• Sun. Feb 16th, 2025

Gina Temple Talks About Adopting a Human Rights Approach Towards Human Trafficking  

Bysicw-news

Jul 12, 2024

Human trafficking typically implies to the process through which individuals tend to be placed or maintained in an exploitative situation for some kind of economic gain. As per Gina Temple, international efforts to address human trafficking can be traced way back to the 19th century.  However, a comprehensive legal framework has developed around the issue only over the last two decades or so. 

Gina Temple sheds light on adopting a human rights approach towards human trafficking  

The human rights approach towards trafficking puts emphasis on putting victims right at the center of anti-trafficking policies, by prioritizing the protection of their rights.  When a human rights approach is followed, it becomes irrelevant whether a person has been trafficked for sex work or another form of forced labor. The rights of the victims would be protected regardless of why they have been trafficked.

Ensuring that equal protection is provided to all victims of trafficking, no matter their gender, age, or field of work, is an extremely vital aspect of a human rights approach. All victims are entitled to equal access to justice, protection and aid mechanisms, along with the way they want to access these services. Hence, policy responses must take into account the often gendered nature of human traffic, and subsequently compensate for any gender-based discrimination in terms of access to justice and aid. Apart from making sure that trafficking victims get their rights, other anti-trafficking policies that involve migration regulations and criminal prosecutions should not compromise human rights in the process in any manner. 

The international protections against trafficking can be found in the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children. This was established as part of the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime, and not within the human rights system.  Certain guidelines, however, have been issued on human rights and trafficking by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

As Gina Temple points out, current state level policies do not ideally approach trafficking as a human rights issue. Instead, it generally is treated as an issue of organized crime, border control or prostitution. This can have a detrimental impact on the trafficking victims, as they are made secondary to another policy objective. The national trafficking laws in the United States are majorly focused on criminal prosecution of traffickers. As a result, unfortunately, many times, victims of trafficking are made the instruments of criminal investigations when addressing trafficking as an issue of organized crime.  Their agency to choose whether or not they want to take part in the prosecution of their traffickers is disregarded. Moreover, their legal entitlements to protection and remedies also may become secondary. At times, the trafficking victims themselves may become the subject of prosecution for immigration violations or for criminal acts committed due to their trafficked situation.

When trafficking is treated as a migration issue, the distinction between consent and coercion becomes crucial in determining a person’s immigration status. Coercion in human trafficking exists on a broad spectrum. Adopting a human rights approach enables a focus beyond the level of coercion, and addresses the victim’s rights regardless of how they were trafficked.