The new Braziian Anti-trafficking Law: challenges and opportunities to cover the normative lack

Abstract

The Brazilian counter-trafficking in persons has given rise to a complex, deficient, confusing anti-trafficking system that presents legal obstacles. Derived from this lack of harmonization in the Brazilian context, there were different ways of interpreting what trafficking was, which has also generated a confusing framework regarding the interpretation of the concept itself. Hence, the new anti-trafficking law in Brazil (13.344/2016), was approved in order to cover this normative vacuum and act as a useful instrument that builds a proactive counter-trafficking in Brazil. The general objective is to examine the irrelevance of the argument of consent in crimes of Trafficking in Persons, based on the remarks in the new anti-trafficking law in Brazil. For this purpose, I carry out a thematic qualitative text analysis approach in order to identify and analyse the changes in the Brazilian system of counter-trafficking. Thereby, the methodology aims to identify actors involved, as well as the content and meaning of the new Brazilian anti-trafficking law. In this sense, this article is based on a traditional literature review of the results from a bibliographic, doctrinal revision, and a documentary survey of the laws applied to the subject. The conclusions of this study show that Brazilian counter-trafficking demands a much-needed multidirectional action and protection of the human rights of victims/survivors in the context of trafficking. The results of the analysis indicate the irrelevance of the victims’ consent. Hence, the premise of the State should be to guarantee the protection of their rights.