IGNOU BLE 031 SOLVED ASSIGNMENT 2021-22

BLE-031 – UNDERSTANDING HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Tutor Marked Assignment (January 2021 and July 2021)
Course Code: BLE-031
Assignment Code: BLE-031/January 2021 and July 2021
Total Marks: 100

Section-I

Answer each question in about 200 words each. Each question carries 5 marks. (5×10 = 50)
1. Discuss the various stages of Trafficking.

There are only two stages in the trafficking process as mentioned below

2. Write a note on Trafficking and Prostitution.

Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others. This may encompass providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage, or the extraction of organs or tissues, including for surrogacy and ova removal. Human trafficking can occur within a country or trans-nationally. Human trafficking is a crime against the person because of the violation of the victim’s rights of movement through coercion and because of their commercial exploitation. Human trafficking is the trade in people, especially women and children, and does not necessarily involve the movement of the person from one place to another. People smuggling (also called human smuggling and migrant smuggling) is a related practice which is characterized by the consent of the person being smuggled. Smuggling situations can descend into human trafficking through coercion and exploitation. Trafficked people are held against their will through acts of coercion, and forced to work for or provide services to the trafficker or others.

3. What are the major forms of Trafficking for Sexual exploitation?

Trafficking for sexual exploitation accounts for more than half of human trafficking and /. is primarily for prostitution, paedophilia and pornography. It is a demand driven industry. In fact, traffickers confide that they supply girls on demand which can range from that of a fair-skinned, young virgin and voluptuous girl, to meet the needs of prostitute users in Delhi and Mumbai to that of young boys with nimble fingers to work in the carpet industries of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. According to a study conducted by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) ofIndia, 82.5% of traffickers stated that they supply women/children on demand. In India prostitution in pilgrim towns/cities, exploitation through sex tourism and child sexual abuse are some of the “alarming trends” that have emerged in recent years 1 . While sex disaggregated data is difficult to obtain, there is a general consensus that the majority of trafficked persons are women and children. However, men and young boys are also being trafficked. Furthermore, the age of trafficked children, especially for sexual exploitation, appears to be getting younger. Trafficking for sexual exploitation is closely linked to crime networks involving drugs and gunrunning, car thefts, burglaries, illegal hiring of illegal migrants, corruption, immigration criminality, visa and passport counterfeiting and money laundering”, Drug syndicates reportedly do not only traffic women for prostitution, but also push them into drug business, using them as carriers and users.

4. Discuss the reasons behind the in availability of data on Human Trafficking.

In India, human trafficking is generally equated with commercial exual exploitation. Again, as you read in the above section, the country does not have any systematic record of number of persons trafficked. The victims or their families do not come forward\ to report the incident because of the social stigma attched to it.Therefore, the figures
that are available are mostly from the rescue operations that are carried ourt from time information on the extent of the problem in India. According to a report (Patkar and Patkar: 200 1), there are 300,000 to 500,000 children in prostitiutuion in India. A study conducted in 1992 estimated that at any given point of time, 20,000 girls are being
trafficked from one part of the country to another for commercial sexual exploitation (Gupta 2003, quoted in NHRC study). To quote a UNICEF report, ‘trafficking of children continues to be a serious problem in India. The nature and scope of trafficking – range from industrial and domestic labour, to forced early marriages and commercial
sexual exploitation … over 40 per cent of women sex workers enter into prostitution before the age of 18 years.’ According to a nation wide study conducted by NHRC (2005), a whopping 68.5% of the victims of trafficking reported that they entered CSE when they were children.

Deshingkar and Akter
(2009) state two reasons for the shortcomings in the data on trafficking. These are:

i) Women’s migration is not adequately captured during NSSO surveys on migration.
It is because the urveys ask for only one reason for migration to be stated
which is usually stated as marriage and the econdary reason i.e.finding work at
the destination may not be mentioned.
ii) The NSSO surveys do not capture migration streams that are illegal or border on
illegality i.e. trafficking for work and various forms of child labour.

