Human trafficking has become one of the most heinous violations of human rights, as it brutally and in various ways puts at the core of the legal assets of the victims, with the perpetrators often, well hidden in the “darkness”, remaining invisible… and the victims silently.
It is no coincidence that it has been described as the “invisible” crime. European Union statistics for 2022 record 10,093 victims, a number that is not just an under-reporting of the phenomenon, but literally, the “tip of the iceberg”, since the actual number of victims is sure to be overwhelmingly higher.
The statistical record of women and girls, as the main victims of human trafficking worldwide, is overwhelming and highly revealing, confirming the sad reality of the obvious gender dimension of this heinous crime. A dimension that we must take into account when planning the policies to deal with it.
The varied and heinous categories and forms of appearance of the crime, as well as the cross-border elements that accompany it, make the work of the prosecuting authorities extremely difficult internationally, which, despite the institutional cuts and the adoption of targeted policies in the field, are unable to eliminate the phenomenon.
The crime of human trafficking is characterized by a contradiction. Despite the tightening of the legal framework, the more effective prosecution of perpetrators leading to an increase in their conviction rates, and the important tools we have developed, a huge number of incidents remain in the “dark”. This harsh reality is due to the fact that dealing with human trafficking cannot and should not follow an approach focused on suppression.
Undeniably, we must bring more perpetrators to justice. But a goal that we will only achieve if we break the chain of silence, through a victim-centered and psychosocial approach, focused on empowering victims, providing them with a sense of security, so that they find the courage to speak.
The holistic treatment of this morbid phenomenon, therefore, inevitably goes beyond the prosecution and harsh punishment of the perpetrators and from the axes of support for the victims but above all prevention.
A prevention with a double character. That is, focused, on the one hand, on informing and educating citizens and professionals, and on the other hand, on raising awareness with the ultimate goal of reducing demand, so as to give a stentorian message that in our time there cannot be “buyers” when the “goods” are people.
Human trafficking is not very different from slavery in the Middle Ages, except that the chains are no longer in plain sight. By breaking the “chain of silence”, we will break the “invisible chains” of exploitation one by one, until every man is truly free.
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