n the United States, an unlikely movie, the Sound of Freedom, has topped the U.S. box office and is a surprising blockbuster of Summer 2023. This isn’t your average superhero popcorn movie. We watch as a father in Honduras is approached by a supposed talent recruiter, who after hearing his daughter sing at a local market, convinces the father to bring his children to audition for a talent program. Seeing the room filled with children, he is told to pick up his children at 7pm. When he returns, there is nothing but a dark, empty room. His children are gone—lost in the darkness that is human trafficking.
As a 20-year veteran in the fight against human trafficking, I have worked for non-governmental organizations, served at the highest levels of the U.S. government, and most recently, the United Nations. I have sadly seen the real-life version of this movie many times. But as we observe World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, I’m deeply troubled that the upward trajectory of fighting the scourge of human trafficking has stalled. We know that the COVID-19 crisis contributed to trafficking victims being pushed deeper in the shadows and a recent UN UNODC study confirms this trend, particularly in developing countries. In 2020, detection of human trafficking witnessed an 11% drop, while convictions experienced a 27% decrease, alarmingly showing that the global gains in improving the criminal justice responses have reversed. In addition, 41% of victims who were able to escape human trafficking took the initiative to contact law enforcement themselves, showing that in our decades of strategies to fight human trafficking, we still have much work to do.
Situations of human trafficking are complex and multi-faceted. While our heart strings are tugged at the horrific reality of child sex trafficking as shown in The Sound of Freedom, there are more recent examples of human trafficking that you may be interacting with and not even know it. In 2023, there are emerging trends showing that even those answering routine inquiry/call lines might be doing so under force, fraud, or coercion. Particularly in Asia, thousands of individuals are being forced to work in online scam centers in countries such as Cambodia, Malaysia, and Myanmar. The increase of social media use and messaging apps have allowed traffickers to fine tune their efforts, preying on those hopeful for promises of good employment and decent wages. The economic impact of these new forms of human trafficking can be significant, with an Australian Bureau of Statistics report showing that in 2021-2022, 65% of Australians had been contacted regarding scam offers, a 10% increase over previous years. In addition, it is estimated that $1 million Australian dollars a day are lost through these scams and the number continues to grow. Human trafficking victims are forced into this work by cartel leaders who have found this lucrative new form of human trafficking pitching everything from the promise of a job, to sham crypto currency get rich schemes.
As traffickers insidiously bring new forms of human trafficking to market, we need to redouble our efforts and collectively work together to not just rescue victims but invest in strategies that prevent the most vulnerable from being trafficked in the first place. Although, not a comprehensive list, I offer a few suggestions that have resulted from learnings throughout my professional career:
- Involve the Community Involving locals and the community in strategies to end human trafficking yields results. In my past work in Ghana, I saw parents heartbreakingly lie to western NGO’s and indicate that their own children were victims of trafficking in order to access education, school uniforms and supplies. The best intentions were producing horrible results and community-led efforts showed investing in skills training and on-site sustainable aquaculture (fish farming) were the real needs. Vulnerable community members need to be empowered and involved in decision making in order to prevent human trafficking.
- Collaboration (at all levels) is Key As the world bounces between multiple economic crises, including rising inflation, food and energy challenges, and conflict, we will not see a significant volume of additional resources in the near-term needed to end human trafficking once and for all. Collaborations are the “must” way to progress. One of the strongest examples of collaboration I have seen is Alliance 8.7. Created in 2017, it is a global partnership of countries scaling up concrete solutions that work and driving innovation and maximizing resources—together. They utilize Pathfinder countries committed to developing and piloting new strategies and putting into practice national action plans committed to ending child labor, forced labor and human trafficking. As the world gathers in September for the 2023 UN Sustainable Development Goals Summit, it is my hope that countries lean-in to efforts of SDG 8.7 and take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labor, end modern slavery and human trafficking once and for all, by strengthening Alliance 8.7.
