USING SURVIVORS’ VOICES TO GUIDE THE IDENTIFICATION AND CARE OF TRAFFICKED PERSONS BY U.S. HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS (2019)
Evidence suggests that trafficked persons in the United States frequently seek health care, yet little is known of their experiences, including reasons for seeking assistance, interactions with professionals, and barriers to obtaining care. To gain a better understanding, a search was conducted for empirical data collected directly from trafficked persons about their US health care experiences, published in peer-reviewed journals within the past 10 years, and in the English language. Four databases were searched and of the 1,605 articles initially identified, 8 met all inclusion criteria. Data from 420 participants demonstrated a wide range of physical and mental health complaints and 50%–98% reported seeking health care services in diverse medical settings during their exploitation. Barriers to care occurred at various levels, and although some are not modifiable, others are amendable by changes in the behaviors of professionals. A trauma-informed, rights-based approach to care would address many of these issues and create feasible treatment plans.
Citation: Armstrong, S. and V.J. Greenbaum (2019) ‘Using Survivors’ Voices to Guide the Identification and Care of Trafficked Persons by U.S. Health Care Professionals’, Advanced Emergency Nursing Journal, 41(2), pp. 244-260.
REINTEGRATION AS AN END OF TRAFFICKING ORDEAL: A QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION OF VICTIMS’ PERCEPTIONS (2018)
The goal of rescue and rehabilitation efforts for child sex trafficking survivors in India is reintegration into the child’s family and community. However, survivors sometimes return to sex work despite the “reintegration” process. This exploratory qualitative study attempts to examine the victims’ perceptions of their return home and aspirations for the future. In-depth interviews were conducted with 30 trafficking survivors rescued from red light establishments who were residing in a government shelter. Open coding was used to determine thematic content related to the intersection of trafficking, domestic violence, child maltreatment, and the implications for these regarding reintegration successes. The data suggest mandatory repatriation of rescued survivors is often not desirable, as many of the girls were not enthusiastic about family reunification. Participants who were misled into trafficking through fraud were quite eager to go back to their families, while those who had fled their homes due to domestic violence and later found themselves in a trafficking situation were afraid to return.
Citation: Pandey, S. (2018) ‘Reintegration as an end of Trafficking Ordeal: A Qualitative Investigation of Victims’ Perceptions’, International Journal of Criminal Justice Sciences, 13(2).
EDITORIAL: MOVING FORWARD—LIFE AFTER TRAFFICKING (2018)
Spectacular stories of life in trafficking saturate the media, politicians’ speeches, and non-governmental organisations’ fundraising campaigns. With so much focus on stories of brutality, or of dramatic escapes and rescues, there has been little attention to what happens after trafficking. This special issue of the Anti-Trafficking Review shines a light on trafficking outcomes—both for those who have been labelled by state actors or the NGO sector as trafficked, as well as those whose exploitation garnered no legal protections or service provision. The volume puts centre stage the challenges and successes after trafficking that largely have unfolded off stage. It points to contradictions, slippages, missed opportunities, and failings.
Citation: Brennan, Denise and Sine Plambech (2018) ‘Editorial: Moving Forward – Life After Trafficking’, Anti-Trafficking Review.
Consuming Life after Anti-Trafficking (2018)
Vulnerable Here or There? Examining the vulnerability of victims of human trafficking before and after return (2018)
This article deals with how return programmes for rejected asylum seekers and irregular migrants construct and create vulnerabilities. Few studies have explored the role of assistance provided through such programmes for the sex worker returnees and victims of trafficking who return through them. Even fewer holistically examine a return programme through data elicited in both destination and origin locations, before and after return. That is what we aim to do in this article. We first look at the legal-bureaucratic construction of vulnerability in a host state, Norway, and the systemic logic of its efforts to return victims of trafficking. We then look at how returnees narrate their experiences of and perspectives on vulnerability upon return to their country of origin, Nigeria. This study, together with the broader research within this field, indicates that flaws in programme implementation can in fact exacerbate vulnerabilities rather than help returnees overcome them.
Citation: Erlend Paasche, Erlend, May-Len Skilbrei and Sine Plambech (2018) ‘Vulnerable Here or There? Examining the vulnerability of victims of human trafficking before and after return’, Anti-Trafficking Review.
