Murphy, Margaret

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Buffalo Women's Law Journal Volume 9 Article 5 9-1-2000 Modern Day Slavery: The Trafficking of Women to the United States Margaret Murphy Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.buffalo.edu/bwlj  Part of the Human Rights Law Commons Recommended Citation Murphy, Margaret (2000) "Modern Day Slavery: The Trafficking of Women to the United States," Buffalo Women's Law Journal: Vol. 9 , Article 5. Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.buffalo.edu/bwlj/vol9/iss1/5 This International Watch is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Buffalo Women's Law Journal by an authorized editor of Digital Commons @ University at Buffalo School of Law. For more information, please contact lawscholar@buffalo.edu. BUFFALO WOMEN'S LAW JOURNALTrafficking is distinguishedfrom alien smuggling whichinvolves the provision of aservice, albeit illegal, to peoplewho knowingly buy the servicein order to get into a foreigncountry.2The trafficking ofwomen for prostitution andforced labor is one of thefastest growing areas ofinternational criminal activity.An estimated I to 2 millionpeople are trafficked each yearworldwide. 3  Approximately50,000 women and childrenare trafficked to the UnitedStates.4 Approximately 30,000women and children are beingtrafficked annually fromSoutheast Asia; 10,000 fromLatin America; 4,000 from theNewly Independent States andEastern Europe; and 1,000from other regions. 5 Thesestatistics are rough estimates;the secretive nature oftrafficking of humans makes itvery difficult for governmentAND INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE,CONG. RESEARCH SERV. REP. No.98-649 C (May 10, 2000).2 id3 1d.4 CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCYBRIEFING, GLOBAL TRAFFICKING INWOMEN AND CHILDREN: ASSESSINGTHE MAGNITUDE (Apr. 1999).5 Id.agencies to gather accuratestatistics of the number ofwomen involved.Traffickers acquirewomen in many ways. Somewomen are kidnapped outright,while others are lured withfalse promises of jobs aswaitresses, nannies, models,factory workers, or exoticdancers. 6 Traffickers advertisethese phony jobs innewspapers and on theInternet. Traffickers alsoobtain women throughmarriage agency databases andmatchmaking services. Stillothers are approached directlywith offers of good paying jobselsewhere.7  Bogus contractsare often drawn up to providethe image of legitimacy, lullingwomen into believing they aredealing with a reputablebusiness.8 Women are sought6 Amy O'NEILL RICHARD, CENTERFOR THE STUDY OF INTELLIGENCE,INTERNATIONAL TRAFFICKING INWOMEN TO THE UNITED STATES: ACONTEMPORARY MANIFESTATION OFSLAVERY AND ORGANIZED CRIME(Apr. 2000), athttp://www.odci.gov/csi/monograph/women/trafficking.pdf.7Miko, supra note 1.S Richard, supra note 6, citing Crimeand Servitude: An Expose of theTraffic in Women for Prostitutionfrom the Newly Independent States,VOL. IXINTERNATIONAL WATCHout in areas with weakeconomies. Typically they aredisproportionately affected byunemployment, discrimination,and the lack of economicopportunity in their countriesof origin. 9 Women often feelthey are forced to take thework in order to supportthemselves and their family.There are many waysthese women are brought intothe United States. The easiestway to traffic women into thecountry is to have themoverstay their visa. Traffickersin the Newly IndependentStates, central and EasternEurope, and Asia commonlyuse business (B I), tourist (B2),student (Fl), fiancee (KI), andentertainer (P1, P3) visas tobring women to the U.S.' 0Traffickers often usefraudulent job letters,employment records, and bankstatements as supportingGLOBAL SURVIVAL NETWORK (Oct.1997).9 Bruce Zagaris, U.S. Enacts Act toProtect Victims from InternationalTrafficking of Women and Children,INTERNATIONAL ENFORCEMENT LAWREPORTER, Jan. 2001, available atLEXIS, News Library, News GroupFile.10 Richard, supra note 6.documentationvisas.' 1for theseMany times women arebrought the United States byforeign diplomats under A-3and G-5 visas to act as thediplomats' support staff.Although these women arebrought to the U.S. in a waythat is sanctioned by thegovernment, many times theyare placed in situations by theirforeign employers that are akinto slavery. Often times theysuffer the same consequencesas the women who wherebrought to the United Statesthrough force or trickery. Theemployment laws of the U.S.still apply to these women, andtheir employers, even thoughthey are not citizens of the U.S.Their employers may also havediplomatic immunity. What isironic for the women in thissituation, is that many of theofficials and diplomats thatthey work for are members ofinstitutions, including: theUnited Nations, the WorldBank and Inter-AmericanDevelopment Bank, theInternational Monetary Fund,and the Organization of11 id.2000-2001BUFFALO WOMEN'S LAW JOURNALAmerican States.' 