5. Write a note on missing persons.

A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are not known. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2–5% of missing children in Europe.

By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person’s assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.

6. Discuss the Challenges in indentifying victims of Trafficking.

Everyone has the potential to discover a human trafficking situation. While the victims may sometimes be kept behind locked doors, they are often hidden right in front of us at, for example, construction sites, restaurants, elder care centers, nail salons, agricultural fields, and hotels. Traffickers’ use of coercion – such as threats of deportation and harm to the victim or their family members – is so powerful that even if you reach out to victims, they may be too fearful to accept your help. Knowing indicators of human trafficking and some follow up questions will help you act on your gut feeling that something is wrong and report it.

Human Trafficking Indicators

While not an exhaustive list, these are some key red flags that could alert you to a potential trafficking situation that should be reported:

Living with employer
Poor living conditions
Multiple people in cramped space
Inability to speak to individual alone
Answers appear to be scripted and rehearsed
Employer is holding identity documents
Signs of physical abuse
Submissive or fearful
Unpaid or paid very little
Under 18 and in prostitution

7. Write a note on Gender Dimension of Human Trafficking.

Gender affects all aspects of the trafficking process, from the factors that contribute to
trafficking (as discussed above under vulnerability factors); to the nature of the laws
and policies developed to deal with it.
Trafficking in Persons is a highly gendered phenomenon. Women and girls are often
trafficked in different ways to men and boys, and for different reasons. Furthermore, a
person’s sex or physical characteristics can determine or contribute to that person’s
experience of trafficking. For example, men and boys are predominantly amongst those
identified as victims of trafficking in the agricultural and industrial sectors whereas women
and girls are predominantly amongst those trafficked into domestic service, commercial
sexual exploitation, forced surrogacy and forced marriage” .
The personal and social costs experienced by the trafficked person may also be particular
to that person because of their sex. Sexual harassment and sexual violence are more
commonly perpetrated against women and girls, the latter exposing them to health related
risks such as sexually transmitted diseases. Stigmatization, compulsory health checks
and ‘moral rehabilitation’ are also more likely to be experienced by women and girls
during return and reintegration. On the other hand, the assistance and avenues of redress
provided for trafficked men (and boys to a lesser extent) are limited.
There is an overwhelming perception that only women and girls are trafficked. While it
is increasingly recognized that men and boys are also victims of trafficking crime, there
is a tendency to equate the terms “trafficking victim” or “trafficked pers,on” with a
woman or child (usually a girl). The commonly held notion that ‘men migrate, but
women are trafficked’ has meant that national criminal justice agencies often appear to
“beslower to investigate and prosecute trafficking cases involving men”. Perceptions
about men’s and women’s ‘natures’ and the ‘differences’ between them are often reflected
in their treatment as victims of crime. Criminal justice responses to trafficking in persons
must understand that women, men, boys and girls can all be victims of trafficking crime
and they must respect the rights of all persons, and the gender implications of trafficking
should be an integral aspect of the response.

8. Write a note on Traffickers profile.

According to the International Organization for Migration, the definition of a human trafficker is “anyone who knowingly contributes in the trafficking of people with the intent of exploiting a victim is considered a human trafficker.” And, trafficking involves a wide range of people, including:

Recruiters
Intermediaries
Transporters
Document providers
Corrupt officials
Employers

Those who recruit victims are often of the same ethnicity. They speak the same language and entice their victims through friendship with promises of a higher education and/or profitable employment. There are also abductors who do just that. They snatch their victims by force or by threatening their families if one doesn’t comply. Initially, the victims are often held by intermediaries.

Transporters are hired to do take the victims from one location to another. They pick up victims from the recruiter and deliver them across the borders of countries, state lines, or even just to a neighboring city or a nearby location in the same city. Depending upon the numbers and distance, transporters may use boats or planes, trucks or vans.

