Human Trafficking In Canada

Introduction The Problem Human trafficking is the 2nd largest criminal enterprise in the world. According to the United Nations, “this $32 billion industry entraps over 2.5 million innocent lives per annum”. Furthermore, the UN describes “trafficking in persons” as the recruitment, transportation and harbouring of a person by means of deception or coercion, for the purposes of exploitation (United Nations: Palermo Protocol). Trafficking can occur through a variety of means, from organized criminal groups that operate large-scale transnational networks with both political and economic contacts, to small-scale operations that traffic only one or two people at a time. Victims of this modern day slavery are often women and children

A majority of these incidences are found in countries that are suffering from extreme poverty, where there are no economic alternatives, and as a result traffickers are able to easily manipulate the people into being trafficked. This transnational crime presents a huge threat to human rights as well as the mental, emotional and physical health of the trafficked individuals. This report will focus on what needs to be done to hinder the rapid progression of the crime. The report will cover Canadian Laws that have been implemented, International policies on the matter, and probable solutions.

Canadian Laws Measures and Assessment

After signing the UN protocol on Trafficking in Persons in 2002, Canada passed laws to deter trafficking activities within its borders. The first piece of legislation that prohibited any form of trafficking in persons was present in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act in 2002. Outlined under section 118 of the IRPA, the act broadly covered the criminal offence of trafficking in persons. Although this was a good attempt to eradicate human trafficking in Canada, the IRPA’s provisions made human trafficking a matter of cross - border crime. This made it

Indigenous women and girls are constantly being moved from reserves in the form of urban to rural migration. As these women leave their homes and set out for the city in hopes of building a better life, traffickers pry on their vulnerability and pull them into the world of prostitution. Interestingly enough the root of this marginalized group being trafficked stems from the link formed between Indigenous women and sex work in the Indian Act. Due to the stereotype that colonialism labeled this group with, they have become the largest target for traffickers. Furthermore, the media is also responsible for painting indigenous women (during coverage on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women) as vulnerable and promiscuous. Therefore, this incorrect mentality society has of Indigenous women, forces their communities to suffer since they do not receive the same attention or aid for being trafficked. As a result, the deviance of these women has led the justice system to criminalizing them rather than work towards solutions. Instead of receiving proper care and support, trafficked indigenous women are frequently arrested, charged and prosecuted for prostitution and drug or immigration violations. There are groups that try to ease the transition of victims back into society. Sadly, majority of them only offer monetary compensation, because the economic and psychological empowerment takes a