Human trafficking is a violation of human rights and a global public health crisis with many victims sustaining acute and long-term injuries as well as mental health disorders. Victims face multifaceted barriers to recovery, including restricted health care access, intense fear of retribution, and the profound psychological manipulation exerted by traffickers. However, most victims will seek health care services at some point during their captivity making health care professionals pivotal as "frontline" responders. Despite this critical role, a significant gap exists in professional preparedness. Many health care professionals have not received adequate education or specialized training to detect the indicators or to navigate the complexities of intervention. To bridge this gap, developing robust, evidence-based education programs is essential for all health care professionals.This article explores the necessity of targeted human trafficking training, with a specific focus on simulation-based education. Simulation offers a high-fidelity, low-risk environment where health care professionals can practice clinical identification, communication strategies, and interdisciplinary coordination. By mimicking real-world clinical encounters, simulation-based training empowers professionals to address the vast and complex needs survivors effectively. Also discussed are various simulation-based training programs, highlighting their efficacy in improving clinician confidence and patient outcomes in regards to victims of human trafficking.

Little is known about best practices for forensic interviewing of adolescent victims of exploitation. The current study examined the types of questions asked in interviews with adolescent victims conducted by police interviewers or federal forensic interview specialists, as well as how adolescents responded. Forensic interviews were transcribed (N = 47, M age = 15.93, SD = 3.26, range = 12–19 at time of victimisation) and coded. Interviewer prompts were coded for question type. Adolescent responses were coded for response format (open, closed, elaborated, don’t know), length (word count), uncertainty, and reluctance. Results indicated that federal forensic interviewers tended to use more appropriate methods of questioning, including greater use of open-ended prompts, compared to police interviewers. Adolescents were more likely to elaborate and provide longer responses to federal forensic interviewers compared to police interviewers and were more likely to respond reluctantly to open-ended questions. Implications for forensic interviews with adolescents are discussed.

Human trafficking poses a major public health challenge to the international community, with significant health and social consequences for those affected. Forced migrants are particularly vulnerable to becoming victims of human trafficking due to language barriers and migration-related hardships. These include social and economic deprivation. To better understand the lived experiences within this already vulnerable group, it is essential to examine individual cases in relation to risk factors, experiences of exploitation and exit, and resilience. Using a qualitative approach, this study examines social determinants and risk factors of forced migrants who survived human trafficking. It explores their experiences, eventual escape, and sheds light on their resilience. For this purpose, semi-structured interviews regarding the trafficking experiences were conducted with newly arrived forced migrants at a reception and registration centre in Germany. The presence of human trafficking was determined through an initial screening procedure and then confirmed in a personal interview. Additionally, we assessed the refugees' mental health burden with brief screening questionnaires for post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and the overall stress level (PC-PTSD-5, GAD-2, PHQ-2, RHS-15 distress thermometer). A total of 20 interviews were conducted with 14 female and 6 male participants. The participants came from 9 different countries. Most of them experienced sexual exploitation (N = 11), labour exploitation (N = 7). Few were trafficked but not exploited (N = 3). Participants reported that financial hardship was the main benefitting exploitation risk, and in many cases, they had been recruited by individuals they already knew. Spiritual rituals were sometimes used to increase pressure and control. Various forms of violence were inherent to the trafficking situations. In most cases, those affected managed to free themselves. Interpersonal connections and religious beliefs played a crucial role in coping with these experiences, however the screening for common mental disorders among refugees still indicated high levels of psychological distress. The results are discussed in relation to existing literature and implications for support and intervention are presented.

