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Date Added to
Site: 28th June 2005 |
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Short Summary
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| Title |
Forced Labour and Migration to the UK |
| Author |
Anderson, B., Rogaly, B. |
| Publication
Date |
February 2005 |
| Publisher |
Trades Union Congress UK |
| Donor |
Trades Union Congress UK |
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Short Summary |
The common perception in the UK and elsewhere
is that women are trafficked for sexual services, while men are smuggled
for labour exploitation. Women are seen as victims, and men as opportunists.
Currently in the UK, in practical terms there is almost no protection
available for migrants at risk of abuse. There is only one safe house
with a total of 25 spaces, reserved exclusively for women who are
victims of trafficking. This report looks at the links between trafficking
and forced labour, and suggests forced labour is a more useful concept
than trafficking for dealing with exploitation/human rights abuses
of both women and men migrants. Trafficking by definition involves
forced labour as people are trafficked for the purpose of providing
labour or services to which they have not freely agreed. Forced labour
is also recognised as an aspect of trafficking within the international
definition of trafficking adopted by the United National General Assembly
in November 2000 (p8). However, some people forced into labour, have
not been trafficked. They may have migrated willingly, sometimes on
their own initiative and legally, or they may be local citizens, and
still be subject to forced labour. Using the concept of trafficking
keeps the focus on the often difficult to determine questions of how
freely the person made the decision to migrate, and whether those
who facilitated their journey were exploiting them or providing a
service. Deportation and immigration controls are perversely presented
as a solution to human rights abuses. The concept of forced labour
shifts the focus to the outcome of the journey, and the human rights
situation of the migrant. |
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