Human trafficking means slavery or forced servitude, and usually involves transporting or harboring people. The U.S. State Department estimates up to 400,000 women and female children are trafficked across international borders each year, most for commercial sexual purposes.

Trafficking differs from voluntary sex work in that the women and children who are trafficked have been kidnapped or coerced.

The most vulnerable people in a region – ethnic minorities, those living in poverty, and refugees – are the most vulnerable to exploitation and enslavement of this kind. Russia, Eastern Europe, the Philippines, Thailand, and Iraq are countries out of which women are most often trafficked.

Women and girls involved in forced prostitution and/or sexual exploitation experience violations of every human right they possess. They may be sexually assaulted on a regular basis. They are enslaved. Further, even if they are rescued or escape, governments are often ill-prepared to deal with victims of human trafficking – they may experience discrimination, deportation, and even criminal prosecution.

No person should suffer this terrible degradation and violence. We must commit to ending human trafficking and to better providing for its victims.

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Humantrafficking.org