In today’s world, one might think that slavery is a thing of
the past, but truth be told, history has a way of repeating itself. It comes as
no surprise that where there is good, there is bad. Where there are good people,
there are bad people taking advantage of them. Slavery has many forms, one of
them is human trafficking.
Now, what is meant by human trafficking? “The United Nations defines human
trafficking as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt
of persons by improper means (such as force, abduction, fraud, or coercion) for
an improper purpose including forced labor or sexual exploitation.” (“Overview
of Human Trafficking”, 2019). Unfortunately, it is a child’s play for
traffickers to prey on people who are hoping for a better future and trapping
them into this cruel business through false promises of good employment,
financial stability, good education, or romantic relationship, etc. In some of
the worst cases, poor families sell their own children to traffickers for money.
In Pakistan, countless men and women become victims of human trafficking every
year whether it be by means of abduction, force, or fraud. According to an
article, “In 2012, 823 victims of human trafficking in Pakistan sought help in
shelters.” (“Five Facts About Human Trafficking in Pakistan”, 2019). One of the
most recent cases of human trafficking in Pakistan includes the smuggling of
women to China for prostitution. The scheme of this illegal act was that
Pakistani women were deceived into marrying Chinese men, and once they were in
China, they were forced into prostitution. One of the victims of this inhuman
business, Sumaira, tells the Associated Press in Gujranwala how she was raped
repeatedly by Chinese men at a house in Islamabad where she was kept after her
brothers arranged her marriage to an older Chinese man, for which her brothers
were paid money. Fortunately, many Chinese men were arrested in a raid by
Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency. Also, a few women/victims were rescued
during the operation. When Chinese authorities found out about the trafficking,
they also successfully rescued many Pakistani women that were trafficked into
China. Boys and girls also bought, sold , rented or kidnapped to work in
organized, illegal begging rings, prostution and in agriculture bounded labour
.Illegal labour agents charge high fees to parents with false promise of decent
work for their children , who are later exploited and subject to force labour in
domestic servituade, unskilled labour, small shops and other sectors..
Before 2018, there were no laws regarding trafficking, but all thanks to UNODC
(United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) for making efforts to enact laws
regarding this issue. In 2018 Trafficking in Persons Report, Pakistan was
upgraded to Tier 2 from Tier 3 which means that although Pakistan does not yet
fully meet the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking, it is making
efforts to come to that point. (“Five Facts About Human Trafficking in
Pakistan”, 2019).
In conclusion, human trafficking is one of the major issues of Pakistan which
should be taken care of. Government authorities should implement ways to control
human trafficking in our beloved country. Support groups, strict laws, and
security are some of the things our Government officials should focus on. Being
citizens of Pakistan, we also have some responsibilities such as raising
awareness about human trafficking, assisting victims of human trafficking, and
establishing an independent anti-slavery organization.