The Exploitation of Women and Children – A Comparative Study of Human Trafficking Laws between the United States-Mexico and China-Vietnam

Christina T. Le is a private attorney at an immigration law firm in Houston, Texas. She received her J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center and a B.S. in journalism from Northwestern University. Prior to entering private practice, she served as Attorney Advisor and Judicial Law Clerk to the U.S. Immigration Court in Houston. During law school, she worked with victims of human trafficking at the UH Law Center’s Immigration Clinic and at the non-profit organizations Boat People SOS and YMCA International Services.

Cathleen S. Creegan is a private attorney licensed by the State Bar of Texas. She received her J.D. from the University of Oklahoma College of Law and a B.A. in journalism from the University of Oklahoma.

1. Introduction

Human trafficking is a global epidemic that that equates to modern-day slavery and to which no country is immune. Traffickers are currently denying nearly 25 million people their fundamental right to freedom, forcing them to live enslaved and toil for their exploiter’s profit.[1] Shockingly, this figure has risen from an estimated 12.3 million human trafficking victims in 2009.[2] Female victims continue to be particularly affected by trafficking in persons. In 2018, for every ten victims detected globally, about five were adult women and two were girls; additionally, about one third of the overall detected victims were children, both girls (19 per cent) and boys (15 per cent).[3] Moreover, the International Labour Office (ILO) found that victims of sex trafficking more likely faced transnational human trafficking while victims of forced labor typically experienced exploitation in their country of residence.[4] In their efforts to find a better life, they become victims of vicious traffickers. Human trafficking is usually defined as, inter alia, forced sexual exploitation, involuntary servitude, or debt bondage.[5]

The United Nations and international community in general have expressed their disdain for human trafficking and have recognized the evils and needs for protection of victims with increased awareness campaigns, such as the Blue Heart Campaign against Human Trafficking to advance the goals of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its protocols,[6] and the United National Global Compact to promote “ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.”[7]

Recently, multilateral organizations have ramped up efforts to combat trafficking by integrating anti-trafficking policies into discussions of other pressing matters.[8] For example, at the opening of the 70th Session of the UN General Assembly in September 2015, world leaders adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which provides guidance for global efforts to eradicate poverty, promote peace and equality, and protect the environment over the coming years; of the 17 goals included in this Agenda, three anti-trafficking elements have been integrated, demonstrating the international community’s ongoing efforts to combat human trafficking.[9]

In 1999 the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute established the Global Programme against Trafficking in Human Beings to track organized crime activity in human trafficking and to assist member nations to develop effective criminal justice responses.[10] One year later in 2000, the United Nations passed The UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (“UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking” or “Palermo Protocol”)[11] and The UN Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air (“UN Protocol Against Smuggling”),[12] both supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Crime.[13] The UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking uses “trafficking in persons” as an umbrella term that covers a wide variety of offenses, such as maintaining someone in forced labor or recruiting someone for compelled commercial sexual exploitation and provides a much needed foundation on which governments could build policies that criminalize human trafficking and stop traffickers, protect victims and prevent victimization, and promote cooperation among countries.[14] The preamble of the UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking states:

…effective action to prevent and combat trafficking in persons, especially women and children, requires a comprehensive international approach in the countries of origin, transit and destination that includes measures to prevent such trafficking, to punish the traffickers and to protect the victims of such trafficking, including by protecting their internationally recognized human rights.[15]

Despite the lofty goals in the preamble, the international community remains far removed from implementing an effective comprehensive international approach to combat human trafficking. Efforts are being made, however; as of March 31, 2019, 173 parties ratified the UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking and 168 countries have passed domestic legislation criminalizing human trafficking according to this framework.[16] As of June 2020, four additional countries have become parties to the UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking.[17]

The trafficking of persons is a growing epidemic that must be addressed and combated. However, to efficiently fight this global problem, the international community must understand the causes of human trafficking, the parties behind such trafficking, and the various methods countries are using to address the problem. This research program aims to provide the international community with the background information necessary to adopt an efficient and successful global campaign against the trafficking of human beings.

2. Roadmap and Structure

This paper seeks to understand the push-and-pull effects of human trafficking and to determine what may be the appropriate government practices to combat the problem. The research will focus on two parallel country conditions: United States-Mexico and China-Vietnam. These four countries on both sides of the world are experiencing similar problems with human trafficking. Preliminarily, the push-and-pull causes of human trafficking between the countries appear to be quite similar with the more affluent countries, China and the United States, as the receiving country. The United States and China, with better economic opportunities, are seeing an influx of trafficking victims into their countries from their southern neighbors. However, the policies the countries choose to address their human trafficking problems are quite different. The United States has a unilateral enforcement approach to stop human trafficking,[18] whereas China has a bilateral approach in working with Vietnam to address the situation.[19] How each respective country has chosen to deal with the problem provides a great opportunity for research and analysis.

