A decline for the first time in 20 years in the number of victims of traffickingthat the change climate multiplies the risks of this crime on people, and that boys and men are the most affected by the new forms of exploitation, are some of the results considered as “findings” in the World Report on Trafficking in Persons 2022 presented by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime ( Unodc) and released today by the National Government.
Unodc presented the Global Report on Trafficking in Persons for the year 2022with special emphasis on the analysis of a historical stage of the world marked by the coronavirus pandemicand maintained that “the global health emergency situation displaced human trafficking further underground, and restricted the ability of States in different regions of the world to combat the crime, generating a decrease in the number of victims detected.”
Among other points, the report also evaluates the global slowdown in convictions, the phenomenon of “self-rescue” given the insufficiency of state institutions, impunity in the countries of origin, war and conflicts as fertile ground for crime, the incidence of phenomena such as climate change, the new forms of exploitation that increase the proportion of men and boys as victims, women and children as the victims who suffer the most violence, and the inequality between men and women when it comes to receiving a sentence.
The report also contains proposals for action and possible responses for each of the 11 problematic that he analyses, and a series of key indicators and progress made in each region.
For example, regarding the number of detected victims of exploitation, which fell (in 2022) by 11% compared to 2019, they explained that it may be due to the fact that “States strengthened their frameworks for the detection and protection of victims of trafficking, the donor community and international organizations increased their support for national authorities, and that States increased their efforts to assess and identify the most hidden forms of human trafficking.
Trafficking and sexual exploitation
Regarding the detection of victims of trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, which decreased by 24%They added that this reduction was thanks to the promotion of “joint interventions by law enforcement authorities, social protection services, civil society organizations, and the private sector to detect and protect exploited victims.” in apartments, hotels and other hidden places”.
They also explained that “countries should require online platforms to implement prevention measures such as age verification and consent; removal request mechanisms for highly visible content; and capacity building in the areas of surveillance of Internet and online undercover investigations.
About that the climate change multiplies the risks of trafficking in persons and their vulnerability, warned that, in 2021, “23.7 million people were internally displaced by natural disasters caused by weather conditions, while others crossed borders to escape poverty caused by this phenomenon.
In this regard, Unodc considered that “Member States must guarantee that people affected by climate change, particularly those in a vulnerable situation, must have access to effective resources and means of adaptation to enjoy a dignified life”, as well as that “International organizations and academia should monitor the impact of climate change as a potential driver of human trafficking through data collection and research.”