- Investment in evidence-based data With new and emerging forms of human trafficking, there is the need for more timely, reliable and relevant research. Most importantly, we also need to ensure that research is free from political sway or involvement. During my career, I have witnessed members of governments attempt to sway the interpretation of data of highly competent human trafficking researchers. This is abhorrent and wrong. Whether it is reports that I have been involved with like the UN ILO’s Global Estimates of Modern Slavery and the U.S. DOL List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor required by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, or the U.S. State Department’s TIP Report, countries and organizations must act with integrity and recognize and publish what the actual research is telling them. More importantly, government and multilateral leaders must act with the utmost integrity to ensure that the accurate data sees the light of day and be held accountable if they don’t. Victims of human trafficking, those who are hidden in the shadows, deserve this light to be accurately shown.
- Create and enhance laws that deliver economic consequences One of the bright spots in the fight against human trafficking are new laws aimed at dealing economic blows to those who seek to profit from forced labor and human trafficking. In a year since the passage of the U.S. Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, U.S. Custom and Border Patrol has stopped nearly 4,300 shipments suspected to be tainted with human trafficking and accomplished enforcement actions valued at over $1.3 billion. Businesses are getting the message through their pocketbooks that you cannot have forced labor and human trafficking in your supply chain. The EU, and countries including Canada and Australia are also undertaking these efforts, showing that more countries in the world are not just keeping products tainted with forced labor and human trafficking out of their borders, but are focused on eliminating its existence.
On World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, it’s important to remember that for many people in the world, the Sound of Freedom is not a movie. The sound of freedom is a noise that the most vulnerable to human trafficking cannot hear without our help. By helping spread awareness and being informed consumers, all global citizens can assist in ending the violent scourge of human trafficking once and for all.
a global affairs media network
What is the Actual Sound of Freedom for Human Trafficking Victims
July 30, 2023
The Sound of Freedom because a surprise blockbuster for this summer, bringing needed visibility to the tragedy that is human trafficking. Today, human trafficking is becoming more prevalent and more complicated to fight, but there are steps we can take to do better, writes Martha E. Newton.
I
n the United States, an unlikely movie, the Sound of Freedom, has topped the U.S. box office and is a surprising blockbuster of Summer 2023. This isn’t your average superhero popcorn movie. We watch as a father in Honduras is approached by a supposed talent recruiter, who after hearing his daughter sing at a local market, convinces the father to bring his children to audition for a talent program. Seeing the room filled with children, he is told to pick up his children at 7pm. When he returns, there is nothing but a dark, empty room. His children are gone—lost in the darkness that is human trafficking.
As a 20-year veteran in the fight against human trafficking, I have worked for non-governmental organizations, served at the highest levels of the U.S. government, and most recently, the United Nations. I have sadly seen the real-life version of this movie many times. But as we observe World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, I’m deeply troubled that the upward trajectory of fighting the scourge of human trafficking has stalled. We know that the COVID-19 crisis contributed to trafficking victims being pushed deeper in the shadows and a recent UN UNODC study confirms this trend, particularly in developing countries. In 2020, detection of human trafficking witnessed an 11% drop, while convictions experienced a 27% decrease, alarmingly showing that the global gains in improving the criminal justice responses have reversed. In addition, 41% of victims who were able to escape human trafficking took the initiative to contact law enforcement themselves, showing that in our decades of strategies to fight human trafficking, we still have much work to do.