Dilemmas in Rescue and Reintegration: A critical assessment of India’s policies for children trafficked for labour exploitation (2018)
This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the Indian government’s efforts to combat pervasive child trafficking for labour exploitation through rescue and reintegration of affected children. It evaluates the extensive policy and legal frameworks against on-the-ground realities in the states of Bihar and Rajasthan, using empirical findings from a qualitative study carried out by the FXB Center for Health & Human Rights at Harvard University. The results demonstrate that current practices fail to adhere to human rights norms or protect rescued children from risk of future exploitation. They underscore important challenges in the rescue and reintegration of trafficked children, and call into question the singular focus on this category of post-harm response over preventative interventions. The findings point to a critical need for future research, sustained multi-stakeholder discussion and concrete reforms.
From Passive Victims to Partners in Their Own Reintegration: Civil society’s role in empowering returned Thai fishermen (2018)
Despite the significant international attention to human trafficking in the fishing industry in Southeast Asia, victims continue to experience poor outcomes after their return to Thailand. The Labour Rights Promotion Network (LPN) has assisted many returned fishermen in the difficult journey that begins after their rescue and repatriation. In this paper, we argue that the poor outcomes are the product of systemic failures in the aftercare processes, which are not sufficiently victim-centred and discourage trafficked fishermen’s participation in prosecutions. This is the case in the criminal justice system, where flaws in victim identification and evidence collection can undermine trafficked persons’ rights and make it extremely difficult for them to obtain compensation—a significant factor in their recovery and reintegration. This same cycle of disenfranchisement is pervasive in reintegration services at large in Thailand, many of which are overly paternalistic and neglect survivors’ individual needs and interests. Civil society organisations can remediate these problems by supporting the government in its efforts to strengthen prosecutions and make the criminal justice system more victim-friendly. More broadly, civil society can contribute to a victim-centred approach that places aftercare in a larger perspective—one that extends beyond the purview of the criminal justice system. This paper will examine two emerging models in post-trafficking service provision: Unconditional Cash Transfers (UCTs) and volunteer social networks, which recognise victim empowerment not just as a means towards better law enforcement, but as an end in itself.
LIFE AFTER TRAFFICKING IN AZERBAIJAN: REINTEGRATION EXPERIENCES OF SURVIVORS (2018)
Assisting survivors of trafficking is considered one of the pillars of a human rights-based response Shelter, medical, psychological and legal assistance in the short term and job placement, accommodation and reunification with family and community in the long term are critical steps for helping them recover and feel in control of their lives and futures. This paper examines survivors’ experiences of trafficking and recovery in the Azerbaijani context, using questionnaire responses from 22 women who were trafficked for sexual exploitation between 2006 and 2009 and who were assisted upon their return. It finds that while Azerbaijan has been quite successful at short-term assistance, there are still significant gaps in longer-term assistance, especially with regard to job placement and family reunification. Survivors point to these gaps as significant impediments to full reintegration into society. Looking at their experiences can provide insights into improvements in assistance programmes that can be implemented in both Azerbaijan and elsewhere.
Citation: McCarthy, Lauren A. (2018) ‘Life after Trafficking in Azerbaijan: Reintegration experiences of survivors’, Anti-Trafficking Review.
This article, based on nine months of ethnographic data from a reintegration shelter for survivors of trafficking in Bangladesh, examines the tensions between claims of empowerment and the disempowering practices that undermine an organisation’s liberatory objective. The author documents how the leadership and other staff of an anti-trafficking NGO engage in regulating survivors’ desires, directing their desires by demanding that they perform a desire to engage in particular modes of self-improvement, and rehabilitating their desires to seek gender-conforming occupations. These three strategies together constitute disciplining desire, which I identify as a process of othering of poor Third World women and cultivating an ideal survivor subjectivity that conforms to gender and class expectations in the name of ‘reintegration’. This account encourages researchers to critically consider the micro-interactions that undermine the emancipatory goals within women’s empowerment regimes in the Global South.
Interview with Sara Donath, counsellor at FIZ Fachstelle Frauenhandel und Frauenmigration (FIZ – Advocacy and Support for Migrant Women and Victims of Trafficking, Switzerland). Sara Donath has counselled hundreds of survivors of trafficking and accompanied them into their new lives. We asked Sara about the experiences of these women after having experienced exploitation and violence.
Citation: FIZ Advocacy and Support for Migrant Women and Victims of Trafficking (2018) ‘The New Life: Construction sites and mine fields’, Anti-Trafficking Review.
Trafficked Women in Denmark—Falling through the cracks (2018)
The policy framework for combating human trafficking and protecting victims in Denmark does not match the reality faced by the majority of the migrant women arriving in the country. Especially in relation to women from African countries, the national legislation and regulations can be a source of frustration for agencies such as Reden International, which helps foreign women working in prostitution in Denmark, particularly victims of trafficking.
