Human Trafficking Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
Three victims of harassment for purpose of sex trafficking at their school in Progreso, Yoro, Honduras // UNICEF/Adriana Zehbrauskas
Along with the COVID-19 pandemic being a devastating problem on its own, it has also exacerbated other existing issues, especially affecting those who are most vulnerable. One global issue that has been able to expand during the pandemic is human trafficking.
Migrants and those who are jobless are most vulnerable to human trafficking, according to the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC). The COVID-19 pandemic and economic fallout has put millions of people worldwide out of work, and left children without social support, nourishment, and shelter usually given at schools that were forced to shut their doors. These circumstances have resulted in greater vulnerability to falling prey to criminal networks, as human traffickers’ main tactics include promising stable employment and housing. Furthermore, online predators are taking advantage of the fact that there are more children online for longer periods of the day due to virtual school. The UNODC identified two types of tactics employed by traffickers: “hunting,” or actively pursuing a victim, typically on social media; and “fishing,” when perpetrators post job advertisements for potential victims to respond to. This has resulted in a three-fold increase in child victims over the past 15 years, rising even more during the pandemic.
Once in the control of criminal traffickers,victims have much more difficulty escaping or being rescued due to the pandemic. Due to countries shifting priorities to limit the spread of the virus, human traffickers are also able to better operate under the radar. “During COVID-19, there’s been a decline in interest and attention to human trafficking, which has allowed human trafficking groups to reorganize and operate with more freedom and less scrutiny from law enforcement,” Guadalupe Correa-Correa, an expert on human trafficking and organized crime in Mexico, commented. Even when discovered, victims are not able to obtain the help they desperately need. With borders closed, many rescued trafficking victims had to remain, for months, in shelters in the countries where they had been exploited instead of returning home. Essential services that provide essential support and protection were limited and, in some cases, halted completely.
Additionally, restriction of victims’ actions and movements is a common feature of human trafficking, and the mandated lockdowns make this restriction much easier. The confinement could reinforce the isolation of victims and reduce drastically any chance of them being identified and removed from such exploitative situations.
Ilias Chatzis, Chief of UNODC’s Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling Section, says, “The pandemic has taught us that we need to develop strategies on how to continue anti-human trafficking activities on a national and international level even during a crisis.” We hope for these developments to happen soon, and reach the local communities and populations who need it most during this difficult time.
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