Written by Linda Witong, SI Advocacy Advisor 2024-2025
The annual World Day Against Trafficking in Persons takes place on 30 July. In this blog and accompanying podcast episode Soroptimist International marks this day by looking at the trafficking women and girls.
Different types of human trafficking
Women and girls are often lured into trafficking by a cruel and false promise of a better life. While there are many different types of human trafficking, probably the most well-known and prevalent form of trafficking is the trafficking of people for forced labour and sex trafficking with women and girls being most likely than men and boys to be exploited for sexual purposes.
Other forms of human trafficking include bonded labour or debt bondage, which involves women or girls being being coerced into forced labour or sex work in order to pay a debt which may or may not be real. For example, people are sometimes unwittingly manipulated into a debt or charged fees with exorbitant interest rates that they can never pay off.
Increasingly, it has also being revealed that some domestic workers in private residences have been trafficked and thereafter subjected to physical and sexual abuse, without the freedom to leave or receive little, if any, payment and/or benefits or protections.
Forced and early marriages can also involve the human trafficking of women or girls and, unfortunately, there has also been a recent increase in organ trafficking of them as well.
How do women and girls end up being trafficked and at risk of being trafficked?
There are numerous reasons for this, but they all lead to a lack of options. People are frequently forced into situations they would not choose otherwise due to desperation or circumstance. They may need money so badly that they’ll do anything for it, or they may be fleeing persecution or war. Victims may have been born into poverty and never had the opportunity to attend school or work, or they may be fleeing abuse in their home country. There are a number of factors that can lead to women and girls being vulnerable to trafficking and physical and sexual abuse.
These include:
>>> Poverty is a very common reason for women and girls being trafficked. When women or girls have a stable income or jobs that provide income security, the likelihood of being lured into trafficking situations decreases. However, when a woman or girl is without any income, family support or who is raising a family on her own, she will be at an increased risk of becoming vulnerable to being trafficked or subjected to physical and sexual abuse by 1)The false offer of a job or education in order to obtain a good income, or; 2) Because she may have no other option in order to survive. It is also a sad fact that, in dire economic circumstances, families may sell off their daughters to gain money in order to support the rest of their family.
>>> Homelessness and starvation increases a woman or girl’s vulnerability to trafficking, including physical and sexual abuse, as she is forced to use desperate means in order to earn money to obtain shelter or food for her or her family.
>>> Food, fuel and water scarcity provides a huge risk for girls and women. Girls who are travelling to find food, fuel or water for their families may end up being kidnapped for the purposes of physical and sexual abuse.
>>> The Climate crisis impacts jobs and housing and often creates a vicious cycle of poverty and homelessness leading to migration and displacement which in turn makes women and girls further vulnerable to trafficking and physical and sexual abuse,
>>> Inadequate access to affordable healthcare and a lack of good health on the part of a woman, girl or a family member may make them more vulnerable to being trafficked and subjected to physical and sexual abuse. For example, many developing countries where most of the human trafficking occurs lack adequate healthcare facilities for those in need. As such, a woman, girl or a family member who is suffering from an illness or injury may have no choice but to seek treatment from a local doctor or hospital. If a woman or girl becomes ill after being exposed to toxic smoke when they used fuel to cook or heat the house and they cannot afford medical care, traffickers may force them into debt bondage to pay off their medical bills. Poor health in the form of physical disabilities which either limit mobility or involve mental issues has also been linked to a higher risk of being trafficked for forced labour or sexual purposes.
>>> A lack of access to quality education exacerbates a woman or girls vulnerabilities and places them at a greater risk of being a victim of human trafficking and physical and sexual abuse. The more educated women or girls are, the more likely they will be able to find a decent job to support themselves and their family. Without an education, a woman or girl may struggle to find jobs that pay a living wage, limiting their opportunities for independence from traffickers or other forms of exploitation. Even if they obtain a job, without an education, they may be forced to do unskilled work long hours for little pay and no benefits.
>>> A lack of access to safe and decent work, training, services or other tools which might enable women and girls to be economically empowered, such as credit, land, assets, rights and economic literacy also makes them more vulnerable to human trafficking and physical and sexual abuse.
>>> Transportation which is limited or cannot guarantee a woman or girls safety in accessing either work and education can also result in a women or girl being more vulnerable to human trafficking, physical and sexual abuse.
>>> The lack of knowledge of cybersecurity and digital literacy among women and girls has made them more vulnerable to all forms of online exploitation from traffickers.
>>> Location can significantly impact women’s and girls’ access to education and resources. Those living in deprived or remote areas often struggle to access public services or protective legislation, making them more vulnerable to trafficking, physical, and sexual abuse.
>>> Gender inequality, discrimination, and a preference for boys have denied women and girls the same rights as men in many countries. This inequality often leads to women and girls shouldering more domestic work and having less access to education, healthcare, water, fuel, and nutrition. In abusive situations, gender inequality can further limit their ability to support themselves financially or gain independence from an abuser, making them more vulnerable to gender-related violence, including trafficking and physical and sexual abuse.
>>> Negative cultural and social norms, derived from cultural or religious beliefs and/or political climates can create a environment in which gender inequality flourishes and results in women and girls not being treated as human beings but as a commodity for exploitation.