9. What do you understand by the term regulationist approach to prostitution?

Under the reguJationist approach, prostitution is legalized and redefined as a form of
service work, i.e. sexual services. Regulations are set up that control when, where, and
under what circumstances prostitution can be engaged in. Under the legalization
approach, prostitutes become sex workers; men become clients; pimps become
managers; brothel owners are business people; and traffickers are employment agents
who assist migrant sex workers to travel to destination countries and find jobs. Selling
_ sex is illegal only if the regulations are violated, The state expects to collect tax revenue
from the industry andincome earners. This is the state approach in the Netherlands,
Germany, and some states of Australia.

10. Write a note on National response to HIV/AIDS.

National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) aims to contain the spread of HIV in India by building all-encompassing response reaching out to diverse populations. The overall goal of NACP-III (2007-2012)(2) is to halt and reverse the epidemic in India by 2012 by integrating programs for prevention, care and support and treatment. This will be achieved through a four-pronged strategy:

Prevention of infections through saturation of coverage of high-risk groups with targeted interventions (TIs) and scaled up interventions in the general population;
Provision of greater care, support and treatment to larger number of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA);
Strengthening the infrastructure, systems and human resources in prevention, care, support and treatment programs at district, state and national levels and
Strengthening the nationwide Strategic Information Management System (SIMS).

Section-II

Answer each question in about 350 words each. Each question carries 10 marks. (5×10 = 50)
11. Discuss the different types of Human Trafficking.

A poster describing the different types of human trafficking.

Age
The typical age range of persons suspected to be victims in a given location depends on
the nature of human trafficking and demands at the point of exploitation. With some
exceptions, the older the person is, the less likely it is that the case involves trafficking.
This is particularly so in sexual exploitation cases. Traffickers will not normally traffic
older people for sexual exploitation because there is very little “client demand” for
them.

Gender
Sex trafficking predominantly affects females. There is substantial evidence of human
trafficking for heterosexual exploitation in some form or the other in virtually every
country in the world. ·Male trafficking for the purposes of prostitution, particularly of teenage and younger
boys, has been found to exist, but research and knowledge in this area is limited.

Location of Origin
The supply chain of victims relies on exploitation of a combination of factors including
relative poverty, discrimination, lack of opportunity and the opening up of new transport
links that facilitate the easier movement of people. Many victims come from developing
countries or countries in transition where there are limited opportunities.

Documentation –
A person presenting another person’s identity and travel documentation at a border
crossing or other checkpoint is a general indicator of human trafficking at all phases/
locations in the process. In addition, the lack of documentation or travel documents on
a suspected victim and fraudulent identity or travel documentation are also strong
indicators of trafficking. Another case in point is the usage of fictitious marriage certificates
to mask human trafficking.

Last Location
The location where the victim was found immediately prior to coming to the.attention of
law enforcement machinery/anti-human trafficking organization will always be significant:
abrothel, a call-girl agency or lap dancing club, place oflabour exploitation such as a
“sweatshop”, restaurant kitchens, mines, quarries or agricultural sites may all be indicators
of potential exploitation.

12. Discuss the pattern of Trafficking in India. Who are Vulnerable to Trafficking?

It is well documented that majority of the trafficked persons are women and girls from developing countries. Countries whose economies are either unstable or in transition, or countries which are facing long-term violent conflict. All these, along with other multiple forms of discrimination and conditions of disadvantage, contribute to the vulnerability of women and girls being trafficked and driven into prostitution. The majority of the trafficked belong to the economically and socially marginalized groups of India. The NHRC study on Trafficking in Women and Children in India amply illustrated that 94% of their respondents were from India, 1.1% from Bangladesh and 2.9% from Nepal. The NHRC study also revealed the following facts: –

