In 2017, El Salvador authorities investigated 76 human trafficking cases, that was up from 2016’s 55 trafficking cases. Out of the 76 only nine were prosecuted and out of that, only 6 were charged with sex trafficking. With only 11% of investigated instances being prosecuted it would be fair to say that more action needs to be taken. It should also be taken into consideration that were definitely cases that weren’t reported, increasing the number of cases annually, making it an even greater problem than it already appears. Women being trafficked typically are shipped off to other Central American countries like Honduras and Guatemala. The majority of sex trafficking can be related to the local gangs, like MS-13, who solicit young women and force them into prostitution. To make matter worse, El Salvador does not meet the minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking. [1] Legislation, however, is making significant efforts to do so.
New offices have been opened to provide victim services and adopting the UN’s “Blue Heart” campaign have greatly helped towards awareness efforts [2]. Although there are laws in place, little is done about the crimes and to receive restitution, the victims must move the case to a civil court where restitution is seldom seen. The Blue Heart is a global initiative to promote awareness of human trafficking and its negative effects on society. Here is a link to their website to learn more https://www.unodc.org/blueheart/ .
There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out by the United Nations. It acts as a blueprint for people to follow to promote peace and prosperity throughout the globe. No Poverty, Zero Hunger, Gender Equality, and Climate Action are just a few of the goals listed out. In regards to Human Trafficking I do not believe that just one goal addresses the need for trafficking to end, but multiple.
In my opinion Human Trafficking violates/does not follow the goals of Good Health and Well Being, Gender Equality, Decent Work, Reduced Inequalities, and Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions. 3 because it’s pretty difficult to be in good health when you’re a slave. 5 because an overwhelming majority of victims are women. 8 because being forced to sell your body is not decent work. 10 because equality is not being promoted as victims are robbed of their freedom to make their own decisions. Finally, 16 because institutions have allowed human trafficking to go on for far too long and our robbing people of the peace and justice they deserve. [3] Human trafficking is an interesting area to tackle, for the majority of history it has been illegal, but that has not stopped traffickers. Passing laws and legislation can only do so much and it’s time for a new approach on the matter. Root causes of trafficking can be hard to pin down, with many looking at poverty and lack of education and jobs as a prime suspect. Eliminating poverty and increasing education among the population would definitely help reduce trafficking, but the main driving force behind human trafficking is the traffickers themselves. Eliminating poverty can help, but if the trafficker wants to take you, they will take you. Traffickers turn to this as it pays a pretty penny. Educating people at a young age will give them the mindset that it is not okay to kidnap and sell people. Most traffickers lack sympathy and being able to establish that everyone is equal to the upcoming generations could reduce the number of traffickers and number of people wanting those kinds of services. Only time will tell at the moment. [4]
In a completely different direction, equality is something we as a planet have been striving for in years. An area that currently lacks diversity is the tech industry’s AI development. With the majority of programs being developed by white males, conscious and subconscious biases tend to appear in their final program, typically supporting more user interface for the look of a white male. Change is something that needs to occur at an early level, educating minorities and women on the job opportunities in the tech industry. Diversity in the workplace is shown to lead to greater innovation as well as production. Change also needs to occur so not every Alexa and Siri in the world is made with the thoughts and biases of white men, but rather represent everyone. Currently men occupy 76% of all technical jobs, with 95% of the tech workforce being white. For us to truly reach peak innovation we need to lower these percentages to a more even playing field. [5]
Peace Studies Blog 