2.1. United States & Mexico

In 2009 the U.S. Department of State estimated that 20,000 people are trafficked from Mexico into the United States each year.[20] Despite encouragement by the State Department to work together, increased cooperative efforts between the two countries to combat trafficking is still needed.[21]

In 2000, the United States Congress enacted the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000 (“TVPA 2000”) to increase punishment for human traffickers, provide greater protection for victims of human trafficking, and help prevent and deter trafficking.[22] The act was passed in response to the “millions of people, primarily women and children,” who are trafficked every year.[23] Legislative debate showed TVPA 2000 was “designed to ensure that our government uses its influence around the world to stop this abominable trafficking in human beings.”[24] The TVPA 2000 called for the State Department to establish the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking.[25] Additionally, it required the State Department to publish annual reports assessing international human trafficking and to provide sanctions against significant violator countries.[26] TVPA 2000 was reauthorized in 2003 to provide additional funding.[27] It was reauthorized in 2005 [28] and again in 2008, expanding its scope of protection.[29] The law lapsed in 2011 and has since been passed in its entirety as an amendment to the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act in 2013.[30] Recently, the U.S. Congress passed several laws that address human trafficking and related crimes, including laws amending and reauthorizing the TVPA and a law creating additional grounds for civil action against and expanding criminal liability of websites and technology platforms that intentionally promote or facilitate prostitution, with aggravated penalties for cases in which the defendant recklessly disregards that the conduct contributes to sex trafficking.[31] Specifically, the TVPA was reauthorized in 2019.[32]

In 2001, Mexico had no specific laws prohibiting trafficking.[33] In 2005, the Mexican Senate unanimously passed comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation.[34] In 2007, the Mexican federal government passed a law that prohibits all forms of human trafficking and provides 6-12 year sentences for trafficking crimes.[35] In February 2009, the Mexican government issued regulations to implement its federal anti-trafficking laws,[36] and in December 2009 the first convictions under these laws were handed down.[37] By May 2009, 22 Mexican states and its federal district had enacted legislation to criminalize human trafficking on the local level.[38] By 2011, all 32 states had passed anti-trafficking codes in some form, although the breadth and effectiveness of these statutes varied.[39] Mexico’s anti-trafficking push has continued, and in April 2010 it became the first country to launch its own nationally-led United Nations “Blue Heart” campaign against human trafficking.[40] In June 2012, the Mexican federal government passed a general anti-trafficking law that superseded the 2007 law.[41] This law prohibits all forms of human trafficking, prescribing penalties ranging from five to 30 years’ imprisonment and obligates states to have a dedicated human trafficking prosecutor.[42] In April 2014, the Ministry of the Interior, through the Inter-secretarial Commission to Prevent, Combat and Punish Crimes in the Matter of Trafficking in Persons, presented the National Program to Prevent, Punish and Eradicate Crimes in the Matter of Trafficking in Persons and for the Protection and Assistance to Victims of these Crimes, in compliance with the provisions of articles 25 and 26 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, the Planning Law and the General Law to Prevent, Punish and Eradicate Crimes in the matter of Trafficking in Persons and to Protection and Assistance to the Victims of These Crimes.[43] In December 2016, the Mexican Congress approved a Crime Victim’s Law, which includes but is not limited to trafficking victims, and mandates the creation of a federal fund for crime victim assistance and mandates the states also create such funds.[44] With the expiration of its national anti-trafficking action plan in 2018, the inter-secretarial anti-trafficking commission created six working groups of government, civil society, and academic members and held roundtables around the country to draft a new plan for 2020-2024; however, as of June 2020, the government had not yet completed the plan.[45]

The research will first examine the United States’ punish-and-protect method under the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act.[46] Preliminarily, it seems the United States chooses to deal with traffickers and trafficking victims on a case-by-case basis. The government uses federal laws to punish and then deport alien traffickers.[47] As for victims who are trafficked into the country, the government slowly has begun to issue “T-visas” for those who cooperate with law enforcement and satisfy hardship requisites.[48] These visas are not guaranteed to every trafficking victim, and those who do not qualify for the T-visa find themselves in deportation proceedings and removed from the United States.[49]

