Students will write a research policy paper/formal report on a national or international aspect of modern day slavery/forced and precarious labor that interests them. The paper should include: 1. an...

Sex Trafficking
Policy Report
Abstract
Slavery has always been deemed an evil, but the money aspect of it has made this evil continue to modern times. Sex trafficking is one form of slavery widely prevalent today but in hidden ways. Its wide prevalence and continuing harm makes it one of the most important human rights issue today.
This policy paper, discusses the important issue of sex trafficking. It discusses the definition of sex trafficking, its resemblance to slavery, its prevalence, the reasons for its prevalence, what has so far been done to address it and what needs to be done. The paper concludes with a set of recommendations to tackle sex trafficking as a global issue
Table of Contents
Sex Trafficking    1
Introduction    2
What is sex trafficking?    2
Similarities to slavery    3
Prevalence of sex trafficking    3
Why sex trafficking occurs?    4
What is being done to control sex trafficking?    5
Recommendations    6
First steps to be taken    7
Conclusion    8
References    9
Introduction
Slavery should have died more than a hundred years ago. Human beings appeared to have left this despicable practice in the 20th century, but all of that was actually a myth. Slavery never came to an end; it just took different forms. Today, slavery exists in the form of forced labour, domestic servitude, bonded labour, sex trafficking and organ trafficking among other forms. Through these forms of slavery people are forced into working for meagre or no return and the price of all their effort is exploited by someone else.
While other forms of slavery are prevalent world over, sex trafficking forms the greater part of human trafficking taking place today. Studies show that 80% of human trafficking is done for the sex market. Sex trafficking is a global issue that has led to misery of many. The greater part of victims of human trafficking are women and children even though boys and men also fall victim to this hideous crime. The profits made by sex trafficking rings is huge when compared to other illegal trade. In addition, the penalty against those committing this crime isn’t severe enough to curb the activity.
What is sex trafficking?
Sex trafficking also sometimes referred to as commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) is an illegal trade that involves kidnapping of victims, coercion, deception, transport and detention for the purpose of sexual exploitation in order to gain commercial benefits. Sex trafficking is a growing problem not only in the US but also all over the world. In spite of the fact that it is a clear violation of international human rights conventions since the profits associated with high profits and low risk, it continues to be a growing industry (George, 2011).
Sex trafficking is an ugly industry with victims often facing violence on a daily basis. Victims face rape multiple times a day, in addition to violent physical abuse. They face abuse from owners, pimps as well as customers. These individuals are also at a greater risk of diseases like HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. They are exploited, not given even fractions of what they earn, live in constant fear and remain heavily dependent on their traffickers being unable to provide for themselves (Green, 2008).
Similarities to slavery
Sex trafficking as well as human trafficking have striking similarities to slavery of olden days. Both activities involve taking humans and forcing them to do things they do not want to do. While slaves had no right and their trade was legitimate, sex trafficking is a crime and entails legal action. In spite of this the practice of sex trafficking continues. Slaves were subject to abuse and so are sex trafficking victims (Green, 2008).
The biggest similarity between slavery and trafficking is the aspect of forcing humans to engage in activities they do not wish to like sex. Even the number of people being traded in sex is similar to that of the African slave trade. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime state that, human trafficking accounts for 2.4 million victims every single year. In addition, the traffickers earn huge profit just like how slave traders earned huge profits in the past (George, 2011).
Prevalence of sex trafficking
The statistics regarding the prevalence of sex trafficking is alarming. Approximately 80% of all the human trafficking that takes place is sex trafficking, only 19% is done for labour. Based on these statistics, there are more human slaves today than ever in history. Estimates show that nearly 27 million adults and 13 million children are victims. The dreadful part of the picture is that since sex trafficking is hidden, the real number of victims can never actually be determined. So, what we know today is estimated to be only 25% of the true picture.
Estimates also reveal the darker side of sex trafficking where victims are not just abused but also end up dying. Around 30,000 victims of sex trafficking have been found to die each year due to abuse, torture and disease. Victims live under constant fear and threat. They are forced to work without consideration regarding their well-being. The amount of money they make for their traffickers or owners is huge. One study conducted in 2003, averaged that a sex slave earned their owner approximately $250,000 per year.
Proper estimates regarding human trafficking or sex trafficking is hard to obtain, however, some researchers estimate that nearly 80% of trafficking victims...