Situations of human trafficking are complex and multi-faceted. While our heart strings are tugged at the horrific reality of child sex trafficking as shown in The Sound of Freedom, there are more recent examples of human trafficking that you may be interacting with and not even know it. In 2023, there are emerging trends showing that even those answering routine inquiry/call lines might be doing so under force, fraud, or coercion. Particularly in Asia, thousands of individuals are being forced to work in online scam centers in countries such as Cambodia, Malaysia, and Myanmar. The increase of social media use and messaging apps have allowed traffickers to fine tune their efforts, preying on those hopeful for promises of good employment and decent wages. The economic impact of these new forms of human trafficking can be significant, with an Australian Bureau of Statistics report showing that in 2021-2022, 65% of Australians had been contacted regarding scam offers, a 10% increase over previous years. In addition, it is estimated that $1 million Australian dollars a day are lost through these scams and the number continues to grow. Human trafficking victims are forced into this work by cartel leaders who have found this lucrative new form of human trafficking pitching everything from the promise of a job, to sham crypto currency get rich schemes.
As traffickers insidiously bring new forms of human trafficking to market, we need to redouble our efforts and collectively work together to not just rescue victims but invest in strategies that prevent the most vulnerable from being trafficked in the first place. Although, not a comprehensive list, I offer a few suggestions that have resulted from learnings throughout my professional career:
- Involve the Community Involving locals and the community in strategies to end human trafficking yields results. In my past work in Ghana, I saw parents heartbreakingly lie to western NGO’s and indicate that their own children were victims of trafficking in order to access education, school uniforms and supplies. The best intentions were producing horrible results and community-led efforts showed investing in skills training and on-site sustainable aquaculture (fish farming) were the real needs. Vulnerable community members need to be empowered and involved in decision making in order to prevent human trafficking.
- Collaboration (at all levels) is Key As the world bounces between multiple economic crises, including rising inflation, food and energy challenges, and conflict, we will not see a significant volume of additional resources in the near-term needed to end human trafficking once and for all. Collaborations are the “must” way to progress. One of the strongest examples of collaboration I have seen is Alliance 8.7. Created in 2017, it is a global partnership of countries scaling up concrete solutions that work and driving innovation and maximizing resources—together. They utilize Pathfinder countries committed to developing and piloting new strategies and putting into practice national action plans committed to ending child labor, forced labor and human trafficking. As the world gathers in September for the 2023 UN Sustainable Development Goals Summit, it is my hope that countries lean-in to efforts of SDG 8.7 and take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labor, end modern slavery and human trafficking once and for all, by strengthening Alliance 8.7.
- Investment in evidence-based data With new and emerging forms of human trafficking, there is the need for more timely, reliable and relevant research. Most importantly, we also need to ensure that research is free from political sway or involvement. During my career, I have witnessed members of governments attempt to sway the interpretation of data of highly competent human trafficking researchers. This is abhorrent and wrong. Whether it is reports that I have been involved with like the UN ILO’s Global Estimates of Modern Slavery and the U.S. DOL List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor required by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, or the U.S. State Department’s TIP Report, countries and organizations must act with integrity and recognize and publish what the actual research is telling them. More importantly, government and multilateral leaders must act with the utmost integrity to ensure that the accurate data sees the light of day and be held accountable if they don’t. Victims of human trafficking, those who are hidden in the shadows, deserve this light to be accurately shown.
- Create and enhance laws that deliver economic consequences One of the bright spots in the fight against human trafficking are new laws aimed at dealing economic blows to those who seek to profit from forced labor and human trafficking. In a year since the passage of the U.S. Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, U.S. Custom and Border Patrol has stopped nearly 4,300 shipments suspected to be tainted with human trafficking and accomplished enforcement actions valued at over $1.3 billion. Businesses are getting the message through their pocketbooks that you cannot have forced labor and human trafficking in your supply chain. The EU, and countries including Canada and Australia are also undertaking these efforts, showing that more countries in the world are not just keeping products tainted with forced labor and human trafficking out of their borders, but are focused on eliminating its existence.
On World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, it’s important to remember that for many people in the world, the Sound of Freedom is not a movie. The sound of freedom is a noise that the most vulnerable to human trafficking cannot hear without our help. By helping spread awareness and being informed consumers, all global citizens can assist in ending the violent scourge of human trafficking once and for all.
