Human Trafficking: The Dark Side of Labor Demand

As the society advances, the need for labor continues to increase, leading towards one of the biggest worldwide issues – human trafficking. According to No Bullying, an organization working towards ending modern-day slavery, “800,000 people trafficked across borders every single year” and “the average cost of a slave is approximately 90 dollars” (“Human Trafficking Facts”). Human trafficking is the illegal movement of people, typically for the purpose of forced labor or commercial sexual exploitation. The primary causes of the rise of this black market are the low risks, high profits for the traffickers, and the increasing demand for labor across the world, with the impact having lasting effects on the victim's’ life, many of which will die

International organizations such as the United Nation and G20 nations prioritize the wellbeing of the victims by revising legislations that ensure the safety of the victim (“Human Trafficking FAQs”). The UN passed laws and legislations such as United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children and United Nations Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea, and Air (King). Likewise, the G20 strongly believes in human rights and freedom, as they are also working towards ending human trafficking (Rosenzweig).

Individual countries are working towards passing laws and increasing social awareness for human trafficking, with the United States having one of the most active governments for this issue (Talamo). However, in the most prevalent countries, such as Thailand, little to none is being done to stop human trafficking. Their biggest seafood market is run mainly on slavery labor, which demonstrates the need of human trafficking for their economy (“Human Trafficking FAQs”). If the number of slaves decrease, the production fee will increase as a result, leading towards a downfall in their

Other participating countries of the international forum will cut trades and other foreign exchange, causing a major loss in that particular country. Not only is it harmful to their financial stability, it can also damage their relationships with others. Under the pressure of other nations, many governments will feel that they have no other choice but to join and adapt to this policy. The funding of passing a new law or legislation is not pricey, but enforcing one is. However, it is not an absurd amount of money that will cause one’s economy to go bankrupt. Instead, the long-term outcome will be positive. The high rate of HIV and AIDS will decline as sex trafficking slowly disappears, leading to a lower chance for the entire community (“Human Trafficking Facts”). The money to enforce this policy is not going to waste, as it will eventually repay the government.

The expected outcome from this policy will be a significant decrease in amount of trafficking. Modern-day slavery will transform into a high risk exchange and completely eliminate the low risk (“Human Trafficking Facts”). Traffickers will be afraid of the government, and the risk they are in by trafficking others will lead to the decline of this