Citation: West, K. (2018) ‘Trafficked Women in Denmark – Falling through the cracks’, Anti-Trafficking Review.
Life after Trafficking: A gap in the UK’s modern slavery efforts (2018)
The Modern Slavery Act (2015) was a symbol of the UK’s commitment to combatting exploitation and human trafficking. Yet the Act offers little help to people who have been trafficked to, or in, the UK to recover and build a new life.
In Their Own Words… (2018)
The Editors approached service providers members of the Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) with a request to speak to people who are using their services and ask them about the difficulties they are currently facing, their hopes for the future, or anything else they want to share with the journal audience. The responses below were translated by the service providers or GAATW staff and have been edited only for clarity.
CONNECTING THE DOTS: SUPPORTING THE RECOVERY AND REINTEGRATION OF CHILDREN AFFECTED BY SEXUAL EXPLOITATION (2017)
The child protection sector lacks a robust evidence-base conveying what constitutes effective support during the recovery and reintegration process for children affected by commercial sexual exploitation (CSE). This report collates evidence on what children who have experienced sexual exploitation assess to be important for their recovery. This report represents a first attempt to start “connecting the dots” between primary data and existing literature to help states and service providers better respond to the needs of children affected by CSE.
Citation: Cody, C. (2017) Connecting the Dots: Supporting the Recovery and Reintegration of Children Affected by Sexual Exploitation. Bangkok, Thailand: ECPAT International.
POST TRAFFICKING VICTIMS IN MEXICO AND THEIR REINTEGRATION PROCESS: AN ANALYSIS ON THE GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSE (2017)
Most literature on trafficked persons indicates that they suffer wide ranges of psychological, physical, socioeconomic, and cultural obstacles, which limit their process of reintegration. Lack of proper assistance, as well as a support networks, makes victims vulnerable and potentially complicates the reintegration factor in the social, cultural, and personal spheres. This chapter analyzes the efforts of Mexico’s government to address the reintegration of post trafficking victims in the country. The study is based on information available from the government as well as the National Institute for Access to Information and Data Protection (INAI in Spanish).
Citation: Acharya, A.K. (2017) ‘Post Trafficking Victims in Mexico and Their Reintegration Process: An Analysis on the Government’s Response’ in Viano, E.C. (Ed.) Cybercrime, Organized Crime, and Societal Responses. Switzerland: Springer International Publishing, pp. 219-232.
Reintegration of Trafficking Survivors in Nepal (2017)
Within the last decade, there has been an increase in the number of programs with a focus on reintegration, mostly initiated by nongovernmental and not-for-profit agencies in partnership with the Government of Nepal. However research in this area is limited. In particular, there is a need for research to construct knowledge on the term “successful” reintegration for trafficking survivors and their own roles for ending the violence against them. This study found the key challenges faced by survivors in their reintegration include gender oppression, systemic enablers of oppression, social and religious exclusion, and micro-aggressive behaviors. The study further identified the cumulative negative impacts of these reintegration issues on survivors, including biological and physical trauma, emotional and psychological trauma, behavioral trauma, cognitive trauma and social trauma. The research used participatory action research as an emancipatory methodology grounded in a collective and solidarity approach with an intersectionality analysis to engage eight trafficking survivors as co-researchers/peer researchers, in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Citation: Dhungel, R. (2017) Reintegration of Trafficking Survivors in Nepal. Dissertation. Calgary, Alberta: University of Calgary.