ABSTRACT Human trafficking rates in Europe continue to rise despite the presence of comprehensive legal frameworks and policy initiatives. Using 2012–2022 Eurostat data, this study examines key trends and patterns in trafficking victimization across Europe. The analyses reveal notable shifts in the nature and scope of trafficking: the number of victims per 100,000 inhabitants increased by 12.44%, while the ratio of convicted-to-suspected offenders in human trafficking rose by only 2.64%. There are also significant changes in the purposes of trafficking, with the rate of sex trafficking victims per 100,000 inhabitants decreasing by 8.74%, compared to a 128.57% increase in victims of trafficking for forced labor or services. Moreover, the rate of change in female victims rose by 14.33%, whereas the rate for male victims increased by 102.26%, likely associated with the increase in forced labor. Results, based on a linear regression analysis, also suggest that a 1% increase in the convicted-to-suspected offender ratio generates a 0.402% decrease in the number of victims, providing implications for designing effective justice system policies. These findings highlight evolving dynamics in human trafficking across Europe and underscore the need for more robust, evidence-based, and coordinated policy responses to address this complex and organized form of crime in society.

Examines criminal law mechanisms for protecting children's rights in the context of the spread of "pharmacy" drug addiction in the Kyrgyz Republic. A SWOT analysis identifies structural conflicts in criminal law and law enforcement practices that hinder the effective protection of minors. The need to transform criminal policy toward prioritizing prevention, victimization, and rehabilitation of minors as victims of drug trafficking is substantiated. This research was conducted under a grant from Osh State University (D.31/24).

The article provides a criminal law analysis of cryptocurrency micropayments used in the dark web infrastructure as a mechanism for financing human trafficking, focusing on the phenomenon of ‘micro-layering’ – the fragmentation of the value stream into numerous small transfers and the switching of on-/off-chain and cross-chain settlement channels in order to make it difficult to identify the origin and forfeit the property. From a dogmatic perspective, I demonstrate that micro-layering constitutes an executive technique under Article 299 § 1 of the Criminal Code (obstructing the determination of origin, location, detection, seizure or forfeiture), which – with an exploitative source of funds – coincides with Article 189a of the Criminal Code, and in platform configurations with a permanent division of roles, also with Article 258 of the Criminal Code. A systemic analysis places this classification within the EU architecture: the Regulation on information accompanying transfers of funds and certain crypto-assets (Transfer of Funds Regulation, TFR) ‘illuminates’ the edges of the sequence where there is a payment service provider or a crypto-asset service provider (CASP), while the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) Regulation organises the circle of service providers ‘for the customer’, maintaining neutrality towards non-custodial infrastructure. At the methodological level, I combine linguistic, systemic and purposive interpretation with mapping of payment sequences per sequence (rather than per transaction) and with an evidentiary standard based on combining data from the ‘edges’ of the TFR/EBA Guidelines with on-/off-chain material off-chain material, with a clear distinction between facts and inferences. On this basis, I formulate proposals de lege ferenda: (a) ‘micro-Travel Rule’ – short-term aggregation of related transfers at TFR addressees; (b) addition to Article 299 of the Criminal Code on ‘sequential layering’; (c) targeted obligations of ‘gatekeepers’ towards commercial, fiduciary services ‘for the benefit of the customer’; (d) a ‘quick freeze’ mode (48–72 hours) linked to EU cooperation instruments; (e) standard expert opinions with quality metrics. At the same time, I emphasise the limits of proportionality (GDPR; EU Charter of Fundamental Rights) and the CJEU line limiting universal disclosure solutions in favour of targeted obligations of addressees. The article shows that without a legislative revolution, it is possible to achieve real ‘sequence visibility’ and protect victims of human trafficking more effectively, while maintaining technological neutrality and procedural guarantees.

ABSTRACT Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, significant legislative action has been taken to address human trafficking around the world. From the United Nations Trafficking Protocol to the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in the United States, countries around the world took the initiative in contributing to the global fight to end trafficking in persons. What has remained underexplored is how countries define human trafficking. In 2007, Mexico passed its first anti-trafficking law to federally criminalize trafficking in persons. Five years later, the Mexican government revamped these efforts by passing Ley General para Prevenir, Sancionar y Erradicar los Delitos en Materia de Trata de Personas y para la Protección y Asistencia a las Víctimas de estos Delitos, which has undergone several reforms to date. However, nearly two decades later, Ley General’s definition of human trafficking remains inconsistent with the widely endorsed international definition of human trafficking. The following paper examines the legal progression of Mexico’s human trafficking law, Ley General, and offers recommendations for future anti-trafficking legal reform.

