Existe una estrecha relación entre el tráfico ilícito de refugiados y migrantes y la trata de personas. Es necesario reconocer que una persona migrante o refugiada que ha estado en una situación de tráfico - bien sea para ingresar, permanecer o salir del país - se encuentra en riesgo de ser víctima del delito de trata de personas. Estos delitos implican la cosificación de las personas, el menoscabo de la dignidad humana y suele primar un aprovechamiento de situaciones de vulnerabilidad. Uno de los mayores obstáculos en la lucha contra el tráfico ilícito de refugiados y migrantes y la trata de personas es la falta de información. Hay un evidente subregistro en las cifras oficiales y esto impide que se calculen las magnitudes reales de ambos delitos.

Building on the existing foundation of research, this chapter examines two distinctive case studies, the Nepal earthquake of 25 April 2015 and the mixed migration flows through the Western Balkans between spring 2015 and spring 2016. It assesses whether these extraordinary situations indeed led to an increase in trafficking and exploitation and determines the extent to which counter-trafficking efforts were incorporated into overarching response measures. In both cases, the chapter identifies promising practices and challenges in mainstreaming counter-trafficking measures. The biggest ongoing challenge for protection actors in Nepal is to provide vulnerable populations in the districts with critical protection-related information on human trafficking and exploitation. In some countries along the Western Balkan route, meeting the immediate needs of migrants transiting through their territory proved such a challenge during the peak of the movements that only a partial response to vulnerable groups could be ensured for a number of months.

The Rohingya people of Myanmar (known as Burma before 1989) were stripped of citizenship in 1982, because they could not meet the requirement of proving their forefathers settled in Burma before 1823, and now account for one in seven of the global population of stateless people. Of the total 1·5 million Rohingya people living in Myanmar and across southeast Asia, only 82 000 have any legal protection obtained through UN-designated refugee status. Since 2012, more than 159 000 people, most of whom are Rohingya, have fled Myanmar in poorly constructed boats for journeys lasting several weeks to neighbouring nations, causing hundreds of deaths. We outline historical events preceding this complex emergency in health and human rights. The Rohingya people face a cycle of poor infant and child health, malnutrition, waterborne illness, and lack of obstetric care. In December, 2014, a UN resolution called for an end to the crisis. We discuss the Myanmar Government's ongoing treatment of Rohingya through the lens of international law, and the steps that the newly elected parliament must pursue for a durable solution.

Since its inception in 2002, the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime (Bali Process) has effectively raised regional awareness of the consequences of people smuggling, trafficking in persons and related transnational crime, and also developed and implemented strategies and practical cooperation in response. 48 member countries and international organizations, as well as a number of observer countries and international agencies, participate in this voluntary forum. The policy guides aim to provide an overview of international and regional standards for the identification and protection of victims of trafficking, drawing extensively on examples of good practices from Bali Process member countries. In line with the recommendations of the Fifth Ministerial Conference in April 2013, these policy guides are the second set of Bali Process Policy Guides falling within the thematic areas of the Bali Process and on issues of particular concern to Bali Process members. They are voluntary, non-binding and intended for use as reference tools by a range of domestic agencies in Bali Process Member States.

Since its inception in 2002, the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime (Bali Process) has effectively raised regional awareness of the consequences of people smuggling, trafficking in persons and related transnational crime, and also developed and implemented strategies and practical cooperation in response. 48 member countries and international organizations, as well as a number of observer countries and international agencies, participate in this voluntary forum.The policy guides aim to provide an overview of international and regional standards for the identification and protection of victims of trafficking, drawing extensively on examples of good practices from Bali Process member countries. In line with the recommendations of the Fifth Ministerial Conference in April 2013, these policy guides are the second set of Bali Process Policy Guides falling within the thematic areas of the Bali Process and on issues of particular concern to Bali Process members. They are voluntary, non-binding and intended for use as reference tools by a range of domestic agencies in Bali Process Member States.