MOVING ON. FAMILY AND COMMUNITY REINTEGRATION AMONG INDONESIAN TRAFFICKING VICTIMS (2017)
Available as a compressed pdf for mobile or slower Internet connection
For many trafficking victims, exit or escape from trafficking is only the beginning of another set of challenges that they face as they seek to recover and reintegrate after a trafficking experience. Not only do they need to come to terms with their exploitation, but they must also navigate the often-complex relationships with family and community after trafficking. Indeed, reintegration takes place within a wide social field – involving different family members and varying community environments. Men and women also experience reintegration differently, as do victims of different forms of exploitation, including those trafficked for sexual exploitation, domestic work, fishing, construction, factory work and plantation work. It is, therefore, important to disentangle the actions and reactions of different family and community members, each of whom may play a different role in either supporting or undermining a victim’s reintegration. This paper explores the challenges faced by trafficked persons as they seek to reintegrate into their families and communities. The paper equally considers settings in which reintegration success is supported and galvanized by family and community members, to identify what can be done to enhance the reintegration outcomes of all Indonesian trafficking victims.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2017) Moving On. Family and Community Reintegration Among Indonesian Trafficking Victims. Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
OUR LIVES. VULNERABILITY AND RESILIENCE AMONG INDONESIAN TRAFFICKING VICTIMS (2017)
Available as a compressed pdf for mobile or slower Internet connection
When trafficked persons escape their exploitation, it is often only the beginning of a complex and taxing process of recovery and reintegration. Trafficked persons must recover from the very serious and debilitating effects of trafficking exploitation. They often have a range of short- and long-term assistance needs, which are directly related to and often caused by their trafficking experiences, including issues related to housing and accommodation, physical and mental health, their economic situations, education and training, safety and security, legal status, legal issues and needs within the family. In addition, human trafficking is often a function of broader, structural inequality and individual vulnerability. This means that trafficked persons must also navigate and tackle underlying and pre-existing vulnerabilities that contributed to being trafficked and which also have the potential to undermine reintegration. This paper discusses what Indonesian trafficked persons have identified as their issues, vulnerabilities and resiliencies at different stages of their lives – before trafficking, as a consequence of trafficking exploitation and over the course of their recovery and reintegration. The paper also explores how vulnerability and resilience are influenced by external factors like the family and community setting into which trafficked persons seek to reintegrate and how vulnerability and resilience may fluctuate and change over time.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2017) Our Lives. Vulnerability and Resilience Among Indonesian Trafficking Victims. Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Going Home. Challenges in the Reintegration of Trafficking Victims in Indonesia (2016)
Available as a compressed pdf for mobile or slower Internet connection
Overall, there exists a range of laws, policies and programs currently in place in Indonesia aimed at supporting the reintegration of trafficked persons. These include efforts and initiatives by various government ministries and departments (at the national, provincial and district levels), NGOs and IOs. These initiatives and interventions afford often-critical support and services to many trafficked persons toward their recovery and reintegration after trafficking exploitation. Nonetheless, within Indonesia, many trafficking victims do not receive the assistance and support that they need to recover from their trafficking experiences and reintegrate into their families and communities. And those that do receive assistance do not always receive assistance that is suited to their needs or adequately supports their efforts to reintegrate. This is because there are some critical challenges in the current response in Indonesia, including that many trafficked persons are unidentified; reintegration is not clearly defined or understood; most assistance is “one-off” support; assistance programs are only short-term; victims face barriers in accessing available services; lack of information about reintegration assistance; lack of reintegration assistance to trafficked men; lack of case management and tailored reintegration support; and an uneven provision of assistance due to decentralization and the geographic distribution of services. This paper is intended as a starting point in better understanding how reintegration of trafficked persons currently takes place in Indonesia, including what is working well and what constitute constraints and obstacles for trafficked persons to the reintegration process.
Citation: Surtees, R., L.S. Johnson, T. Zulbahary and S.D. Caya (2016) Going Home. Challenges in the Reintegration of Trafficking Victims in Indonesia. Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Assisting Victims of Human Trafficking: Strategies to Facilitate Identification, Exit from Trafficking, and the Restoration of Wellness (2014)
Human trafficking is a pressing social justice concern. Social work is uniquely situated to address this problem. However, despite the profession’s commitment to social justice, the scholarship to equip social workers to address this issue has been largely absent from professional discourse. To address this gap, this article helps social work practitioners to assist victims of human trafficking. After orienting readers to the scope and process of human trafficking, the topics of victim identification, exit from trafficking, and the restoration of psychological wellness are discussed. By equipping themselves in these three areas, practitioners can advance social justice on behalf of some of the most exploited people in the world.
Citation: Hodge, D.R. (2014) ‘Assisting Victims of Human Trafficking: Strategies to Facilitate Identification, Exit from Trafficking, and the Restoration of Wellness’, Social Work, 59(2).
Re/integration of trafficked persons. Working with trafficked children and youth (2014)
Children and youth account for a significant proportion of persons trafficked from and within the Balkan region. Both boys and girls are trafficked. Some are exploited sexually; others are exploited for different forms of labor, including begging and street selling. Still others suffer multiple forms of exploitation while trafficked. Reintegrating trafficked children presents particularly complex issues and challenges. This paper discusses each of the different services and types of support needed to meet the reintegration needs of trafficked children and youth in the Balkan region and in line with international standards. It also looks into challenges facing service providers in offering this support to trafficked children and youth, including: the identification of trafficked children, options for providing foster care, and prosecution of perpetrators due to gaps in the criminal code. This paper offers recommendations about how each service area might be enhanced to better meet the reintegration needs of trafficked children and youth.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2014) Re/integration of Trafficked Persons. Working with Trafficked Children and Youth. Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Who Funds Re/integration? Ensuring sustainable services for trafficking victims (2014)
This article discusses the critical importance of re/integration services in the lives of trafficked persons and as central to an effective anti-trafficking response. It outlines how support and resources for re/integration services have so far not been widely available and the impact of this on trafficked persons. The article also discusses different strategies used within one re/integration initiative—the Trafficking Victims Re/integration Programme (TVRP)—to promote sustainable re/integration services given the limited (and now declining) funding for re/integration in the Balkans. These strategies, which have met varying degrees of success, include: advocating for government funding; leveraging private-sector funding and contributions; and establishing social enterprises to fund re/integration services. The article concludes by advocating greater attention to re/integration services for trafficked persons, including working creatively and collaboratively with civil society, government, the private sector and donors, to ensure that re/integration services are conceptualised, implemented and funded in ways that are sustainable and, thus, offer critical support to trafficked persons.