In fiscal year 2019, the Department of Homeland Security granted T nonimmigrant status to only 500 victims and 491 eligible family members of victims, a slight decrease from a respective 576 victims and 703 family members in fiscal year 2018.[50] Moreover, advocates from nongovernmental organizations reported increased obstacles to obtaining a T visa. Specifically, advocates have noted a continuing rise in the number of requests for additional evidence by adjudicators, which tends to increase processing times, and reported increased T visa denials that they believed improperly interpreted relevant statutes and regulations, such as denials based on unlawful acts traffickers compelled victims to commit or narrower interpretations of the physical presence requirement.[51] In addition, the Department of Labor (DOL) amended its policy of certifying applications for T visas, now requiring a referral to criminal law enforcement prior to DOL certification; this amended DOL certification policy creates additional barriers to obtaining a T visa and may deter victims from even coming forward.[52] Upon denial, these people are deported and often fall victim to trafficking once again and return to the United States. The startling reality is that even with T-visa applications and approvals, the vast majority of trafficking victims in the United States do not receive long-term immigration relief under the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act.[53]

The United States’ inability to independently provide broad relief for trafficking victims underscores the need for inter-governmental cooperation. In the past, the United States government rarely worked with Mexico towards a solution for human trafficking. Instead, it chose to unilaterally deal with the trafficking situation within its country and to deport parties involved. Progress towards a more cooperative approach is being made, however. In 2009, the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security launched the U.S.-Mexico Bilateral Human Trafficking Enforcement Initiative to enhance collaboration with Mexican law enforcement counterparts to more effectively combat transborder trafficking threats.[54] Through this initiative, under the leadership of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, U.S. and Mexican authorities exchange leads and intelligence to strengthen investigations and prosecutions, restore victims, recover victims’ children, and dismantle trafficking networks through high-impact prosecutions in both the U.S. and Mexico.[55]

Despite these efforts, further collaboration between the two countries is needed, as trafficking into the United States by way of Mexico continues.

2.2. China and Vietnam

The second part of the research will examine the China-Vietnam trafficking situation. Human trafficking continues to plague these two countries. Vietnamese authorities estimate during the 1990s approximately 22,000 Vietnamese women and children have been trafficked into China for forced marriage and other illicit purposes.[56] The United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) believes this number is likely underestimated as China is now one of the major receiving countries of trafficked women due to the shortage of women in China.[57] In particular, Vietnamese girls as young as 13 have been tricked or drugged and then smuggled across the border to be sold as child brides.[58] Unfortunately, trafficking to China is on the rise.[59] The trafficking of human beings across the Vietnam-China border has forced governments from both countries to pass tough anti-trafficking legislations and work together towards a solution.[60]

Both China and Vietnam have criminal sanctions in their penal codes to prosecute human traffickers.[61] Specifically, Vietnam promulgated an anti-trafficking law in 2012 that expands the previous definition of human trafficking and includes victim care and trafficking prevention previsions.[62] In 2015, Vietnam’s National Assembly passed a new penal code that addressed remaining issues by describing most of the acts, means, and purposes of trafficking and more clearly defining the prescribed penalties and aggravating factor;[63] however, the implementation of the Penal Code 2015 was significantly delayed.[64] In January 2018, the penal code amendments criminalizing all forms of labor trafficking and most forms of sex trafficking came into effect.[65] Article 150 of the penal code criminalized labor trafficking and sex trafficking of adults and prescribed penalties of five to ten years’ imprisonment and fines of 20 million to 100 million Vietnamese dong (VND) ($860 to $4,320), while Article 151 criminalized labor trafficking and sex trafficking of children under the age of 16 and prescribed penalties of seven to 12 years’ imprisonment and fines of 50 million to 200 million VND ($2,160 to $8,630).[66] The Vietnamese government implemented a four-year (2016-2020) national anti-trafficking action plan to address forced labor, improve victim services, and implement the revised anti-trafficking penal code.[67] Currently, the Vietnamese government is working on a Program on Anti-Trafficking of Humans for the 2021-2025 period to realize its goal of reducing human trafficking and protecting victims of human trafficking.[68] On the other hand, China’s criminal law does not fully criminalize all forms of trafficking as defined by international law, though various provisions of the criminal code could be used to prosecute sex trafficking offenses such as Article 240 and 241 and labor trafficking offenses could be prosecuted under Article 244.[69] However, China has devoted substantial efforts on a national plan (the Second National Plan of Action on Combatting Human Trafficking 2013-2020) to address inconsistencies between Chinese criminal law and international law.[70] The government is reportedly formulating a draft version of its next iteration.[71]

