How the global health crisis has triggered new trafficking trends in Vietnam
Blue Dragon highlights the surge in domestic exploitation and surrogacy trafficking in Vietnam, the U.S. bans palm oil imports from one of Malaysia’s biggest producers, and TERA releases an online calculator to show how ethical business practices pay off.
Since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in May, the number of potential trafficking victims in Vietnam has increased due to financial hardships brought about by the pandemic. While the current situation makes movement across borders much more difficult, the financial struggles faced by families have caused a sharp increase in human trafficking cases. In particular, groups working on the ground have seen a rise in types of exploitation they encountered far less frequently before the health crisis hit.
One such group is Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation, a charitably funded NGO based in Hanoi whose primary concern is getting children in crisis out of dangerous situations. In collaboration with local law enforcement, the group investigates cases and supports young victims of human trafficking and slavery – often children from rural areas living in extreme poverty. Blue Dragon’s primary concern is to get them out of danger, reunite them with their families wherever possible, and offer support for recovery and growth, with a focus on awareness and prevention in high-risk communities.
Previously, the vast majority of its cases were Vietnamese girls and women who were deceived and sold into forced marriages or brothels in China. In recent months, however, they have seen a significant spike in domestic exploitation and surrogacy trafficking, as well as sex trafficking within Vietnam itself.
BDCF explains that, in addition to those groups traditionally at risk of trafficking, such as communities in border areas where poverty is widespread, ‘now even groups who weren’t previously vulnerable to trafficking can fall prey to this crime, because many people have lost their jobs’. With fewer employment opportunities in local communities and increased competition, job seekers, both male and female, are more likely to follow promises of work away from their homes. For instance, BDFC has seen a sudden spike in underage girls being taken from rural villages – usually from ethnic minority communities – and sold within Vietnam to brothels, or to businesses that are fronts for brothels.
In addition, traffickers have adjusted to the changing times, and the difficulty of trafficking women across the border to China, by focusing instead on selling their babies. BDCF has come across surrogacy trafficking before, but what they are seeing now is more consistent and targeted and seems to indicate a surge in this form of exploitation.
The group also notes that economic conditions have led more people to become traffickers themselves; in many cases, human traffickers and their victims come from similar backgrounds – they have a low level of education and legal knowledge, and are unemployed. The need to make money quickly, combined with the nature of human trafficking, in which traffickers are usually known to their victims, means there will also be an increased number of criminal recruits.
Blue Dragon continues to share its knowledge and expertise with government and law enforcement partners across Vietnam’s provinces. Its comprehensive anti-trafficking model includes partnerships and community initiatives that build resilience against trafficking and exploitation and improve the livelihoods of trafficking survivors – all of which is now needed more desperately than ever.
Here’s a round-up of other noteworthy news and initiatives:
Last Wednesday, CBP’s Office of Trade directed the issuance of a Withhold Release Order (WRO) banning imports of palm oil from Malaysian company FGV Holdings Bhd into the U.S., following an investigation into allegations of forced labour. In the wake of the detention order, shares in FGV Holdings Bhd dropped by 6.95 per cent on Thursday.
The U.S. Department of Labor has released its latest List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor. Two new countries – Venezuela and Zimbabwe – have been added, along with Taiwan, as have six new product categories, including rubber gloves, sandstone and tomato products. However, cattle from Namibia has been removed. Labour rights campaign group Verité’s project Cooperation On Fair, Free, Equitable Employment (COFFEE) is mentioned in the report for its efforts to address labour issues in Latin American coffee supply chains.
Pathfinders Justice Initiative, in partnership with CLEEN Foundation, has released new research findings on enablers (recruiters) of sex trafficking in Oredo Local Government Area in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. The report found that, although awareness is high within the Oredo LGA community, recruiters – primarily women in their late 30s to early 40s – prey on poor people with financial aspirations. In particular, they target mothers, convincing them to persuade their daughters to travel overseas.
In its new publication The Global Girlhood Report 2020: How COVID-19 is putting progress in peril, Save The Children analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on gender equality, revealing its devastating effects. The analysis reveals that a further 2.5 million girls will be at risk of child marriage by 2025 because of the pandemic – the greatest surge in child marriage rates in 25 years.
A new research study from TERA, funded by GFEMS, shows how construction and engineering companies can adopt ethical business practices and improve worker welfare while also growing their bottom line. Along with the study, TERA has also released a two-pager on the report, and created an online calculator that allows businesses to model their corporate investments and gains from adopting ethical business practices.
We are pleased to read that the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA) are joining efforts to combat the unethical recruitment and exploitation of migrant workers. The two organizations signed a global Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 1 October to promote cooperation, exchange of information and mutual assistance in relation to ethical recruitment and migrant worker protection.
Survivor Alliance is hosting a number of training sessions during U.K. Anti-Slavery Week (16-22 October) for anti-slavery professionals and case workers. One of these sessions aims to help practitioners determine which additional steps to take to empower survivor leadership.
In a virtual symposium last week, Delta 8.7 brought together contributors from a variety of organizations engaged in the implementation and evaluation of programmes to combat child labour in different contexts. All the contributions to the symposium can be found here.
Tech Against Trafficking is organizing a webinar on Digital Tools to Boost Collaboration and Productivity on Thursday, 8th October, to discuss challenges and successes anti-trafficking organizations worldwide are experiencing as they transition to online tools.
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