Nearly one and a half million individuals in North America are trafficked; nearly as many individuals are exploited in South America, and nearly 12 million individuals are trafficked in Asia. Statistics show that around the world nearly 21 million people are trafficked, whether it be for physical labor or sex trafficking. These victims are forced to farm, beg, manufacture, mine or prostitution themselves in such a manner that the perpetrators profit.
Unfortunately, despite the laws and policies against the practice, few convictions are made on the grounds of human trafficking. In 2010, 2011 and 2012, the number of convictions worldwide remained under five thousand cases at 3,619 convictions, 4,239 and 4,746. Targeting lower class individuals, traffickers promise a better future in terms of work, education or residence, leverage or traps used to control their victims.
With five and a half million young victims world wide, children are the most vulnerable to the abuse and violence of child trafficking. Indiscriminate among those it takes, human trafficking takes children from all countries, all demographics and, within the United States, all states.
Adopting the Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons, the United Nations condemned the crime and delineated actions to combat the issue which includes raising founds and developing programs to assist victims. Furthermore, the organization has dedicated the month of January to advocate and to educate others about human trafficking; January has been the international month for human trafficking for four years since its inception.
To focus attention and aid for the children in need, UNICEF has invested itself to train professionals, health workers and officials to identify human trafficking and to prevent and stop it from continuing. Some signs that are associated with an individual being trafficked include lacking knowledge of one's immediate environment, working unusually long hours, acting nervous and apprehensive and providing uncorroborative stories. UNICEF also engages communities to teach locals about the dangers and possibilities of human trafficking. In addition, the international organization lobbies for laws to protect children.
With the adequate support, initiatives such as The End Trafficking Project led by these organizations could encourage people to become more knowledgeable and active in stopping human trafficking.