In addition to efforts to comply with international law, these two countries have engaged in high level discussions on border security and crime.[72] In May 2000, government officials from both countries met in Vietnam to discuss a joint strategy to combat border trafficking.[73] The U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime reports that in 2001, “Viet Nam and China signed a bilateral agreement on cooperation in preventing and combating crime, social order and security, which includes cooperation on human trafficking.”[74] In 2005, after three meetings for the Coordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative against Trafficking in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (COMMIT), Vietnam and China, along with four other Southeast Asian countries, agreed on an action plan to fight human trafficking in the region.[75]

Of course, these joint efforts have not been able to stop the trafficking problem, but they have resulted in several notable joint law enforcement stings and shutdowns of several human trafficking organizations.[76] The joint effort led to the discovery of 46 human trafficking cases during the first six months of 2005, which led to the arrest of 75 traffickers and rescue of 109 victims.[77] In fact, cooperative anti-trafficking operations have resulted in the rescue of hundreds of trafficking victims in 2005 and 2006 alone.[78] As part of these efforts, UNICEF-China has helped to organize a six-month Vietnamese language learning course for Chinese law enforcement authorities at the Border Liaison Offices, allowing them to better communicate with Vietnamese authorities.[79]

In September 2010, Vietnam and China signed memoranda of understanding to strengthen cooperation on preventing and combating human trafficking.[80] Notably, since these further collaborative endeavors, 1,281 abducted foreign women and 84 abducted foreign children were rescued and repatriated in 2013 alone.[81] In 2015, Vietnamese and Chinese Governments met at an annual meeting to evaluate their bilateral agreement on the fight against human trafficking and address the challenges related to the creation of victim identification criteria and cooperation plan for 2016.[82] Currently, efforts are being made to expand intelligence sharing and case investigations between China and Vietnam in the fight against rampant cross-border trafficking of women.[83]

The two countries have worked together to punish the traffickers involved and to help the trafficking victims through their ordeal. Unlike the United States, China does not grant visa benefits to trafficking victims. Instead, it participates in transfer and rehabilitation centers for victims and repatriates them back to Vietnam. The countries also have awareness campaigns with UNICEF as a preventive measure.[84] Additionally, the International Organization for Migration has hosted multiple training programs for police officers that aim to equip the officers with the skills to better identify and interview victims of trafficking along the border.[85] These bilateral efforts to train officers on human trafficking issues have changed the view of trafficking victims from criminal suspects who cross the border illegally to human beings who need protection and assistance. [86] The existing bilateral agreements between the countries remain in effect, and these agreements have helped to facilitate recent law enforcement actions.[87] Unfortunately, even such cooperative efforts have not been able to stem the wave of human trafficking. [88]

2.3. Analysis and Comparison

Thirdly, the research will evaluate the current international efforts by the United Nations and other organizations to stop human trafficking. In light of these endeavors, this paper examines the Vietnamese and Chinese governments’ cooperative legislative and enforcement approach to combat human trafficking and compares it to a more unilateral legislative approach taken by the United States. The objective of this paper is to determine the effectiveness of each method in reducing human trafficking and what the appropriate measures may be.

A comparison study of the human trafficking situation in China-Vietnam and United States-Mexico will provide a great contrast of international policies pursued by the countries. The end goal is to determine which countries’ bilateral or unilateral approaches are most effective and what methods the international community should adopt in its global effort to stop human trafficking. The research concludes that an effective method is a hybrid strategy combining tougher punitive measures for traffickers, greater protection, rights, and benefits for victims, and better government and law enforcement cooperation among origin, transit, and receiving countries.

3. Annotated Bibliography

3.1. General

Government Resources

The United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, G.A. Res. 55/25, annex II, U.N. GAOR, 55th Sess., Supp. No. 49, at 60, U.N. Doc. A/45/49 (Vol. I) (2001). This is one of two protocols that were part of initial international efforts to combat human trafficking. It declares a need for comprehensive international approach and measures to prevent and punish traffickers and to protect victims. It requires each state to criminalize trafficking, protect victims, and exchange information and training. Through this source, we can understand the obligations of each signatory. We also have a foundation for the requisites of international legislation and approach to fight human trafficking.

The United Nations Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, G.A. Res. 55/25, U.N. GAOR, 55th Sess., Supp. No. 49, at 65, U.N. Doc. A/45/49 (Vol. I) (2001). This protocol requires a comprehensive international approach to prevent trafficking of persons internationally. It also requires criminalization, protection, and information exchange. This source is important in context with the other United Nations convention and protocol.

