Who are the victims?
Trafficking is a hidden phenomenon that occurs primarily within hotel rooms or apartments. Victims are primarily women and children . In general, they are between 14 and 16 years of age, but some of them are younger. Victims usually display low levels of education, emotional difficulties, and come from underprivileged environments.
The vulnerability of children to trafficking is often a consequence from various factors :
• Poverty and economic problems,
• Need or desire for affection, money or to migrate,
• Access to new technology,
• Restrictions to immigration policies,
• Corruption and absence or inefficiency of justice and social systems,
• Armed conflicts. In this situation, the vulnerability of children is increased: girls and boys are recruited to become young soldiers or are sexually assaulted.
The consequences of trafficking are many and are devastating . On the physical level, trafficking can result in pregnancies and repeated abortions, the spread of HIV-AIDS, abuse of drugs and alcohol, malnutrition and early death. On the psychological level, victims can suffer from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a loss of family and social ties, mental disorders, loss of self esteem, a decrease in their integrity and a lack of trust in others.
Where? How many? : The situation in Canada and internationally
On the worldwide scale , few reliable statistics on the exact number of child trafficking victims within the world are available. This helps explain the clandestine nature of the phenomenon, by the difficulties in identifying children who are victims as well as the absence of political will of certain governments.
The State Department of the United States of America estimates that there are between 600 000 and 800 000 victims per year, the United Nations estimates around 4 million, and UNICEF considers that 1.2 million children are victims of trafficking every year.
50% of the victims of international trafficking are children, and out of those 70% are sold for sexual exploitation.
No country is excluded from this plague. Human trafficking generally starts from southern countries towards northern countries and equally between southern countries or even within the same country.
The principal countries of origin are found within South and South-East Asia . Since the decline of the Soviet Union, countries of ex-USSR, Eastern Europe and central Europe have become the second group of countries of origin. The third group involves Latin American countries and the Caribbean . The last group includes African countries.
More specifically, the situation in Canada is alarming. Canada is considered to be a country of destination and of transit for the trafficking of women and children. According to Royal Canadian Mounted Police, approximately 800 individuals per year are subjected to external trafficking in Canada . From 1,500-2,000 people are displaced illegally from Canada to the United States each year and therefore are vulnerable to trafficking. In Canada , child trafficking victims of external trafficking are primarily found within larger cities such as Toronto , Montreal or Vancouver , but equally in many tourist cities. In regards to internal trafficking, children coming from aboriginal communities are overrepresented in certain regions. According to a study completed in 2004, 30%-40% of victims of sexual exploitation for commercial purposes in Alberta and British Columbia came from aboriginal communities.
How are victims recruited? The case in Quebec
In regards to external trafficking, traffickers make attractive promises for great employment opportunities or marriage proposals. Lies, manipulation and blackmail are frequently used for recruitment purposes. Traffickers also use legal industries, like travel, marriage, or modelling agencies, as a front for attracting young girls. Traffickers may also pass through employment agencies. Immigration counsellors, particularly in the Philippines, promise a temporary work visa for recruiting individuals as live-in caregivers who will eventually be exploited in Quebec .
In regards to internal trafficking, recruiting is even done within Quebec. It is often an act of street gangs and relies on the establishment of a personal rapport and a dependence of the victim on the trafficker.
Recruitment is done by a girl or boy who attempts to make personal bonds with the future victim, by approaching her within public areas, namely at schools, metro stations, in parks or in shopping malls. By obtaining useful information, the recruiter will propose an activity that responds to the victim's previously expressed needs. During the following weeks, the recruiter will continue to manipulate the young girl by isolating her from her friends and by becoming a person she trusts. The young girl often believes that she is involved in a loving relationship with the young boy who has recruited her. In attempting to break the victim and force them into prostitution, traffickers maintain control by sequestering her, providing her drugs, psychologically threatening her or using weapons. During the recruitment process, it has been reported that many girls receive gifts and other material goods, which result in creating a debt which the victim must then reimburse. This pretext is often used to persuade victims into prostitution.
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