What are the shadows in the trafficking of women and girls?
Although, technology has created many positives and enabled us to do things much more easily it has created a downside by making the trafficking of women and girls easier.
Digital platforms such as social media channels, forums, chat groups and other online spaces allow traffickers to view, identify, track and stalk their intended victims. Technology allows perpetrators to remain hidden in the shadows. Posting photographs and personal information can expose women and girls to such dangers as the risk of being trafficked and exploited in various forms by these perpetrators. Increasingly, we are also hearing more about the dark web being a welcoming venue for such crimes.
Perpetrators are also using more cunning and creative strategies to lure women and girls into their web of crime online as they operate in the shadows, often hiding behind technology, where it is harder to identify and locate them.
For example, “Romeo pimping” is a way in which girls and women are lured in by seemingly caring and attractive online boyfriends in order to exploit them by obtaining identifying information that they can use to perpetuate a fraud or use pictures of them in nude and suggestive photographs for pornography or trafficking sites online and, in some cases, eventually meet them offline in order to expand their exploitation to involve physical gender related violence including trafficking and physical and sexual abuse.
Artificial intelligence has heightened the vulnerability of women and girls being trafficked or subjected to physical and sexual abuse as it enables the cloning of a woman or girls families’ voices and images to trick young females into thinking they are arranging to meet their family members, when in fact they are being duped into meeting traffickers.
Soroptimists play a key role
First of all Soroptimists educate the public including women, girls, their families, educators, media, religious groups, law enforcement including criminal justice agencies, businesses, legislators and communities about human trafficking as well as physical and sexual abuse. All of these efforts raise the awareness of these groups of people and turns them into advocates against trafficking and its results. We also raise the key issue of gender discrimination with communities and increase awareness of the factors regarding gender discrimination that are linked to trafficking.
Soroptimists are also engaged in many other activities which combat human trafficking and physical and sexual abuse around the world. We have given millions to provide scholarships for education and training, assist in building schools, provide safe transportation to schools as well as social services such as cash vouchers, access to boarding schools and, if necessary, school meals for young women and girls so they can continue their education. We also provide women and girls with the digital literacy and critical thinking that they will need to understand and deal with the dangers posed to them by technology
Soroptimists are also continuously challenging negative perspectives and stereotypes and breaking down harmful cultural and social norms in communities and in the media which make women and girls more vulnerable to human trafficking and physical and sexual abuse. We discourage the sexual objectification of women and debunk myths. Many of us are working with governments, law enforcement and legal agencies to help get legislation which combats the trafficking, physical and sexual abuse of women and girls implemented, where it isn’t being used.
Soroptimists in many areas around the world have also been creating coalitions of support between clubs, regions and countries for years. Groups like STAT and STAT III (Soroptimists Together Against Trafficking) are working together with their local task forces in multiple areas in California for example. Soroptimist International of Truckee Donner supported Awaken and Sierra Community House with $2,500 each due to the generous support of the Whittier Trust. Awaken has set up transitional housing for women and their families who have been trafficked – this grant will help to furnish the homes. Members from Northern California fundraise and support a house which aids trafficked women and girls who have been forced into labour or sex work. This house was founded by a previous Live Your Dream Award winner.
The way forward
We will continue to amplify our voice, raising awareness about human trafficking and ensuring that people can recognize the signs of those at risk. Additionally, our support for ethical storytelling by trafficking survivors, and challenging harmful perspectives and practices are key components of our strategy against perpetrators hiding in the shadows. Our efforts to educate and empower women and girls through quality education, healthcare, services for those who are survivors of violence and access to training and employment will continue to help them avoid these dangers and achieve independence.
Linda Witong – short biography
Linda Witong is SI Advocacy Advisor 2024 to 2025 and has been a Soroptimist for 13 years. She has served as the President of the Soroptimists of Marin County and Novato and has been a Soroptimist delegate to the UN Commission on the Status of Women from 2013- 2024. More recently she attended the CSW 68 meeting in March of 2024. She is also a member of the Board of the NGO Alliance in Vienna and is serving on two of its Committees which are addressing the problem of Non-State torture on women and girls as well as the effects of the organized crime on the climate crisis. She has served as a research consultant for CSW in NY and is presently serving in that capacity for the CSW in Geneva as well.
Linda is now retired but she was Deputy District Attorney in the Marin County District Attorney’s Office for over 32 years. In 1996 she received the accolade of the Outstanding Prosecutor Of Marin County Award and has received multiple awards from police and sheriff departments across the Marin district. She was also recently inducted into the Marin County Women’s Hall of Fame in 2024 and received commendations from the US Congressional House of Representatives, the California Senate and Marin County.
Even though Linda retired she remains extremely active, supporting cold case investigations for law enforcement agencies in Marin County and she is currently a member of:
- The Marin County Human Trafficking Coalition
- The California District Attorney’s Association
She is also receiving training in homicide investigation, Human Trafficking, Child Abduction and Elder Abuse. In addition to her role as SI Advocacy Advisor (2024 to 2025), Linda has also been a member of other Boards in the past.