The United Nations Convention against Transnational Crime, G.A. Res. 55/25, Annex I, U.N. GAOR, 55th Sess., Supp. No. 49, at 44, U.N. Doc. A/45/49 (Vol. I) (2001). This is the foundation for the other two United Nations protocols listed above. The purpose of this Convention was to “prevent and combat transnational crime.” It seeks to establish uniform criminalization of participation in an organized crime group and measures taken to get at assets. This Convention is important in context with the other two protocols.

Guidelines on International Protection No. 7: The Application of Article 1A(2) of the 1951 Convention and/or 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees to Victims of Trafficking and Persons At Risk of Being Trafficked, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, U.N. Doc. HCR/GIP/06/07 (2006). The United Nations issued Guidelines to provide interpretative legal guidance for making determinations about refugee status. The Guidelines complement UNHCR Handbook on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status under the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees and should be read in conjunction with other previously issued guidelines issued related to these protocols.

Counter-Trafficking in Persons Policy, U.S. Agency for International Development

(2012). The USAID launched this policy in 2012 to reinvigorate and focus Agency efforts to combat trafficking on concrete, measurable principles and objectives. The policy provides guidance on pursuing more effective, efficient, and evidence-based approaches in counter-trafficking.

Counter-Trafficking in Persons Field Guide, U.S. Agency for International Development (2013). The USAID published this field guide in 2013 to educate Mission personnel and partners about human trafficking, and also to provide technical assistance to integrate, design, implement, and monitor effective programs.

U.S Government Entities Combating Human Trafficking Factsheet (J/TIP), U.S. Agency for International Development (2017). The USAID provided a factsheet that briefly describes each of the federal government agencies responsible for coordinating U.S. government-wide efforts to combat trafficking in persons.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, G.A. Res. 70/1, U.N. Doc. A/RES/70/1 (2015). The purpose of this agenda is to guide the global community’s efforts to eradicate poverty, promote peace and equality, and protect the environment in the coming years. The Agenda includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets centered on economic, social, and environmental development. The UN integrated anti-trafficking elements into three of the goals.

Electronic Resources

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime – Human Trafficking. This UN web site provides general information and links to materials produced by the UN related to human trafficking. The site provides access to UN tools and publication materials and the latest news on human trafficking and awareness campaigns. This source is important to understand the various steps the United Nations has taken to combat human trafficking.

Coalition Against Trafficking in Women. This is the web site of an NGO that focuses on women’s rights and sex trafficking of women and girls around the world. The site provides information on various global campaigns, programs, and projects that combat human trafficking. It also is a good resource for news articles about human trafficking in countries throughout the world.

Polaris Project. This NGO web site provides information on national and local programs to increase awareness of human trafficking and to protect victims. It also is a good source to access legislation and the latest news on human trafficking.

The Freedom Fund. This is a website for the world’s first private philanthropic initiative dedicated to ending modern slavery. This resource details specific hotspot programs and global initiatives, and also offers access to recent news, reports, and press releases regarding human trafficking issues.

Walk Free. This is a website of an international human rights group working to end modern slavery by mobilizing a global activist movement, generating the highest quality research, enlisting business, and raising unprecedented levels of capital to drive change in those countries and industries bearing the greatest responsibility for modern slavery today. It provides a source for reports and policy documents, including four indices of global slavery.

American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative–The Human Trafficking Assessment Tool. This site provides a study and evaluation of countries’ compliance with UN protocols related to human trafficking. It is a comprehensive resource for the comparison of international efforts worldwide.

United States Agency for International Development – Trafficking. The USAID is the federal government agency primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid. This site details its involvement in counter-trafficking efforts.

Articles

Waleed M. Sweileh, Research trends on human trafficking: a bibliometric analysis using Scopus database, 14 Global Health 106 (2018). This paper assessed the research activity and research trends on human trafficking, finding an under-representation of health-related literature on human trafficking and that literature on sex trafficking dominated the field of human trafficking. The article concludes that research networks and research collaboration between the source and destination countries is important.

David Okech, Y. Joon Choi, Jennifer Elkins, Abigail C. Burns, Seventeen years of human trafficking research in social work: A review of the literature, 15 Journal of Evidence-Informed Social Work 2 (2017). This paper provides a systematic review of human trafficking in social work journals and concluded the following: more focus on sex trafficking than other forms of trafficking; a lack of a clear conceptualization and definition on the entire spectrum of trafficking; a lack of evidence-informed empirical research to inform programs, practice, and policy; and a dearth of recommendations for social work education. This paper also discusses specific implications for social work policy, research, practice, and education.