The inclusion of coercion in trafficking law has highlighted the need for a comprehensive, practical, and ecologically valid assessment of coercion. Accordingly, we examined coercive control (CC) using a semi-structured interview (The Brief Interview of Coercive Control [BICC]; Raghavan & Doychak, 2025) and a Likert self-report (The Checklist of Controlling Behaviors [CCB]; Lehmann et al., 2012) to systematically document type, frequency, and severity of CC in a sample of former victims of sex trafficking. CC tactics including surveillance and stalking, microregulation, manipulation, isolation, intimidation (including nonphysical and physical abuse), degradation, deprivation, and sexual abuse/coercion were present in all 68 narratives with over half of the sample feeling afraid and experiencing 5 or more tactics daily. Despite high levels of overall coercion, rates of physical violence were relatively low when compared to other tactics as measured by both the BICC and the CCB. Overall, findings suggest the CC framework can be reliably used to assess the abuses endured in this population. However, differences in findings of CC when using the BICC versus the CCB suggest that although both assessments detected coercion, semi-structured and impact-anchored assessments capture CC victimization more comprehensively than do checklist self-report measures. These findings highlight the importance of considering the costs and benefits of various methodology when assessing or measuring CC.

The aim of this study was to conduct a legal, medical and sociological analysis of victims of human trafficking in order to propose a multidisciplinary intervention model. Methodologically, this was a feasibility study of a descriptive-documentary nature; a non-exhaustive systematic review was carried out of the scientific literature published between 2010 and 2025 in indexed databases. Deficiencies were identified in legal protection frameworks, training gaps among healthcare staff, and structural factors of sociological vulnerability that operate interdependently. An effective response to human trafficking requires the coordination of criminal prosecution, health screening and sociological intervention within a comprehensive four-pillar model: early detection, legal protection, bio-psycho-social care and community reintegration.

While anesthesiology as a discipline has yet to formally recognize its role in combatting human trafficking, the authors contend that anesthesiologists are positioned to detect signs of human trafficking and facilitate trafficking screening during clinical scenarios unique to this specialty. This article presents evidence for the likelihood that anesthesiologists are unknowingly interacting with trafficking victims and survivors, particularly on labor and delivery wards. Regarding academic scholarship, this article highlights the notable absence of existing anesthesiology-specific literature focusing on human trafficking. An invitation is extended to anesthesiology as a discipline to join the anti-human trafficking movement within health care through clinical engagement and academic scholarship.

: The crime of human trafficking in Indonesia shows an alarming escalation with 1,061 cases and 3,363 victims in 2023, while restitution paid by perpetrators only reached 13 percent of the total calculation by the LPSK in 2024. This study analyzes the legal, institutional, and procedural obstacles causing low restitution; compares restitution regulations and mechanisms in Thailand, Germany, and the United States; and formulates comprehensive recommendations for improvement. The method used is descriptive-analytical qualitative legal research with doctrinal-normative, empirical-sociological, and comparative approaches, using the theoretical framework of legal certainty, legal effectiveness, legal protection, and restorative justice. The results show that the failure of restitution implementation is systemic in all dimensions, and the three comparison countries have structural advantages in the form of mandatory restitution, the active role of prosecutors, state compensation funds, and standardized calculation formulas. The study recommends comprehensive reforms based on five pillars that integrate international best practices with the characteristics of the Indonesian legal system.

Human trafficking is a public health crisis with profound physical and psychological consequences. Orthopaedic surgeons, who are often the earliest providers to assess traumatic musculoskeletal injuries, have a unique opportunity to identify victims of trafficking. This article highlights 4 cases of patients with orthopaedic injuries sustained in the context of trafficking or through the subsequent psychological effects of such encounters. Despite the high percentage of human trafficking victims who interact with the health-care system, the recognition and identification of such victims remain low. We advocate for increased awareness of the possibility of patients with orthopaedic injuries having been trafficked and the consideration of human trafficking in trauma-informed care training.

