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Human trafficking -

Broadly defined, human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or paid-for sex.

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Origins of human trafficking -

The earliest form of global human trafficking began with the African slave trade, in the 16th century.

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African slave trade -

The slave trade flourished between Africa and the American and European continents, resulting in the first known international flow of human trafficking.

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A flourishing industry -

The slave trade was both legal and government-tolerated, and business was brisk. 

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Slave Trade Act 1807 -

By the early 19th century, abolitionists in Great Britain, notably William Wilberforce (1759–1833), had successfully campaigned to end slavery. The Slave Trade Act of 1807 prohibited the slave trade in the British Empire.

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Missouri Compromise -

In March 1820, James Monroe (1758–1831), the fifth president of the United States, signed the Missouri Compromise, effectively preventing the expansion of slavery in the northern states of America while acknowledging the desire of southern states to propagate it. This was a full 40 years before the outbreak of the American Civil War.

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Open borders -

The dilemma facing the American government at the time, however, was that there were no international organizations that could make such decisions binding on many nations at once. In other words, there was no legislation in place banning global human trafficking, and the United States was a favored destination for those importing slaves from foreign destinations.

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Emancipation Proclamation -

On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that "all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."

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The white slave trade -

As the door closed on the African slave trade, another opened on the procurement of white slaves. Pictured: the purchase of Christian captives by Catholic monks in the Barbary states.

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White slavery -

White slavery was nothing new. In the Roman Republic and later Roman Empire, for example, slaves accounted for most of the means of industrial output in Roman commerce. Pictured is a Roman legionary supervising Anglo-Saxon workers in a tin mine in England in 50 CE.

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Definition of white slavery -

The definition of white slavery refers to the slavery of Europeans, whether by non-Europeans or by other Europeans. More specifically, however, the term's modern-day interpretation would be the procurement—by use of force, deceit, or drugs—of a white woman or girl against her will for sex work.

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First multilateral treaty on human trafficking -

As the white slave trade grew exponentially, governments began to cooperate to fight it. In 1904, the International Agreement for the suppression of the White Slave Traffic was negotiated in Paris. It was the first multilateral treaty on human trafficking to be signed.

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White Slave Traffic Act -

In 1910, the US Congress passed the White Slave Traffic Act (better known as the Mann Act), aimed at curbing sex trafficking.

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League of Nations -

In the wake of the First World War, the League of Nations was founded, on January 10, 1920. Its establishment marked the first time that agreements could be made and treaties drawn up within a set organization, with more pressure to comply. Its principal mission was to maintain world peace, but the League of Nations was to also highlight labor concerns, human and drug trafficking, the arms trade, and health concerns, as well address the plight of prisoners of war and the protection of minorities. Pictured: the first session of the Council of the League of Nations.

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Women and children -

Its mandate enabled the League of Nations to highlight the international trafficking of all women, not simply Caucasian females, and, additionally, children, both male and female.  Subsequently in 1933, League of Nations members signed the International Convention for the Suppression of Traffic in Women and Children.

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United Nations -

In 1946, the Leagues of Nations gave way to the UN. In 1949, the United Nations adopted the UN Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others. It was the first legally binding international agreement on human trafficking.

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Human trafficking redefined -

The mid-20th century saw the United Nations divide human trafficking into three categories—sex trafficking, labor trafficking, and the removal of organs. It also redefined human trafficking as the induction by force, fraud, or coercion of a person to engage in the sex trade, or the harboring, transportation, or obtaining of a person for labor service or organ removal.

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An organized crime -

By 2000, human trafficking had become such a global concern that the United Nations criminalized it under the protocols of Transnational Organized Crime. But defeating the traffickers poses an enormous challenge. This form of organized crime, no matter how widespread, is both extremely profitable and relatively low-risk. It's also highly secretive.

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Alarming statistics -

According to Safe Horizon, 16 million people are victims of forced labor. A further 4.8 million people are trafficked for forced sexual exploitation.

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Disproportionately affected -

Women and girls are disproportionately affected by human trafficking, accounting for 71% of all victims worldwide, notes Safe Horizon.

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Illegal work -

Figures released by the Department of State and published by the American Civil Liberties Union estimate that 14,500 to 17,500 people are trafficked into the United States each year.

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Methods -

Traffickers often use violence or fraudulent employment agencies and fake promises of education and job opportunities to trick and coerce their victims.

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Deception -

Deception extends to withholding identification, employment authorization, or travel documentation.

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Threats of violence -

Another ploy used by traffickers is demanding repayment for a real or alleged debt, with the threat of violence for noncompliance.

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No privacy -

Victims of human trafficking are nearly always monitored, and live and work under constant surveillance. All means of communicating with the outside world is banned, and privacy is non-existent.

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Substandard living conditions -

Trafficked victims invariably end up living in accommodation that is often shared, with sometimes no heat, running water, or electricity.

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Taught how to lie -

And it's not uncommon for traffickers to coach their victims on how to respond to inquiries from others, especially police officers, those working in social services, and authority figures.

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People smuggling -

Closely associated with human trafficking is people smuggling. Unlike human trafficking, however, people smuggling is characterized by the consent between customer and smuggler—a contractual agreement that typically terminates upon arrival in the destination location. But it's a contract fraught with danger, including countless deaths.

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Tackling the problem -

The global scale of human trafficking is such that governments simply don't have enough time or personnel to investigate each illegally transported group. It's therefore left to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) like Amnesty International to suggest alternative strategies, such as calling on states "to move away from reliance solely on criminal justice interventions that prioritize criminal prosecution and instead ensure a comprehensive response for survivors of trafficking."

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Anti-Slavery International -

A number of NGOs have been created especially to deal with issues of human trafficking, including UK-based Anti-Slavery International, founded in 1839 and the world's oldest human rights organization. Other NGOs, including Save the Children and Women's Rights Worldwide, actively participate and cooperate against human trafficking.

Sources: (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) (United Nations Treaty Collection) (UN High Commissioner for Human Rights) (Safe Horizon) (American Civil Liberties Union) (Amnesty International)

See also: The United Nations' greatest achievements

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