Citation: Surtees, R. and F. de Kerchove (2014) ‘Who Funds Re/integration? Ensuring Sustainable Services for Trafficking Victims’, Anti-Trafficking Review.
After trafficking. Experiences and challenges in the (re)integration of trafficked persons in the GMS (2013)
Reintegration is a process that involves many steps after the individual’s exit from trafficking. Trafficked persons should be afforded the full range of rights and protections they are entitled to and which are guaranteed under law. While many trafficked persons interviewed for this study were assisted and supported in these ways; many others went unidentified and unassisted as trafficking victims, which meant not receiving support to aid in their recovery and sustainable reintegration. Still others received some forms of assistance but not the full range of services that they required (and were entitled to) to move on from trafficking experience and successfully reintegrate. Some trafficked persons chose to decline some or all of the support offered to them. This research aims to understand the individual and diverse reintegration experiences of trafficked persons – what was positive, what was less successful and what might be done in the future to either replicate good practices or avoid problematic ones.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2013) After Trafficking. Experiences and Challenges in the (Re)integration of Trafficked Persons in the GMS. Bangkok, Thailand: United Nations Inter-agency Project on Human Trafficking and Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Balancing protection and prosecution in anti-trafficking policies A comparative analysis of reflection periods and related temporary residence permits for victims of trafficking in the Nordic countries, Belgium and Italy (2012)
This report describes and discusses approaches to reflection periods and temporary residence permits (TRP) for trafficking victims in seven European countries, analysing the consequences and likely outcomes of various models in terms of victim protection and prosecution of traffickers. The report considers reflection periods and related temporary residence permits in the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) as well as Belgium and Italy, given their long-standing experience of anti-trafficking work and different models. The main focus is how different policy solutions relate to victims’ needs, as well as the needs of states for victims to cooperate in investigation and prosecution of traffickers. These needs can be difficult to reconcile, and the report discusses implications of different models and approaches, given differences in countries’ social and political contexts. The aim is to develop a foundation for discussion of beneficial approaches, taking into account the diverse and sometimes conflicting interests in anti-trafficking policy. The crucial aim in establishing support and assistance structures is to make it possible for trafficked persons to break out of the cycle of violence and dependency and to make informed decisions about their future.
Citation: Brunovskis, A. (2012) Balancing protection and prosecution in anti-trafficking policies: A comparative analysis of reflection periods and related temporary residence permits for victims of trafficking in the Nordic countries, Belgium and Italy. Denmark: Nordic Council of Ministers.
Re/integration of trafficked persons. Supporting economic empowerment (2012)
A central feature of successful reintegration is access to a reasonable and sustainable standard of living, along with opportunities for economic empowerment. For many victims the desire to improve their economic situation and that of their families was a key factor in their decision to migrate. This desire does not subside after an individual is exploited in trafficking. For escaped or rescued victims of trafficking and their families, economic issues remain primary concerns after return and over the course of the individual’s reintegration. This paper discusses economic empowerment efforts for trafficking victims in the Balkans, drawing on the first hand experiences of both service providers and trafficked persons. The paper outlines the main economic empowerment models used in working with trafficked persons – namely job placement, micro business and social enterprises – and then discusses the challenges faced in using these models, as well as strategies used to address obstacles.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2012) Re/integration of Trafficked Persons. Supporting Economic Empowerment. Brussels, Belgium: King Baudouin Foundation and Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
A fuller picture. Addressing trafficking-related assistance needs and socio-economic vulnerabilities (2012)
Given the importance of assistance and protection in the lives of trafficked persons, it is critical that interventions are designed to meet their actual needs at various stages of their post-trafficking recovery. Understanding what these needs are, however, is not straightforward. A comprehensive picture necessitates engaging directly with trafficked persons in the design, implementation and evaluation of assistance interventions. That is, what do trafficking victims themselves see as important and useful assistance in order to be able to recover and move on from their often harrowing experiences? To what extent are these needs being met within the existing assistance system? How could interventions better respond to their different needs, at different stages of the recovery process? These questions are the main focus of this paper. A second area of examination for our report is the broader social and economic context of victims’ needs. This paper is one of three research papers which address a range of issues and challenges in the assistance framework in the Balkan and Former Soviet Union (FSU) region. It is based on fieldwork research conducted in Albania, Serbia and Moldova between 2006 and 2008.
