated and forced to achieve the purpose they are intended for. These innocent victims find themselves facing inhuman situations such as cruel beatings,humiliations and countless rapes.
Because of the nature of the crime it is difficult to estimate the exact number of victims of such a horrendous crime. According to the US Department of State approximately 600,000 to 800,000 people are being globally trafficked within and across borders every year, 80% women and 50% children. The European Commission calculates that by 2001, up to120,000 of these persons were being transported into Western European countries. Today this number has gone beyond half a million people, in which 70% of the prostituted women come from Eastern Europe with an increasing number of South Americans and Asians.
The United Nations Commission for Europe (UNESCE) believes that by 2004 there were about 15.000 Russian and Eastern European women...