• Teenage girls from poor families: The age profile of the trafficked victims presented an important dimension. Most adult women narrated that they were trafficked when they were young and had dreams of living a respectable life. Additionally the increasing numbers of children, especially girls, being rescued in the few raids conducted by the police showed that there is a rapid growth in the number of children exploited for prostitution and other forms of exploitation. Children, especially from poor families, are most vulnerable to trafficking.
• Women and girls from disadvantaged circumstances: A vast majority of the respondents came from poor families. Only one-fourth of the respondents had a monthly family income of Rs. 2,000 and above; 47.5% had an income below this level, and 27.7% were not able to give details.
• Women and girls from margtnallzed’ groups (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes): The socio-economic background of trafficked victims showed that almost one-third of the victims, 32.3%, were Scheduled Castes, 5.8% were Scheduled Tribes, 21.9% were from Other Backward Classes and 17.4% from other castes, The rest were unable to recall their caste status. Thus, a large majority of the respondents (60%) belonged to socially deprived section of the society.
• Women and girls from drought prone areas or areas affected by natural disasters or human made disasters: 68.6%, of trafficking victims came from rural areas, 21.6% from urban centres and 9.8% from urban slums. Exploitation
of women and girls in disaster situations is a well-known, documented and re-‘ ported phenomenon. Disasters increase vulnerability of women and girls, which is shamelessly exploited by the traffickers. Economic policies such as declining agricultural subsidies further increase the urban-rural divide.
• Girls, who are victims of incest, paedophilia: Women and girls who reported to have lost their virginity outside the realm of marriage were seen ;as”immoral”. These victims of incest and child sexual abuse, under social and customary pressures, took to prostitution either on their own or by others for lack of options. It was found that a staggering 69.8% of victims of trafficking had their first sexual experience as children, i.e., when they were below 18 years of age and that their first sexual experience had been forced on them by someone known to them ..
• Victims of child marriage or women who were married at a very young age: 71.8 ‘% of the respondents had been married when they were children (i.e., when they were under 18years of age). This suggests that child marriage is among the key factors that make women and girls vulnerable to trafficking.
• Women and girls from isolated districts where the illiteracy rate was found to be high: 70.7% of trafficked victims were either illiterate or barely literate. Only 13.6% of the victims had received education up to the primary stage and
around 15% beyond the primary stage. A mere 0.4% of the respondents were graduates or above. In the same study 60.8% of them also revealed that their first sexual experience was forced on them, and 63.8% accused a host of persons including the school staff, teachers, and persons in positions bf authority or who enjoyed their trust like friends, priests, fathers-in-law, brothers-in-law, counsellors, police officials or domestic help of perpetrating the abuse.

13. What are the different destination areas in India for Human Trafficking?

Human trafficking in India, although illegal under Indian law, remains a significant problem. People are frequently illegally trafficked through India for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced/bonded labour. Although no reliable study of forced and bonded labour has been completed, NGOsestimate this problem affects 20 to 65 million Indians. Men, women and children are trafficked in India for diverse reasons. Women and girls are trafficked within the country for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced marriage, especially in those areas where the sex ratio is highly skewed in favour of men. Men and boys are trafficked for the purposes of labour, and may be sexually exploited by traffickers to serve as gigolos, massage experts, escorts, etc.A significant portion of children are subjected to forced labour as factory workers, domestic servants, beggars, and agriculture workers, and have been used as armed combatants by some terrorist and insurgent groups.

India is also a destination for women and girls from Nepal and Bangladesh trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation. Nepali children are also trafficked to India for forced labour in circus shows. Indian women are trafficked to the Middle East for commercial sexual exploitation. Indian migrants who migrate willingly every year to the Middle East and Europe for work as domestic servants and low-skilled labourers may also end up part of the human trafficking industry. In such cases, workers may have been ‘recruited’ by way of fraudulent recruitment practices that lead them directly into situations of forced labour, including debt bondage; in other cases, high debts incurred to pay recruitment fees leave them vulnerable to exploitation by unscrupulous employers in the destination countries, where some are subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude, including non-payment of wages, restrictions on movement, unlawful withholding of passports, and physical or sexual abuse.

