This document discusses different frameworks for defining and measuring human trafficking. It begins by outlining definitions from international agreements like the Palermo Protocol and concepts from organizations like the ILO. It then examines how human trafficking has historically been framed, including a refocus on human rights and different forms of exploitation. The document also discusses methods for estimating the scale of human trafficking, like using data from multiple identification lists. It analyzes monitoring of anti-trafficking policies through organizations like GRETA and presents scoring systems for evaluating country performance on legal measures, victim assistance, and law enforcement. Finally, it concludes that increasing specialized prosecutors is key to improving conviction rates for human trafficking cases.

1. Framing, measuring and fighting human trafficking
PROF JAN VAN DIJK
Brussels, April 28, 2016
TRACE

2. Babelonion Mess
 Palermo definition (means, acts and purpose
of exploitation), also adopted by CoE, 2005
 ILO concept of forced labour (extensively
interpreted)
 Modern Slavery: Walk Free and UK ( not
Scotland)
 Working definition: the criminal business of
controlling and exploiting another person

3. How to frame Human Trafficking?
Initially framed as
 1 one of the principal forms of Transnational
Organized Crime (with focus on combatting
maffia-type organizations rather then on victim
protection)
 2 a transnational crime, requiring international
cooperation
 3 focussed on victims of sexual exploitation
(women and minors)

4. Refocussing since 2005
 Human-rights and victim-based (CoE
Convention)
 Labour exploitation (reversal of gender
sensitivity / role of ILO)
 Internal trafficking/exploitation of nationals

5. Reframing 2015
Controlling and exploiting others contrary to their
human dignity
Both recruitment and exploitation not typically
controlled by organized crime groups
Not typically targetting irregular migrants
Ergo: Modern Human Slavery (Walk
Free/ILO/UK)

6. Measuring Modern Slavery
 Counting identified victims (UNODC and EU)
 Survey-based estimates (ILO and Walk Free:
20 surveys) with focus on severe forms of
labour exploitation
 Multiple Systems Estimation (????)

7. MSE
 Capture/Recapture estimation using not two
but three or more lists (independency
requirement relaxed)
 Since multi-agency identification of victims is
internationally recommended, MSE is
applicable to many of the existing, multi-
source THB databases

8. Hypothetical example of the listing of 1000 persons
on three different lists
categories 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
LIST 1 X 0 0 X 0 X X O
LIST 2 0 X 0 X X 0 X O
LIST 3 0 0 X 0 X X X O
observations 70 400 500 10 0 15 5 ???

9. Data of National Crime Agency UK; each column shows the
number of cases which fall in the combination of five lists
indicated by the cells marked (n=2.744) (Silverman, 2014)

10. British estimate
 “The estimated confidence interval for the
actual population size (including the 2744
cases already known to the NCA) is from
10,000 to 13,000, so this suggests that the
estimated true numbers are 4 to 5 times larger
than the 2.744 victims recorded by the NCA”

11. Fighting Modern Slavery
 How to monitor implementation of UN protocol
and CoE Convention ? (TIP reports, Free to
Walk Responses Index and reports of GRETA)
 Quantitative ratings on the basis of these three
monitoring tools show high correlations

12. GRETA; 15 independent experts
(and a powerfull staff)

13. 34 policy requirements according to GRETA’s reports
A Legal-institutional Framework C Enforcement
1 Criminalization of HT (including for labour/ children) 21 No punishment clause
2 Action plans ( size of budget) 22 Special investigative unit (no. officials )
3 Interministerial task force (meetings, NGO's, independent evaluation) 23 Special prosecutors (no. officials)
4 National coordinator/rapporteur
24 No. prosecutions per mill (related to no. identified
victims)
5 Comprehensive identification and referral system
25 No. convictions per mill (related to no. identified
victims)
6 International cooperation (police, prosecutors, consulars)
26 Severity of sentences (years of imprisonment)
(incl. confiscation)
7 Integrated statistical system, incl. data protection 27 Maximum penalty for HT (> 5 years)
8 Training officials (incl. labour inspectors) 28 Witness protection
9 Research (incl. on victim satisfaction)
D Prevention
B Assistance/protection 29 Awareness campaigns
10 No of victims identified (rel to population) 30 Screening of visa applicants/information
11 Adequate support, incl shelter, health, occupational training 31 Border control measures
12 Provision of support delinked from cooperation with police 32 Development aid/poverty alleviation
13 Recovery/ reflection time of 30 days 33 Demand reduction, incl. through criminalization
14
Temporary residence permits; how many (related to no. Identified
victims) 34 Forging of travel documents criminalized etc.
15 Information on rights and free legal aid
16 Safe return/reintegration
17 Compensation in trial (related to no. identified victims)
18
State compensation, incl. illegals, non EU res (related to no. identified
victims)
19 Identification, services and legal guardian for child victims
20 Witness protection

14. Enforcement requirements
 21 No punishment clause
 22 Special investigative unit (numbers of officials )
 23 Special prosecutors (numbers of officials)
 24 Prosecutions per mill (related to identified
victims)
 25 Convictions per mill (related to identified victims)
 26 Severity of sentences (years of imprisonment)
(incl. confiscation)
 27 Maximum penalty for HT (> 5 years)
 28 Witness protection

15. Terminology of GRETA’s
recommendations
 Urging changes means non-compliance
 Considering problems and inviting changes
means that GRETA sees room for improvement
 If no recommendations are made, the State
Party complies
 GRETA sometimes welcomes best practices

19. GRETA’s fifth General Report,
2015

20. Scoring guidelines (Van Dijk,
Klerx, 2012)
 0 --- GRETA urges changes
 1 --- GRETA considers or invites changes/
urges changes on a minor aspect
 2 --- GRETA makes no recommendations on
the issue or welcomes its mode of
implementation (best practice)

21. Total scores of items on A infrastrucure and C
enforcement of 29 countries (maximum 58)
A Legal-
institutional
Framework
Item total C Enforcement Item total
1 Criminalization of HT
(including for
labour/children) 48
21 No punishment clause
24
2 Action plans (size of
budget) 46
22 Special investigative unit
(no. officials ) 42
3 Inter-ministerial task force
(meetings, NGO's,
independent evaluation) 37
23 Special prosecutors (no.
officials)
22
4 National
coordinator/rapporteur
25
24 No. prosecutions per mill
(related to no. identified
victims) 31
5 Comprehensive
identification and referral
system (incl. in detention
centres for illegals) 23
25 No. convictions per mill
(related to no. identified
victims)
25
6 International cooperation
(police, prosecutors,
consulars) 40
26 Severity of sentences
(years of imprisonment)
(incl. confiscation) 26
7 Integrated statistical
system, incl. data
protection 26
27 Maximum penalty for
Human Trafficking (> 5
years) 52
8 Training officials (incl.
labour inspectors) 30
28 Witness protection
22
9 Research (incl. on victim
satisfaction) 22

22. Item specialised prosecutors by item number of
convictions

23. Conclusion
 Numbers of convictions go up if, and only if,
more specialised prosecutors are assigned and
properly trained
 If at all possible, let these complex cases be
adjudicated by specialised judges too

24. In Conclusion
 Let’s talk Modern Slavery
 Measuring the dark numbers of modern
slavery victims is work in (rapid) progress
 Many EU countries still fail their treaty
obligation to bring the modern slave drivers to
court