Trafficking in Human Beings for criminal exploitation from the perspective of victims and professionals

Abstract

According to a human rights or victim-centred policy on human trafficking, respect for victims’ rights must become a priority. However, this approach may become difficult to adopt in little-known forms of trafficking, such as trafficking aimed at the criminal exploitation of victims. In this work, 10 in-depth interviews with unidentified victims of this type of trafficking – selected from 45 imprisoned women interviewed – and 37 with professionals active in the criminal justice system and in the area of victim assistance have been used to analyse the causes that lead to victims not being identified, as well as the effects that this lack of identification produces when they pass through the criminal justice system. Different measures to encourage the development of a more victim-centred policy in this area as a way to contribute to the promotion of a more just and inclusive society are among the proposals formulated to reverse this situation.