Despite the often noted negative connection between natural disasters and human trafficking, no quantitative study has been performed. Natural disasters, like conflict, can destroy homes and the economic security of individuals forcing them to migrate and making them targets for traffickers. This article tests the link between a state’s ability to address trafficking and natural disasters, testing the popular prediction that a state’s capabilities will be strained as increased natural disasters occur thus producing a negative effect. The findings though demonstrate that states are actually more likely to perform better in their efforts to confront trafficking. I argue that this is because natural disasters actually strengthen and enhance the state, and particularly its security institutions, in responding to these events. I place these findings in the context of other recent quantitative studies of trafficking that have also produced contradictory results when compared with the field’s qualitative studies.

The purpose of this text is to comprehensively present the issue of human trafficking to the reader. While it is intended for upper level undergraduate and graduate students in a variety of disciplines, professionals working in any number of fields including law enforcement, human services or health care will find it informative and useful as well. In addition, the book is a “must read” for concerned citizens interested in human rights and how to make a difference in their communities.The book is divided into three sections, each of which addresses different aspects of human trafficking. The two chapters in the first section provide an overview of the issue and contextualize it within a human rights and historical framework. The second section comprises five chapters and provides the reader with more detailed information about trafficking from a variety of academic disciplines. The third section focuses on the antitraficking movement and addresses international responses to the problem as well as considerations for working with victims. Also in the final section is a chapter written from the perspective of a former agent with the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is geared toward training law enforcement. Finally, the text closes with a chapter about how trafficking is being addressed and how individuals, larger social groups, and organizations can get involved in putting an end to the crime and to helping survivors.

The conflict and violence in Syria since 2011 have caused massive loss of life and human suffering, as well as a complex displacement crisis. Four of Syria’s neighbouring states are the most important hosting countries worldwide for refugees from the war-torn country. As of the end of September 2015, there are almost four million Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq alone, whose registration is active with the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). In addition, over six and a half million Syrians are internally displaced within their own country. Not all Syrians and stateless people who have fled abroad have registered with UNHCR or the national authorities (NRC, April 2015), and not all those internally displaced are recorded as such, therefore the figures are likely to be even higher in all cases. Apart from the violence itself, the conflict and attendant refugee crisis in neighbouring countries have led to increased impoverishment, informal “coping” economies and war profiteering, rendering people displaced by the crisis vulnerable to exploitation and different forms of trafficking in persons. Uncertainty prevails as to when the war in Syria will end and internally displaced people (IDPs) will be able to return to their homes, whether Syrian refugees abroad will be able to return to their country of origin, and for how long the hosting states will be able to meet the refugees’ needs in terms of providing access to basic services – accommodation, healthcare and education – and opportunities for income generation. As of mid-2014, the situation in Syria, as well as in parts of Iraq, has been further exacerbated by the seizure of large swathes of territory by Da’ish (ISIS/ISIL/IS), resulting in violence and further displacement of Syrian and Iraqi people, as well as of other people residing in those areas.

This document is an initial set of practical tools developed jointly by the member agencies of ICAT to address an issue identified by ICAT members as being critical for the international community to tackle in order to better respond to trafficking in persons and improve the impact of anti-trafficking activities, through discussing common design and evaluation issues.

This snapshot explores the links between extortion, internal displacement and forced migration in the North of Central America (NCA) and the migration route in Mexico. Although the definition varies across different national legislations, we understand extortion as being the use of intimidation, violence or threats to force someone to do something or to obtain someone’s property.This type of aggression is one of the main drivers of displacement in the region, but it is also one of the main crimes that people are subjected to during displacement, as well as after deportation back to their countries of origin. As such, extortion transcends international borders as one of the main human rights violations committed against displaced people and migrants. In order to outline the issue of extortion and its relationship with internal displacement and forced migration in this region, this snapshot explores the phenomenon of extortion, its protagonists and consequences. The first section compiles an update on the recent data related to the ongoing protection crisis in the region. Secondly the snapshot provides analysis on the regional similarities and trends related to extortion, and then provides a more detailed examination of the situation in Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico, through national chapters. Finally, a brief annex explores the protection risks related to the Covid-19 pandemic.