Substantial efforts have been made, at national and global levels, to prevent human trafficking, protect trafficking victims, and prosecute perpetrators. While considerable literature is available on trafficking victims, there is scant research on perpetrators of human trafficking (or traffickers). Human trafficking cannot be suitably addressed if traffickers continue to be overlooked in research and services. It is important to explore strategies that could help reduce the criminal behaviors of traffickers and rehabilitate them. This article explores how traffickers could be both deterred and rehabilitated through evidence-based interventions similar to those used by law enforcement for other offenses, such as gang violence and drug trafficking. The article explores an innovative hybrid framework combining focused deterrence (FD), the risk–-need–responsivity (RNR) model, and the Good Lives Model (GLM) as a promising, integrative intervention strategy not only to deter but also to potentially support the rehabilitation of trafficking perpetrators. Potential challenges of this hybrid framework and strategies for overcoming them are examined. Implications for policy, practice, and research are discussed.

Offloading practices in the Philippines deny boarding to passengers suspected of seeking illegal work or being trafficking victims. These practices exemplify what mobilities scholars term ‘constrained mobilities’, the differential regulation of movement that creates hierarchies of legitimate and illegitimate travellers. Departing from existing scholarship that predominantly examines labour migrants and destination country controls, this study uniquely focuses on tourists, revealing how anti-trafficking measures penetrate previously protected domains of autonomous leisure travel. This investigates the lived experiences of fourteen Filipino tourists who were offloaded at airports, revealing instruments of mobility control that disadvantage populations based on class, gender, appearance, and travel history. Using qualitative methodology with semi-structured interviews, this study reveals how offloading practices create profound disruptions to embodied expectations of movement, transforming anticipated journeys into trauma and exclusion. The findings demonstrate how documentary requirements prioritise social capital over economic capacity, transforming individual tourism into socially mediated mobility dependent on third-party validation. This contributes to critical mobilities scholarship by advancing constrained mobilities theory through four innovations: ‘paternalistic constrained mobilities’, ‘bureaucratic capture’, temporal ‘mobility stigma’, and intersectional biosocial profiling, revealing how protective anti-trafficking discourse masks constraining effects on legitimate movement.

This paper analyzes the vulnerability of refugees and the subsequent risk of them becoming victims of human trafficking, focusing on forced labor, from a human rights perspective. The act of seeking refuge and the right to migrate are fundamental human rights, as is the right to decent work. However, the systematic violation of these rights affects thousands of vulnerable individuals, including men, women, and children. These people are potential victims of human rights abuses, particularly labor rights, which violates human dignity. The vulnerability of refugees is aggravated by the State's inaction in implementing public policies for labor inclusion and adequate support networks, which facilitates recruitment into forced labor. Human trafficking is closely related to forced labor, as its primary purpose is to provide labor for economic exploitation. The research was conducted using the deductive method, employing bibliographic and documentary review procedures to deepen knowledge in the categories of migration, refugees, human trafficking, and human rights. It is imperative to identify ways to confront these offenses, prioritizing the defense of human dignity and the effective implementation of public policies.

Case Number 7834 K/Pid.Sus/2024 concerns a human trafficking offence in which the cassation ruling imposed custodial punishment and mandated restitution calculated by the Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK). This research is motivated by the need to protect victims' rights through restitution, despite ongoing implementation issues. Focusing on the degree of legal certainty in the implementation of restitution, this study analyzes the relevant decision through a normative juridical lens. The methodology incorporates statutory, conceptual, and case-based approaches, all of which are applied to secondary data consisting of primary legal sources, secondary literature, and tertiary references. The results showed that legal certainty regarding restitution for victims of human trafficking still faces various obstacles in Law No. 21 of 2007, which does not clearly regulate how to calculate, determine, and enforce compensation payments. The Supreme Court's decision in this case fills a legal void in Law No. 21 of 2007 by emphasizing that restitution must be calculated accurately based on the actual losses suffered by the victim, and recognizing the LPSK's calculation as a valid basis for determining the amount of restitution. It was concluded that the Supreme Court ruling strengthens legal certainty by legitimizing the LPSK's assessment, thereby providing a more concrete mechanism for enforcing restitution. The findings are expected to generate recommendations for law enforcement authorities and LPSK on the significance of enforcing restitution as an integral component of restoring victims’ rights and achieving justice in human trafficking cases.