Jordan Greenbaum, Nia Bodrick, Global Human Trafficking and Child Victimization, 140 Pediatrics 6 (2017). This paper outlines major issues regarding public policy, medical education, research, and collaboration in the area of child labor and sex trafficking and provides recommendations for future work.

Lauren A. McCarthy, Human Trafficking and the New Slavery, 10 Ann. Rev. L. & Soc. Sci. 221 (2014). This paper explores the challenges inherent in obtaining a consistent definition of trafficking and in developing appropriate methods of measuring trafficking. It outlines the debates over these issues and suggests directions for future research that can reveal the complexities of the phenomenon but also clarify the understanding of experiences and processes that drive trafficking.

Mohamed Y. Mattar, Transnational Legal Responses to Illegal Trade in Human Beings, 33 SAIS Rev. Int’l Aff. 137 (2013). This paper discusses the transnational nature of the crime of human trafficking and emphasizes the need for cooperation to combat this crime. The article examines international legal standards of combatting human trafficking and compares various methods of cooperation. It further provides recommendations for the incorporation of a translational legal response for any comprehensive strategy to combat human trafficking.

Hila Shamir, A Labor Paradigm for Human Trafficking, 60 UCLA L. Rev. 76 (2012). This paper discusses the issues with the current legal instruments developed for combatting human trafficking and offers possible solutions. It specifically calls for a paradigm shift in anti-trafficking policy and suggests how such changes may be incorporated into existing anti-trafficking regimes.

Mohamed Y. Mattar, Interpreting Judicial Interpretations of the Criminal Statutes of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act: Ten Years Later, 19 Am. U. J. Gender, Soc. Pol’y & L. 1248 (2011). This paper is the first comprehensive study that examines the cases decided in accordance with the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. The article discusses how courts have categorized the crime of human trafficking and their definitions of the elements of the crime. It also examines constitutional challenges that have been raised by defendants and the reasons for their failure. The article further reports on the courts’ establishment of the relationship between domestic legislation and international law.

Ryszard Piotowicz, The UNHCR’s Guidelines on Human Trafficking, 20 Int’l J. Refugee L. 242 (2008). This paper reviews the UNHCR Guidelines on the application of the Refugee Convention to trafficking victims and analyzes how refugee laws can apply to these victims. It provides a comprehensive overview of the Guidelines and how they can be used to benefit victims of trafficking.

Kalen Fredette, Revisiting the UN Protocol on Human Trafficking: Striking Balances for More Effective Legislation, 17 Cardozo J. Int’l & Comp. L. 101 (2009). This paper reviews the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, as well as various national and international efforts to combat human trafficking. It analyzes the Protocol with new data on human trafficking and proposes national and international legislation to increase the Protocol’s effectiveness.

Mohamed Y. Mattar, Incorporating the Five Basic Elements of a Model Antitrafficking in Persons Legislation in Domestic Laws: From the United Nations Protocol to the European Convention, 14 Tul. J. Int’l & Comp. L. 357 (2006). The article gives a comparative study of various anti-trafficking legislations and provides a model framework for trafficking legislation. It gives five requirements: 1) criminalizing of all forms of trafficking, 2) identifying victims and guaranteeing basic human rights, 3) adopting comprehensive prevention, protection, provision, prosecution, and participation approaches, 4) targeting all actors in human trafficking organization, and 5) acknowledging human trafficking as an international crime. It is a great article for a basic framework of anti-trafficking legislation, with a broad overview and evaluation of the various legislations already in place in the international system. Furthermore, its model framework idea is extremely helpful as a launch pad for a more comprehensive recommendation to the international community.

Note, Remedying the Injustices of Human Trafficking Through Tort Law, 119 Harv. L. Rev. 2574 (2006). The note explores a novel idea about the potation for civil redress for human trafficking victims under tort claims in the United States. The paper first gives an overview of tactics used by traffickers to bring victims into the United States and then examines the forced labor conditions. It then critiques the protections afforded to victims under the current legislative framework and argues for civil causes of action, using California law as a model. The article helps the research in understanding how traffickers lure their victims and the conditions of forced labor within the United States. Additionally, the argument for tort claims is an interesting and new idea that can possibly be explored further to determine its feasibility in the international legal framework.

Linda Smith & Mohamed Mattar, Creating International Consensus on Combating Trafficking in Persons: U.S. Policy, the Role of the UN, and Global Responses and Challenges, 28 WTR Fletcher F. World Aff. 155 (2004). The paper gives a general overview of the United States’ and United Nations’ approaches to combating human trafficking. It identifies several problems in the international community that contributes to the proliferation of human trafficking. It also gives fairly broad recommendations for countries to take preventive, protective, and legislative measures to fight trafficking. This paper is good for research because it focuses more on the United Nations protocols and international framework.

