Question:
Critically explore the relationship between Human Trafficking and Sex Work in a Global Context, providing examples and supporting your argument theoretically.
This is the modern era of the 21st century. The very concept of the 21st century brings in our mind, the advent of modern scientific technology and its advancement. However speaking in a broader sense, in the modern era the advancement has not only taken place in the field of science and technology but in human thoughts as well. Howe very it is very much evident from the history of mankind that no era in the human history can be all good or all bad. Some is the case with the modern 21st century. Among the many boons of this age, one most dangerous curse is that of human trafficking and sex work (Weitzer 2015).
It is however a known fact that globalization is the term used to define the large scale development and advancements taking place all around the world and in every aspect. This advancement to a large scale is related to the scientific and technological developments as well. It is also due to this scientific development that there is the concept of sex tourism. It is basically the concept of men travelling to several other places, particularly other countries or other lands in order to have sex. These sex tourism advertisements are made available through different advertisement links via all forms of social media sites, pornography site and, many more.
However, it must be noted that there is a fine line of difference between sex work and sex trafficking. Trafficking is often related to the forced or compelled entry of the individuals into sex trade. Thus is done by either kidnapping them or luring them by giving them false hopes, Sex work on the other hand is the physical or sexual service provided by the sex workers in exchange of money. Now there can be many reasons behind sex work, they can either be willing or unwilling (De Shalit et al 2014).
This problem is increasing on a very large scale in the present day scenario. The most alarming and terrifying fact about this problem is that there is no respite to it. Rather the efforts being taken by the Nations and the Government are not enough. Somewhere or the other, there are some loopholes that are always remaining in the eradication measures. Every day, several kids and men and women are being sold out to unknown lands and unknown people in exchange of money (Weitzer 2015).
The reasons behind this shameful activity are many. These incidents usually take place in the poor and illiterate families. As a result of proper education and literacy, they are totally unaware about the disadvantages of over population. They know nothing about family planning. Apart from this, women and kids are more vulnerable to this human trafficking. Women are most vulnerable because there is always a kind of disparity made between men and women based on their sex. Women are often considered to be nothing but mere commodities. Hence, the incidents of sexual abuse are much more on them. However, as far as the human trafficking is concerned, both women and children are the victims of it. However, it also has to be taken into account that not all the women who are poor opt for the option of sex work (De Shalit et al 2014).
There are also several other reasons that are often responsible why women opt for it. Some of these are -can be lack of enough moral support, frustration, conjugal dissatisfaction, lack of sufficient finance and many others. Apart from these, many women have to opt for this option in order to support themselves and their families. There are cases where they are deserted by their husbands and they are left all alone with their children. In such cases, they have no other way to support themselves and their kids other than opting for prostitution. This again varies in case of the educated women as they can often find other jobs and live their lives independently as single mothers (Decker et al 2015). However there is no option left for those women who are poor and uneducated. However, the line between willing or unwilling prostitution is always blurred. This is evident from the fact that many girls and boys are born within the prostitution community itself. They grow up by seeing the all their close ones being associated in this name occupation. So, there is always this confusion or this psychological dilemma that they have to suffer through, that whether or not to go in the prostitution occupation (Andrijasevic and Mai 2016).
Whether the sex work is forced or is by choice, the consequences are always very much detrimental. A very common aspect seen in the brothels or any other prostitution areas is the case of unprotected sex. People are unaware or are ignorant about the proper protective measures. As a result of which people often suffer from the sexually transmitted diseases like HIV AIDS. Apart from the risk of disease it is very much frustrating in nature. It often reduces the confidence and the esteem of the sex workers. This often marginalizes the sex workers from the mainstream society. The society never sees the sex workers in a good way. They are always marginalized and are abused. However there are also cases where women are also cases where women have voluntarily stepped into the world of sex work. Nowadays, the young generation is very easily falling prey to the unethical and illegal activities of addictions like drug, excessive consumption of alcohol and several other such things. Often in order to satisfy these needs they are in search of easy money making ways. Grabbing these opportunity, there are many sex racked and drug racked existing in many school, colleges and universities these days (Decker et al 2015). They know that the present day young generation is very much vulnerable. Taking advantage of this, they often lure the young girls and boys in to sex work business. However, it has to be kept in mind that it is not only the women that become the victim of trafficking or sex work. Men and the young boys are also made to suffer through these issues. However this is a much lesser known fact because most of the TV channels, news channels, newspapers, press and media are busy covering the tantrums of the females who have been somehow thrown into this ditch but what is forgotten is the story of men. Though it might be true that women who have been suffering through this are greater in number than men (Watson et al 2016). There are cases where men have often been dragged into sex work. The only difference is that people often go by the myth that it is only the girls who suffer from this. This is particularly related to child labour. Often the young boys and girls are forced to give up school and start working in different places like restaurants, shop, coal mines, and construction sites in order to share the economic burden of their family. It is from these places that the kidnappers often lure them into sex work and prostitution with the hopes of a good and bright future (Persaud and Chin 2016).
As far as the Australian sex working trade is concerned, the sex workers have developed a slogan called “for prostitutes, against prostitution”. In other words, they claimed that women were mainly talking up this occupation because of the economic inequality. In other words, women suffered a lot from economic crisis. They did not get the similar wages unlike men. So, sex work is not always forced or unwilling. It can also be by choice. However, one must be able to know the myths and realities between sex work and human trafficking.