ABSTRACT Although persons with disabilities are among those who are vulnerable to human trafficking – and trafficking can result in people acquiring a disability – scholarly and practitioner understanding of this issue is still emerging. Our research in Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand provides important insights into this issue, highlighting that disability shapes vulnerability to trafficking in specific ways and that this takes place within the context of broader patterns of poverty, inequality and injustice. Increased poverty and barriers to education and livelihoods, alongside discrimination and social stigma further constrain the choices persons with disabilities are able to make and exposes them to risks of exploitation and trafficking. This intersects with their individual disability. Our findings have several implications for counter-trafficking efforts that support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal of “promoting just, peaceful and inclusive societies.” These include the need to address structural factors such as access to education, employment and livelihoods, and social protection. More specifically, efforts could focus on educating persons with disabilities about their rights, raising awareness of disability among those involved in frontline counter-trafficking efforts, and collecting accurate data on disability among victims of trafficking to inform national policymaking and practice.

Human trafficking in Indonesia's border regions is closely linked to illegal or non-procedural migration practices, particularly in Nunukan Regency, which borders Malaysia. This situation is exacerbated by a highly centralized governance structure, which limits the role of local governments in responding to the rapid and informal nature of migration and human trafficking. This study aims to analyse the policy framework for handling human trafficking crimes in the context of illegal migration, highlighting the limitations of local government authority in a decentralized system. This study uses a literature review and qualitative policy analysis based on documents, including laws and regulations, national and regional policies, relevant academic literature, and reports from international organizations. The analysis was conducted using a transnational governance framework and the concept of delegated authority. The results of the analysis show that there is a governance gap in the supervision of non-procedural migration, data collection on migrant workers, cross-border coordination, and initial protection of victims of human trafficking due to the dominance of central government authority. These findings are analytical and normative, not empirical, and show that the limitations of local governments' roles are a consequence of the policy's institutional design. This study concludes that the development of a limited, accountable delegated authority scheme has the potential to strengthen local governments' roles in border areas in addressing the link between illegal migration and human trafficking, and recommends further empirical research to test its effectiveness in implementation.

ABSTRACT This article presents the findings of a small‐scale qualitative study exploring the experiences of Foster Carers looking after unaccompanied asylum‐seeking children (UASC) who are identified or suspected victims of child trafficking (‘UASTC’—unaccompanied asylum‐seeking and trafficked children). Through in‐depth interviews with six fostering families and one specialist Social Worker, key themes include a lack of specialist training and support from skilled Social Work professionals, the significance of the role of the Foster Carer in the identification and management of risk, the challenges of supporting children through the asylum process, and the resulting emotional toll on Foster Carers. Notwithstanding the challenges encountered, Foster Carers derived a sense of fulfilment from the role. The study's findings should be read cautiously due to the small sample size and regional focus. Despite this, resulting considerations for fostering agencies could include exploring specialised care pathways for UASTC that integrate trauma‐informed support, offering reflective supervision and bespoke training for carers and professionals, and providing access to peer support networks. Recommendations for future research include explorations of the first‐hand experiences of UASTC and the variety of placements they inhabit.

Transitional Justice is a legal and political approach employed in societies that have experienced violent conflicts, often stemming from authoritarian regimes, to address severe human rights violations committed during such periods. Its objective is to promote reconciliation and peacebuilding through a combination of legal and non-legal measures. This article argues that this approach is suitable for victims of drug trafficking, particularly in Mexico, and identifies the outstanding tasks related to restitution and reconciliation.