NCJ Number
191935
Journal
Crime & Justice International Volume: 17 Issue: 56 Dated: October/November 2001 Pages: 11-13
Date Published
2001
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article reviews the trafficking of women and girls for commercial sexual exploitation and the laws and programs designed to combat this problem.
Abstract
Trafficking of women for commercial sexual exploitation is a growing international problem that is attracting wide attention from certain governments, especially the United States, the United Nations, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and other public and private agencies. Although the precise numbers of women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation is difficult to document, some estimates are available. The U.S. Government, based on Central Intelligence Agency figures, estimates that globally 700,000 to one million women and children are trafficked each year across international borders. The International Organization for Migration, the United States Department of State, and other organizations have identified over 50 countries as so-called destination countries. Major destinations countries include Belgium, Greece, Holland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States. The international sex business is a very lucrative criminal enterprise. Human trafficking , in general, and forced prostitution, in particular, is denounced by the United States, some European nations, and the United Nations. Recognizing the need to prevent sex trafficking within and outside the United States, the U.S. Congress last year passed legislation that incorporated significant anti-trafficking provisions. The Victims of Trafficking and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 (H.R. 3244) created new felony criminal offenses related to sex trafficking, unlawful confiscation of the victim’s passport, as well as certain forms of nonphysical coercion used by traffickers. As a result of growing intense international concern and outrage over trafficking, many new initiatives are now being implemented to counter this phenomenon. A sampling of some of these initiatives, undertaken during the past 2 years, largely with U.S. support, includes: (1) the United States and Russia creating a joint task force in Moscow to investigate trafficking in women and children; (2) workshops providing training on how to start media campaigns to focus public attention on trafficking in women in several Russian cities; (3) the United States and Ukraine co-hosting a regional workshop against trafficking for government and NGO representatives from several countries and international organization; (4) a seminar hosted by the United States and Italy held in Rome to help develop an anti-trafficking program in Albania; (5) shelters providing counseling and assistance for returning victims of trafficking set up with United States assistance in Romania, Albania, Kosova, and Bosnia; and, (6) bilateral anti-trafficking programs conducted by the United States with Italy, Ukraine, and Israel. Only time will tell whether the latest anti-trafficking measures adopted by the United States Congress and the concerns raised by other governments and international bodies is a passing fad or a sincere effort to deal with the international trafficking of women and children.