Human trafficking in India results in women suffering from both mental and physical issues. Mental issues include disorders such as PTSD, depression and anxiety. The lack of control women have in trafficking increases their risk of suffering from mental disorders. Women who are forced into trafficking are at a higher risk for HIV, TB, and other STDs. Condoms are rarely used and therefore there is a higher risk for victims to suffer from an STD.

14. How does Law and Order condition affect Human Trafficking? Give examples.

Trafficking in Human Beings or Persons is prohibited under the Constitution of India under Article 23 (1)
The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 (ITPA) is the premier legislation for prevention of trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation.
Criminal Law (amendment) Act 2013 has come into force wherein Section 370 of the Indian Penal Code has been substituted with Section 370 and 370A IPC which provide for comprehensive measures to counter the menace of human trafficking including trafficking of children for exploitation in any form including physical exploitation or any form of sexual exploitation, slavery, servitude, or the forced removal of organs.
Protection of Children from Sexual offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, which has come into effect from 14th November, 2012 is a special law to protect children from sexual abuse and exploitation. It provides precise definitions for different forms of sexual abuse, including penetrative and non-penetrative sexual assault, sexual harassment.
There are other specific legislations enacted relating to trafficking in women and children Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, Transplantation of Human Organs Act, 1994, apart from specific Sections in the IPC, e.g. Sections 372 and 373 deal with selling and buying of girls for the purpose of prostitution.
State Governments have also enacted specific legislations to deal with the issue. (e.g. The Punjab Prevention of Human Smuggling Act, 2012)

15. Discuss the economic dimension of Human Trafficking.

In the human trafficking market, traffickers act as intermediaries to provide employers, who use trafficked labour, with workers who have the desired characteristics. The successful human trafficker’s business is dynamic, adapting as populations become vulnerable and as areas of demand shift. The trafficker may never meet the ultimate users of
the trafficked victims. This follows Bales’ (2005: 169) definition of business-to-business (trafficker to business owner) rather than business-to-consumer marketing. Human traffickers take advantage of the disparity between low wages and lack of employment opportunities in some areas and the seemingly abundant jobs and high wages in other
areas.

When describing the rational-choice approach to crime, Becker (1995) states, ‘‘people decide whether to commit crime by comparing the benefits and costs of engaging in crime.’’ Becker cites income from illegal work (1968) and psychic benefits (‘‘getting away with something’’) (1995) as benefits of crime. Human traffickers offer differentiated products; limiting the number and type of individuals they traffic to employers (or use as employers). This
means that each human trafficker faces an individual demand curve for his product. This demand curve depends partly upon how unique consumers perceive the supplier’s product to be in comparison with similar products available from other suppliers. Human traffickers face monetary (operational), physical (risk to life
and health), psychological, and criminal (risk of being caught and severity of punishment) costs. In addition to the cost of moving individuals from one place to another, transportation costs include the costs of outfitting individuals for travel and falsified documents. There are also reports of traffickers presenting a sum of money to the families of
children they traffic as signs of goodwill. Hughes (2000) weighs the low risk faced by traffickers with the potentially high profits due to ‘‘computer communication of international financial transactions, political and economic weakening and collapse, and the desire to migrate’’.
In the short run, the human trafficker gains economic profit (total revenue minus total cost, including the opportunity cost of using inputs) by selling at a price above average total cost (ATC) of trafficking persons. Average total cost includes average fixed costs (an average of those costs that have been paid and cannot be recovered) and average variable costs (costs that vary depending upon the individuals and circumstances necessary for trafficking). Average fixed cost includes the cost of establishing routes, recurring bribes, and forged travel documents. Because of these high fixed costs, average total cost is high at low quantities of trafficked individuals and decreases as operations increase in size, up to a certain point. Average variable cost consists of specific travel arrangements that vary based upon the individuals and changing characteristics of transportation. As the quantity of trafficking by an individual trafficker increases, the average total cost begins to rise due to the increase in average total costs brought about by the complicated logistics of illegally transporting larger numbers of people. Thus the average total cost curve is at first downward sloping and then upward sloping