Citation: Brunovskis, A. and R. Surtees (2012) A fuller picture. Addressing trafficking-related assistance needs and socio-economic vulnerabilities. Oslo, Norway: Fafo and Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Leaving the past behind. When trafficking victims decline assistance. Summary report for practitioners and policymakers (2012)
This abridged report summarizes the main findings and conclusions of the 2007 report Leaving the past behind? When victims of trafficking decline assistance. It explores why some trafficking victims decline assistance and under which circumstances. While many victims are never offered assistance, some trafficked persons who are offered assistance choose to forego the help available to them. Based on this, the main questions for our research were the following: (1) What are the reasons behind these decisions to decline assistance? (2) What happens for victims as a result of declining assistance? (3) Are there reasons for declining that can be addressed so that more victims will also benefit from assistance? The aim of the report is to describe the challenges both service providers and trafficked victims face in their post-trafficking lives, including the interplay between them. It is intended to contribute to a discussion of how assistance for trafficking victims is organized and provide some ideas for what could be done to better meet the needs of the diverse population who fall within the category of trafficking victim.
Citation: Brunovskis, A. and R. Surtees (2012) Leaving the past behind. When trafficking victims decline assistance. Summary report. Oslo, Norway: Fafo and Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
No place like home? Challenges in family reintegration of trafficked women (2012)
When trafficking exploitation ends, victims face a new set of challenges as they return and integrate into their home environment. A critical aspect is the victim’s relationship and interaction with the family. Family provides not only emotional and social support, but also (often vital) economic backstopping. Considering and accommodating family dynamics and relationships in reintegration responses has the potential to contribute substantially to more efficient and appropriate assistance and protection. The focus of this report is on family reintegration, but with particular attention to the different relationships within families. Identifying common points of tension can be useful in providing more targeted assistance to victims of trafficking, thereby decreasing the risk of social vulnerability or even re-trafficking. Awareness of potential conflict points in family relationships may provide options for early intervention and also be built into reintegration processes and responses. Further, understanding that post-trafficking relationships may be tense and complicated (at least at some stage and in response to certain triggers) can reduce the stress and disappointment felt by many former trafficking victims after reuniting with their families, when support is not offered in the form they expected or hoped for. This report examines these points of tension and external factors that add extra strain to family relationships, and discusses the implications for assistance to individual victims as well as their family members. The report concludes with concrete and specific recommendations for future program and policy design, which can serve as a basis for further discussion on how to best support the reintegration of trafficked persons. This paper is based on fieldwork research conducted in Albania, Serbia and Moldova between 2006 and 2008.
Citation: Brunovskis, A. and R. Surtees (2012) No place like home? Challenges in family reintegration of trafficked women. Oslo, Norway: Fafo and Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF VICTIMS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING: CHALLENGES, BARRIERS, AND PROMISING PRACTICES (2008)
This issue brief focuses on the needs of victims of human trafficking and the services available to meet those needs in the United States. Additionally, it discusses challenges and barriers to providing services to victims, international and domestic, adults and minors, and highlights innovative solutions to these challenges and promising practices to overcome barriers. Where appropriate, distinctions are made between international adult victims, international minor victims, and domestic minor victims. No information was available regarding domestic adult victims as agencies did not report providing services to this population. The purpose of this exploratory project was to develop information on how HHS programs are currently addressing the needs of victims of human trafficking, including domestic victims, with a priority focus on domestic youth and to inform and improve current and future program design for this extremely vulnerable population.
Citation: Clawson, H.J. and N. Dutch (2008) Addressing the Needs of Victims of Human Trafficking: Challenges, Barriers, and Promising Practices. United States: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Methods and Models for Mixing Services for Victims of Domestic Violence and Trafficking in Persons in Europe & Eurasia (2008)
The central research question presented is how best to provide assistance and support to both victims of trafficking and domestic violence which meets their individual and specific needs while taking into account the limited, and sometimes diminishing, resources available for these services. The study examines the various types of victim-centered services available in the region, those dedicated either to victims of DV or TIP and those where services for the two groups are mixed. Also considered is the extent to which these services are available and accessible to the two target groups. Of particular interest is how and where services may be mixed appropriately and where services should be distinct, as well as where additional services are required to meet the needs of victims of DV or TIP.
