The annual report on human trafficking around the world honors eight heroes making a difference. The following article was published in the September-October 2023 issue of NewsNotes.
The U.S. State Department released the 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report in June, providing a comprehensive overview of the global state of trafficking in persons. The report also rates individual countries’ efforts in combatting trafficking on a scale of four tiers, providing a powerful diplomatic tool for the U.S. government to engage foreign governments on human trafficking.
Although technology has contributed significantly to communication and development, cyber scam operations have also accelerated. With public and private job applications managed online, human traffickers often use unregulated social media platforms to recruit their victims.
Governmental involvement in trafficking features the use of state power to exploit nationals and the lack of legal status to manipulate stateless individuals. The U.S. State Department names the governments of Afghanistan, China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, the Democratic Republic of Korea, Myanmar, Russia, South Sudan, Syria, and Turkmenistan as having a documented “policy or pattern” of trafficking in persons.
The report emphasizes the importance of effective partnerships between governments, civil societies, front-line workers, and the private sector in tackling trafficking in persons. Catholic Sisters are among the frontline workers fighting human trafficking. The International Union of Superiors General established Talitha Kum in 2009 to be an international network against human trafficking and exploitation of vulnerable populations. Their mission: “to end human trafficking and exploitation through collaborative initiatives focused around prevention, protection, social reintegration and rehabilitation of survivors, partnership and advocacy, promoting actions that tackle the systemic causes.” Talitha Kum’s current head international coordinator is Maryknoll Sister Abby Avelino.
It is imperative when establishing or working in partnerships, that governments, law enforcement, NGOs, civil society, and survivor leaders be sensitive to mitigate further harm to victims and survivors of human trafficking. The U.S. State Department suggests that all these stakeholders must:
- Avoid promoting stereotypes of survivors of human trafficking as damaged, weak, or powerless since doing so is counterproductive to empowering survivors and supporting effective anti-trafficking efforts and strategies.
- Ensure that staff and volunteers understand that human trafficking is a heinous systemic crime that requires survivor-informed and trauma-informed approaches to root it out. Survivors must be engaged in designing and developing strategies to deal with this crime.
- Establish a culture of empathy within anti-trafficking organizations to apply trauma-informed principles.
- Fast-track immigration relief and work authorization for survivors of human trafficking to prevent prolonged suffering and the risk of re-victimization.
- Avoid inappropriately penalizing victims of both sex and labor trafficking, including children, for crimes they committed as a direct result of being trafficked.
- Utilize various investigative strategies rather than relying solely on victim cooperation and testimony. Victims’ and survivors’ access to exit and recovery services should not be pegged to their compliance in the investigations, which might re-traumatize them or cause them at risk of stigmatizing themselves.
The report also includes the 2023 TIP Report Heroes, eight individuals from around the world who have devoted their lives to the fight against human trafficking. This year’s heroes come from Brazil, Cambodia, Iraq, Pakistan, Peru, Venezuela and Nigeria. These individuals include NGO workers, government officials, survivors of trafficking, and concerned citizens. They are recognized for their tireless efforts—despite some working in challenging environments where trafficking concerns remain pervasive and facing resistance or threats to their lives—to protect victims, punish offenders, and mitigate the underlying factors that empower traffickers.
One of this year’s heroes is Eumelis Moya Goitte, the coordinator of the Office of Human Rights of Universidad Católica Andrés Bello (UCAB) Guayana in Venezuela. In this role, she investigates human trafficking in Bolivar state, with a special focus on the Orinoco Mining Arc—a strategic development zone in Venezuela.
Since starting her current role in 2018, Ms. Moya documents situations that involve the abuse and violation of the human rights of the inhabitants of Bolivar state, particularly hard-to-reach Indigenous communities. The 2023 TIP Report says “Ms. Moya has built strong relationships and partnerships in her work and relies on the support of community leaders, Indigenous communities, partner institutions, and the media to collect data.”
Faith in action:
Learn more about
- Current and past TIP Report Heroes at www.tipheroes.org
- Talitha Kum at https://www.talithakum.info
- Read the 2023 TIP Report https://mogc.info/TIP2023
Photo of workers unloading bricks from a brick kiln in Cambodia courtesy of the State Department report