Mohamed Y. Mattar, Trafficking in Persons: An Annotated Legal Bibliography, 96 Law Libr. J. 669 (2004). It begins with general information about human trafficking, giving an expansive definition. The bibliography itself covers a broad array of what the author considers to be human trafficking, and it also focuses on international human rights law and trafficking legislation in various countries including the United States, China, and Southeast Asia. This is an extremely comprehensive resource tool with annotations on dozens of articles in the field. It cuts out half of the research work. Great source to use for further research on human trafficking, although some of the articles are a bit old.

Shaheen P. Torgoley, Comment, Trafficking and Forced Prostitution: A Manifestation of Modern Slavery, 14 Tul. J. Int’l & Comp. L. 553 (2006). The paper looks at specific experiences of victims who were trafficked and forced into prostitution. It looks at the historical development of trafficking and prostitution, and then the modern recruitment of women for trafficking and prostitution. The conclusion explores a legal framework to combat the problem under the Thirteenth Amendment outlawing slavery and indentured servitude. This is a good source for information about prostitution and indentured servitude. It provides the Thirteenth Amendment as a unique argument and method for the legal fight against human trafficking.

Robin M. Rumpf, U.N. Reports, The New Slavery: The United Nations Interregional Crime & Justice Research Institute’s Global Program Against Trafficking in Human Beings, 19 N.Y.L. Sch. J. Hum. Rts. 879 (2003). This report provides an overview of the U.N.’s Global Program Against Trafficking in Human Beings. It discusses the four phases that will be implemented to track organized crime involvement in human trafficking. This is a good resource for more detailed information about the GPAT’s method to track organized crime.

Shelley Case Inglis, Expanding International and National Protections Against Trafficking for Forced Labor Using a Human Rights Framework, 7 Buff. Hum. Rts. L. Rev. 55 (2001). The article examines human trafficking within a human rights framework, specifically focusing on forced labor. It evaluates current proposed solutions by governments, international organizations, and NGOs to address the problems. The article lays the foundation for viewing human trafficking within a human rights framework.

Amy Fraley, Note, Child Sex Tourism Legislation Under the Protect Act: Does it Really Protect? 79 St. John’s L. Rev. 445 (2005). The article explores the problem of child sex tourism and focuses on the evolution of United States legislation including amendments adopted as part of the Prosecuting Remedies and Tools Against the Exploitation of Children Today Act of 2003. It then discusses a comparative analysis of the United States approach to the problem measured against approaches in several other Western countries. The paper concludes with “benchmarks” for effective legislation and calls for international collaboration and unity to prosecute child sex tourism. Although the article is not generally about human trafficking, it focuses on a very big effect of trafficking—child exploitation. This is an in-depth study of this particular area, which is perhaps the most dangerous and byproduct of human trafficking. Furthermore, it provides a great comparative analysis of methods utilized by the United States and other countries. It is a good starting ground for further research and recommendation for approaches to combating human trafficking and child exploitation.

3.2. United States and Mexico

Government Resources

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000, Pub. L. No. 106-386, 114 Stat. 1464 (2000). This legislation is the foundation of the United States’ legal framework in protecting victims of human trafficking. It establishes an office within the State Department to monitor trafficking and publish annual reports on human trafficking. It also provides a means for victims to remain in the United States if they satisfy certain requisites including cooperation with law enforcement and proof of specific hardships if returned. When analyzing the United States’ legal efforts to fight human trafficking, we must look to this statute to determine how it is treating victims. This will be our main source in the comparison analysis with other countries.

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003, Pub. L. No. 108-193, 117 Stat. 2875 (2003). This law renews the TVPA 2000 law. It creates a federal civil cause of action for trafficking victims to sue their traffickers. It also extends benefits to spouses and children of trafficking victims who qualify for visas. This legislation shows TVPA 2000 is still good law.

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005, Pub. L. No. 109-164, 119 Stat. 3558 (2005). The law extends TVPA for an additional two years and authorizes new programs to serve trafficking victims and included a pilot program to shelter minors. It expands federal criminal jurisdiction to allow prosecution of U.S. government personnel and contractors who commit trafficking offenses while abroad.

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, Pub. L. No. 110-457, 122 Stat. 5004 (2008). This extension authorizes TVPA through 2011. Continuing with expansions of federal criminal jurisdiction, this version of the law covers U.S. citizens and permanent residents who travel engaged in human trafficking activities outside of the United States.