Citation: NEXUS Institute (2008) Methods and Models for Mixing Services for Victims of Domestic Violence and Trafficking in Persons in Europe and Eurasia. Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Detention of Trafficked Persons in Shelters: A Legal and Policy Analysis (2008)
In countries around the world it is common practice for victims of trafficking who have been “rescued” or who have escaped from situations of exploitation to be placed and detained in public or private shelters. In the most egregious situations, victims can be effectively imprisoned in such shelters for months, even years. This Study considers the international legal aspects of victim detention in shelters and weighs up the common justifications for such detention from a legal, policy and practical perspective. It is based on desk research of shelter practices in a number of countries and more direct exposure to shelters through field based research undertaken principally in South East Asia. The Study concludes that routine detention of victims or suspected victims of trafficking in public or private shelters violates a number of fundamental principles of international law and is therefore to be considered, prima facie, unlawful. The second part of the Study considers the practical and strategic implications of the various policy arguments that are advanced in favour of victim detention. Can victims consent to their own detention? Is it indeed true that detention provides the only – or even the best chance of delivering much needed support and protection to victims of trafficking? Is it reasonable to cite the overwhelming reliance on victim testimony in human trafficking cases as grounds for ensuring these witnesses be prevented from disappearing? Should the situation be different for victims who lack legal migration status? These questions are framed and responded to with particular reference to documented shelter practices in two countries of South East Asia: Cambodia and Thailand.
Citation: Gallagher, A. and E. Pearson (2008) Detention of Trafficked Persons in Shelters: A Legal and Policy Analysis. Available at SSRN.
RECOVERY AND REINTEGRATION OF CHILDREN FROM THE EFFECTS OF SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AND RELATED TRAFFICKING (2008)
Despite recent progress, more needs to be done to ensure that children do not become the victims of sexual exploitation and, where they do, that they receive appropriate forms of assistance to support their recovery and reintegration. This report focuses on two main themes, as follows: the keys to maximising the effectiveness of recovery and reintegration programmes and projects; and the barriers and challenges to be addressed to enable programmes and projects, and the children for whom they exist, to achieve their potential. Further, this report is concerned with the whole range of initiatives, projects, and programmes which are available to support children through the recovery and reintegration process. These include psychosocial, family, community, shelter-based and residential-based initiatives, and the provision of child-protection service in general. The range of such initiatives in itself reflects the complexity of the search for effective measures.
Citation: Asquith, S. and E. Turner (2008) Recovery and Reintegration of Children from the Effects of Sexual Exploitation and Related Trafficking. Geneva, Switzerland: Oak Foundation Child Abuse Program.
Why Victims of Trafficking Decline Assistance. Siren Report GMS 05 (2008)
While many victims of trafficking are never offered assistance, many of those who are offered assistance choose to forgo the help available to them. Why? The starting point for this study was that if women and girls declined assistance because they did not need it, then this was fine. However, if they declined assistance for other reasons but would benefit from some form of help, then the issue needs to be urgently addressed. The research for this report, conducted in three South-Eastern European countries from April to November 2006, aims to contribute to a discussion of how victim protection is organized and what could potentially be done to better meet the needs of the diverse population who fall within the category of ‘trafficking victim’.
Citation:This SIREN report summarizes: Brunovskis, A. and R. Surtees (2007) Leaving the past behind? When victims of trafficking decline assistance. Oslo, Norway: Fafo and Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Why Shelters? Considering Residential Approaches to Trafficking Assistance (2008)
Shelters are the most common form of assistance available to victims of trafficking in many parts of the world. Shelter programs offer a residentially based model, along with a wide range of services offered to clients during their tenure. For many trafficked persons, this form of assistance is vital in their initial stabilization and recovery as well as in their longer term assistance and reintegration. At the same time, the shelter model is not the right solution for many victims of trafficking. There are a number of reasons for this. Some issues are centered around limitations associated with the shelter model itself; the way in which shelter programs are currently designed; and the personal circumstances of some trafficked persons. Based on the experiences of both clients and staff, this paper explores situations in which the shelter model may not always be the best assistance option and considers how some of these issues may be addressed within the framework of residential programs and where non-residential models may better suit the needs of some trafficked persons.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2008) Why Shelters? Considering Residential Approaches to Trafficking Assistance. Vienna, Austria: NEXUS Institute.
