Human trafficking in the 21st century

Introduction

Human trafficking has become one of the major issues in the world especially in the 21^st century. It is among the largest criminal activities in the world. It mainly involves the buying and selling of humans for the purpose of financial gains. Slavery was a very negative aspect in the past, and has been revived in form of human trafficking in the modern day. Human trafficking has become an everyday topic fueled by the many cases reported worldwide of people being trafficked across state boundaries. The affected people are mostly women and children who are the most vulnerable. Human trafficking affects most countries in the world and it is classified among the most lucrative transnational trade. There have been measures by certain interagency organs to help curb this vice but with minimal success. Globalization has been the fueling factor in this form of business. There are numerous loopholes in the international system that has been exploited by those operating this criminal network and this explains its success. Human trafficking is wrong and contravenes the guidelines stipulated in the international statute of human rights since it is exploitative and degrading and thus represent the evil aspect of humanity. This vice needs utmost attention to help in its immediate eradication. In the paper is a discussion will be provided of the various forms of human trafficking, its severity in the 21^st century, and some ways to help in its eradication.

Types of human trafficking

Human trafficking is a vast industry affecting mainly women and children. These buyers traffic them, then use them for various lucrative ventures. These include cheap labor, sex slavery, commercial sexual activities and selling of body parts. This is always against their will, but reporting it is difficult mostly due to language barrier. There is also the fear of the armies of certain countries being involved in the business, presumed ruthless and merciless.

Child trafficking

In this form of trafficking children are the victims, this is because of their vulnerability. Exploitation of children has been one of the many catalysts of human trafficking.  There are cases where children are recruited in the military; rebel militia mainly uses the children as spies, cleaners, and even soldiers. This form of exploitation of children is very traumatizing and some never recover as they end up adopting the life of the rebel soldiers when they grow old.

There are also children trafficked for labor. Child labor is against human rights but very cheap. These children mostly work in mines, agricultural sector, and in the construction industries. Unscrupulous employers exploit the present gaps in law and enforcement to use children and gain more profits with cheap labor. These employees have fueled the continuous trafficking of children.

Children are used as beggars in many major towns. The offenders send children to beg for money that they later take from them. The sympathy that many people feel for children in poor condition creates opportunities for traffickers to exploit. They are obliged to help not knowing it is an organized collection of money. There are cases where children are used for sexual satisfaction. Child sex tourism has emerged fueled by the easy means of communication through the internet. Child pornography is also another sector that has fueled child trafficking (Walts, 2010). The freedom and rights of the children trafficked for these purposes, is taken away at a very young age and this is very harmful for them. Most of them do not make it to adulthood due to the risky conditions that they are exposed to. There are also unplanned pregnancies and infection of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections.

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Women trafficking

Human trafficking of women mainly takes place for commercial sex purposes. They include pornographic creation, prostitution, and exotic dancers at brothels. Some of the women are promised lucrative jobs, when they get there; they are forced into these activities. Violence and intimidation are the main ways by which these traffickers coerce and subdue the women. A certain degree of ownership is exerted on the women to prevent them from running away (Walts, 2010).

Women are also forced into involuntary domestic jobs. They work in households with no freedom and mostly there is a certain level of violence and their wages paid to their masters. The fear of traffickers prevents these women from reporting such crimes, with a hope that they will be free, most of them are killed, to hide links to the cartels. (Rahman, 2011)

Organ trafficking

It is a recent form of trafficking. It is fueled by the increase in organs needed for transplant. People of all ages are moved legally or illegal from one country to the other then certain body parts are removed and sold on the black market. Some of the transplants end up fatal for the donor since they are in no way liable to them. The internet has made the world a global village.it has resulted to the invention and continuous running of such crimes (Rees, 2015).

Means of stopping human trafficking

Human trafficking is an inhuman sector and it goes against what we as human should uphold as our rights and freedoms. The result of these activities includes devastated children, unplanned pregnancies, spread of Hiv/Aids and most of all trauma to those involved. Each and everyone have their role to play if human trafficking is to stop (cannon, 2017). Some of the factors that fuel human trafficking include global poverty. State and non-state actors need to play their part in improving living standards to stop human trafficking.

Creating awareness is another way that could be very effective cubing human trafficking. Many people in the world are not convinced that human trafficking exists. Technology has provided various means to educate on the issue. Writing frequent blog posts on the internet about, the issue, it could be very effective since there are many users, and it is the easiest way to transmit the message globally.  Knowledge is paramount if people are going to join the cause against trafficking (cannon, 2017).

Once people learn of the negative effects of human trafficking, anti-trafficking agencies should form, to lobby governments to implement policies that would reduce the chances of human trafficking. These would include policies regulating pornography, brothels, and commercial sex activities. Heavy penalties on those caught engaging in any form of human trafficking, this will serve to scare away potential cartels. Human trafficking is a business, the more the demand the more the more it will increase. As a means of stopping it, people should endeavor to cut its demand.

Relevant authorities should form emergency toll free call centers where members of the public would call and report suspicious human trafficking activities (cannon, 2017). Many are afraid of physically going to authorities to report such activities in fear of the cartel ruthlessness. Call centers would provide privacy and more people would open up on any suspicious activities. A task force should also be set up in every country to respond quickly to such tips. Combining the two would reduce human trafficking significantly.

The paper explains the various forms of human trafficking and means of preventing these acts. At all levels, human trafficking is wrong and illegal. It causes a permanent scar to the victims, the survivors and mostly leads to death. This menace needs action before it blows out of proportion. Human rights and freedoms are very important aspects of human beings therefore; organizations that deny them should be dealt with to maintain human dignity. The means suggested above on stopping human trafficking, if followed meticulously would help in its reduction or even elimination. Human trafficking has been severe in the 21^st century if people are not careful it would return the world, to old days of slavery that was a dark period for human beings.