2 The goal ofmany of these governmentagencies is to reduce humansuffering and slaverythroughout the world.Traffickers also useoutright illegal means to bringwomen into the United States.This mode of entry is muchmore difficult for thetraffickers. Many times theywill use fake passports, orattempt to pass illegal womenas women in legal passports.'3Others are simply smuggled tothe U.S. without any type ofdocumentation. Traffickersoften fly women into majorcities in Mexico and Canada,and then smuggle them acrossthe Mexican and Canadianborders.Once these womenenter the United States andfinally reach their destination,by whichever means they enter,they are often subjected tomental and physical abuse as ameans of control. Women areoften subject to beatings, rape,starvation, forced drug use,forced sexual contact with12 Abid Aslam, Plight of DomesticWorkers Wins Congressional Ear,INTERPRESS SERVICE, Feb. 16, 2000,http://www.globalexchange.org/wbimf/ips021600.html.13 Richard, supra note 6.others, confinement, long workhours without breaks, andseclusion. ' 4  Traffickersfrequently demand that womenhand over their passports, anywork contracts, and other legalpapers "for safe keeping.' ' 5The employer will then use thepossession of these materials tothreaten the arrest anddeportation of the women.Without documents, localcontacts, or knowledge of legalrights under U.S. law, thewomen are at the mercy oftheir employers. As mentionedabove, many of these womenhave family members in theirhome country that dependupon them. This leaves greatanxiety in the womenconcerning deportation andarrest.Fortunately, the issueof trafficking of women hasgained great national andinternational attention lately.In 1998, President Clintonannounced his InternationalCrime Control Strategy, an' 41d.'5 Stephen Fried, Empowering thePowerless: The Campaign forMigrant Domestic Workers Rights,INSTITUTE FOR POUCY STUDIES,2000, at http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/progresp/vo13/prog3n26.htmlVOL. IXINTERNATIONAL WATCHinteragency working group thatwas set up to addressinternational crimeimplications of trafficking.16Clinton issued a directiveestablishing a U.S. government-wide anti-trafficking strategyconsisting of: (1) prevention,(2) protection and support forvictims, and (3) prosecution oftraffickers.17 Although severalagencies were set up to addressthe problem, little was doneuntil President Clintonchallenged Congress to takeaction in this matter.On October 28, 2000,Public Law 106-386, TheTrafficking of Women andChildren's Act of 2000, wasenacted. The law is based onthe three strategies ofprevention, protection andprosecution, set forth byPresident Clinton. The lawrequires that the U.S.Department of State prepare areport for each country thatreceives economic and/orsecurity assistance, and is acountry of origin, transit, ordestination for victims oftrafficking.' 8  The Act also1 6 Miko, supra note 1.17 id.18 Victims of Trafficking andViolence Protection Act of 2000, Pubrequires the President toestablish, and the Secretary ofState to chair, an Inter-agencyTask Force to Monitor andCombat Trafficking. 9  ThePresident is also authorized todeny nonhumanitarian,nontrade-related foreignassistance to any governmentthat does not comply with theminimum standard forelimination of trafficking setforth in the act. 20To meet the goal ofprotection of victims, the Actrequires the President toestablish and carry outinternational initiatives toenhance economicopportunities for potentialvictims of trafficking as amethod to deter trafficking.These incentives may include:microcredit lending programs,training in businessdevelopment, skills training,and job counseling.2 It alsoprovides for programs topromote women's participationin economic decision-making,programs to keep children(especially girls) in elementaryand secondary school, and toL. No. 106-386, 114 Stat. 1464(2000).'9 Id. at § 105.20Id. at§ 110.21 Id. at § 106.2000-2001BUFFALO WOMEN'S LAW JOURNALeducate persons who have beenvictims of trafficking.22Finally, the Act requires theformation of programs andinitiatives in foreign countriesto assist in the safe integration,reintegration, or resettlement,as appropriate, of victims oftrafficking.23In order to meet thethird element of prosecution,the Act establishes new felonycriminal offenses to combattrafficking with respect toslavery or peonage; sextrafficking in children; andunlawful confiscation of thevictim's passport and otherdocuments.24 Additionally, theAct also creates a new "forcedlabor" felony criminal offensethat will provide Federalprosecutors with tools requiredto prosecute nonphysicalcoercion that traffickers use toexploit their victims. 25 Thoseconvicted of any of the newcriminal offenses will besubject to forfeiture of assetsand restitution to victims.On December 12, 2000,the United Nations establishedits Convention against22id.23 Supra note 18 at § 107.2 Supra note 18 at § 112.5 id.Transnational OrganizedCrime (TOCC). TOCCestablished two protocols: oneto prevent, suppress and punishtrafficking in persons, the otheragainst the smuggling ofmigrants by land, sea and air.26It is too soon to tell whethereither the newly passed U.S.law, or the United Nation'sConvention againstTransnational OrganizedCrime will have any positiveeffect on the trafficking ofwomen. What is evident isthat government officials, bothnationally and internationally,are taking steps to address thisgrowing problem.26 UN Convention on TransnationalOrganized Crime Gains 124Signatures on Opening, INTER-NATIONAL ENFORCEMENT LAWREPORTER, Feb. 2001, available atLEXIS, News Library, News GroupFile.VOL. IX

Modern Day Slavery: The Trafficking of Women to the United States

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Modern Day Slavery: The Trafficking of Women to the United States

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