Re/integration of Trafficked Persons: Handling ‘Difficult’ Cases (2008)
Reintegration of trafficked persons is a complex process, involving a range of services and interventions over the short and longer term. The standard package of reintegration services does not always or entirely meet the needs of all trafficked persons. Specialized reintegration services are needed for beneficiaries with more complex and “difficult” assistance needs. In some cases, more complex needs are a direct consequence of the trafficking experience – for example, becoming pregnant while trafficked, suffering injuries that require medical care and being severely traumatized as a result of trafficking. In other cases, these factors and characteristics preceded trafficking and may have contributed to the person’s vulnerability to trafficking – for example, persons with dependent family members, persons with disabilities, persons with past experiences of violence and social marginalization and persons with no family/social network. This paper explores “difficult” cases among trafficking victims in South-East Europe (SEE), including the ways in which these more complex needs are (and are not) being met within the existing reintegration framework in SEE and strategies for handling “difficult” cases.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2008) Re/integration of Trafficked Persons: Handling ‘Difficult’ Cases. Vienna, Austria: NEXUS Institute.
Re/integration of Trafficked Persons: How Can Our Work Be More Effective (2008)
Reintegration refers to the process of recovery and economic and social inclusion following a trafficking experience. This process is not only time consuming and expensive but also intensely complex, impacted by a range of personal factors as well as the broader social, cultural and economic framework. This paper explores issues and obstacles to reintegration identified by both service providers and trafficked persons in South-East Europe. These issues have significant implications for designing effective reintegration approaches in other countries in other regions.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2008) Re/integration of Trafficked Persons: How Can Our Work Ve More Effective? Vienna, Austria: NEXUS Institute.
Rehabilitation and Community Integration of Trafficking Survivors in the United States (2007)
Little has been reported on how survivors of trafficking integrate into new communities and what types of rehabilitation services and programs they may need to live independently and self-sufficiently. The release of federal funds under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to assist certain survivors of trafficking has spurred the rapid and eclectic development of advocacy programs and services. This article explores the needs of survivors of trafficking, the variety of services and advocacy programs that are developing to assist them, and the complex reactions of immigrant communities to incidents of trafficking.
Citation: Shigekane, R. (2007) ‘Rehabilitation and Community Integration of Trafficking Survivors in the United States’, Human Rights Quarterly, 29, pp. 112-136.
LEAVING THE PAST BEHIND? WHEN VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING DECLINE ASSISTANCE (2007)
A number victims of trafficking are offered assistance and they decline. With no systematized knowledge on the subject, it has been difficult to understand the reasons behind these decisions to decline assistance, what happened to these women after and as a result of declining assistance, and what paths their lives took after dropping out of contact with the assistance system. Understanding the reasons, experiences and perceptions of person who do not participate in assistance program can play an important role in developing and tailoring anti-trafficking services to meet the needs and desires of as many trafficking victims as possible. This original research determined that reasons for declining assistance center around three main categories: 1) an individual’s personal circumstances at the time of decision-making, 2) factors associated with the specifics of the assistance system itself and 3) the social context.
Citation: Brunovskis, A. and R. Surtees (2007) Leaving the Past Behind? When Victims of Trafficking Decline Assistance. Oslo, Norway: Fafo and Washington, D.C., United States: NEXUS Institute.
Listening to victims: Experiences of Identification, Return and Assistance in SEE (2007)
The voices of victims of trafficking and their stories are powerful. While a number of studies and documents have examined the identification, return and assistance process for trafficked persons, the focus has been primarily on the legal and administrative frameworks in which identification, return and assistance take place. The structure of these standard reports include principles and guidelines in the identification and assistance process, the legislative framework and studies of the assistance framework, including good practices. Far less common have been studies of how victims themselves have perceived and experienced their post-trafficking life and how they value and evaluate this intervention and assistance. This report maps — from the victim’s perspective — the full trajectory of intervention by anti-trafficking actors — from identification, through return and referral and during various phases of assistance and protection. While anti-trafficking interventions are clearly vital in the recovery of trafficked persons, victims reported both positive and negative experiences in these various stages of anti-trafficking interventions. This information from the individuals who are the intended beneficiaries of these interventions is vital for on-going efforts in transnational referral and assistance systems for trafficked persons. The study is based on interviews with 80 trafficked women and men, children and adults from Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Moldova, Romania and Serbia.
Citation: Surtees, R. (2007) Listening to Victims: Experiences of identification, return and assistance in South-Eastern Europe. Vienna, Austria: International Centre for Migration Policy Development.