The media has always been representing sex work with the image of small or teen young adult girls being trapped within a small, dirty and shabby area called the brothels. These can have some severe real life severe impacts. Media always represents trafficking as something associated with only sex work and specially only with woman, where women are shown as commodities, being sold for money. However, efforts are to be made in order to realize that trafficking is not just taking place within the concept of sex work, rather is a much broader concept. Moreover, trafficking is not something that is associated only with women. Even men are very much a victim or a part of it.
Another tool used by the government of many countries to rescue the victims out of brothels is sending a large mob of cops on raids which are the so called rescue missions. This often takes a huge number of inmates of the brothels under arrest and puts them into trauma through the unnecessary questioning sessions (De Shalit et al 2014).
One such case happened in the year 2005, when there was a raid in an Indian brothel at Sangli by a band of about 85 male cops who had arrested about 35 women and two school girls who just went there to visit their families. After a long and complicated trial, the adults were released, since only the minors could have been rescued. However there is usually a lot of physical violence, physical and mental abuse, violation of moral rights and violation of right processes. There was a huge protest by the inmates of the brothels saying “save us from the saviours”. This is very much evident of the fact that only pulling out the sex workers from the brothels does not actually give them any respite (Cojocaru 2015). This is because of the fact that they are neither able to start their life a new nor can they go back to the brothels. It neither saves them nor rescues them this often renders them mentally sick and they often suffer from mental dilemma and try to commit suicide. This is also because of the fact that if they want to lead normal lives outside the brothels, the society will never let them do that and will call them unchaste and unclean. So, efforts must be made to educate the sex workers that they must be able to identify the trafficked persons and help to liberate them (Weitzer 2015).
Moreover these rescue missions also do not rescue all those have at some point of time fallen prey to the sex work trade (Persaud and Chin 2016). These missions only are directed towards the minor ones. This again does not given any long term or overall solution. In Philippines, the children that are forcefully relocated from the brothels again have to go back to sex work after they are old enough. This is because of the fact that they have nothing-g else to do. Society never accepts them in a proper way. They are insulted, abused and isolated from the mainstream social activities. Before everything the cops must be properly educated regarding the fact that how they are to deal with these people whom they want to rescue. It is often because of the improper treatment and unnecessary interrogations by the cops that the so called rescued people have to suffer. In order to cope up with all these issues the empowerment model can be used
Conclusion
The first and foremost thing that must be done under thus model is to see exploitation at different levels rather than seeing trafficking as the only form of exploitation
(Andrijasevic and Mai 2016). In other words, laws must be made that would and must protect the interests of each and every individual who have been exploited at some or the other point of time. The laws must not only be directed towards the safeguarding of the interests of those person who fit the typical victimized young and innocent women model that has been forced into sex trade (Albright and D’Adamo 2017). It must be made clear to one and all among the society that trafficking is not just limited within the framework of sex trade, rather any and every kind of exploitation of labour can be termed as trafficking.
The advocates and cops are also to be educated regarding how they are to respond in different cases. It can so happen that the trafficked men and women do not want to go back to the life that they have left behind. They are often not believed by the cops when they refuse to go back. Hence proper discussions must be carried on before reaching the correct decisions. Proper funding has to be made in order to grant them all their needs and demands.
References
Albright, E. and D’Adamo, K., 2017. The Media and Human Trafficking: A Discussion and Critique of the Dominant Narrative. In Human Trafficking Is a Public Health Issue (pp. 363-378). Springer International Publishing.
Andrijasevic, R. and Mai, N., 2016. Trafficking (in) Representations: Understanding the recurring appeal of victimhood and slavery in neoliberal times. Anti-Trafficking Review, (7).
Bhabha, J., 2015. Looking back, looking forward: The UN Trafficking Protocol at fifteen. Anti-Trafficking Review, (4), p.3.
Brennan, D., 2015. Myths Meet Reality: How We Are Not Fighting Trafficking or Supporting Trafficking Survivors. NYL Sch. L. Rev., 60, p.605.
Choi-Fitzpatrick, A., 2015. From rescue to representation: A human rights approach to the contemporary antislavery movement. Journal of Human Rights, 14(4), pp.486-503.
Cojocaru, C., 2015. Sex trafficking, captivity, and narrative: Constructing victimhood with the goal of salvation. Dialectical Anthropology, 39(2), p.183.
De Shalit, A., Heynen, R. and van der Meulen, E., 2014. Human trafficking and media myths: Federal funding, communication strategies, and Canadian anti-trafficking programs. Canadian Journal of Communication, 39(3), p.385.
Decker, M.R., Crago, A.L., Chu, S.K., Sherman, S.G., Seshu, M.S., Buthelezi, K., Dhaliwal, M. and Beyrer, C., 2015. Human rights violations against sex workers: burden and effect on HIV. The Lancet, 385(9963), pp.186-199.
Persaud, R.B. and Chin, C.B., 2016. From sexation to sexualization: dispersed submission in the racialized global sex industry. Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 29(1), pp.270-289.
Watson, S.L., Loizzo, J., Watson, W.R., Mueller, C., Lim, J. and Ertmer, P.A., 2016. Instructional design, facilitation, and perceived learning outcomes: an exploratory case study of a human trafficking MOOC for attitudinal change. Educational Technology Research and Development, 64(6), pp.1273-1300.
Weitzer, R., 2015. Human trafficking and contemporary slavery. Annual review of sociology, 41, pp.223-242.
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