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2013 (Title XII of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013), Pub. L. No. 113-4, 127 Stat. 54 (2013). This reauthorization of the TVPA was enacted as an attachment to the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 in its entirety. It offers increased support for the State Department’s diplomatic engagement, provides additional protections for vulnerable children and domestic workers, and enables partnerships to offer services to survivors and to prosecute traffickers.

Survivors of Human Trafficking Empowerment Act (Section 115 of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015), Pub. L. No. 114-22, 129 Stat. 227 (2015). Section 115, Survivors of Human Trafficking Empowerment Act, establishes the United States Advisory Council on Human Trafficking to provide advice and recommendations to the Senior Policy Operating Group established under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 and the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking.

Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017, Pub. L. No. 115-393, 132 Stat. 5265 (2018). This law reauthorizes several grant programs within the Departments of Justice (DOJ), Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor (DOL), and State (DOS) that combat trafficking in persons. This law also contains the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Prevention Act of 2017, which authorizes grant funding to train School Resource Officers to recognize and respond to signs of human trafficking and reauthorizes the Creating Hope Through Outreach, Options, Services, and Education for Children and Youth (i.e., CHOOSE Children & Youth) grant program.

Abolish Human Trafficking Act of 2017, Pub. L. No. 115-392, 132 Stat. 5250 (2018). This law strengthens and reauthorizes key programs supporting survivors of human trafficking and provides resources to law enforcement officials working to combat modern-day slavery.

Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2018, Pub. L. No. 115-425, 132 Stat. 5472 (2019). This law contains several provisions that improve the federal government’s authorities to combat human trafficking. These provisions include authorizing the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants to local educational agencies to establish programs to educate children on the dangers of human trafficking, implementing provisions to ensure that government spending is not used to support human trafficking, and authorizing funding for the National Human Trafficking Hotline.

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2017, Pub. L. No. 115-427, 132 Stat. 5503 (2019). This most recent reauthorization of the TVPA was enacted to modify the criteria for determining whether countries are meeting the minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking.

146 Cong. Rec. H2675 (daily ed. May 9, 2000) (statement of Rep. Smith). The debate is from the House’s consideration and passage of bill H.R. 3244, which ultimately was enacted as TVPA 2000. The record shows the text of the original bill, and the representative’s speech on the floor of the House highlights all of the important concerns during deliberations and passage of the Act. Knowing the legislative history is important to understand the particular methods the United States has chosen to take in combating human trafficking.

United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report (July 2001). The first report by the State Department was 102 pages black and white, shedding light on the “severe forms of trafficking in persons” into the United States that had been mostly ignored by law enforcement officials and unnoticed by the general public. That year, the State Department estimated at least 700,000 persons were trafficked across international borders each year, and specifically, 45,000 to 50,000 people were trafficked into the United States annually. The report set out the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking and evaluated every country according to a three-tier system. This is a great resource to compare country conditions at the beginning of the millennium and see if progress has been made.

United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report (June 2020). The State Department’s latest report is 570 pages of color with comprehensive information about not only country evaluation but also victim’s stories and international programs and campaigns. This report provides a great depth of information to understanding the current state of human trafficking and the United States’ perspective and active role in the situation.

General Law to Prevent, Sanction, and Eradicate Human Trafficking and for the Protection and Assistance of Victims, Diario Oficial de la Federación [DO], 14 de junio de 2012 (Mex.). This is Mexico’s general anti-trafficking law that supersedes Mexico’s 2007 law. It clearly defines the roles amongst the three levels of government as well as the coordination mechanisms to prevent, investigate, prosecute and sanction crimes related to trafficking in persons.

National Program to Prevent, Punish and Eradicate Trafficking in Persons Crimes and for the Protection and Assistance of its Victims 2014-201. This is Mexico’s national anti-trafficking plan that, through four main objectives, proposed to create the conditions for crime prevention, protection and assistance to victims; promote the prosecution, investigation, and prosecution of crimes related to trafficking with a human rights and gender perspective, and promote access to information and accountability systems.

Electronic resources

U.S. Department of State – Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. This is the website for the office that was established by TVPA 2000. The office provides general information and fact sheets about human trafficking and efforts to combat trafficking by both U.S. and foreign governments. Notably, the Office publishes the annual “Trafficking in Persons Report” each summer. The site has links to download all of the reports.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services – Victims of Human Trafficking & Other Crimes. This site provides information about the immigration reliefs available to trafficking victims. There is a detailed Question and Answer section regarding T and U visas.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security – Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Human Trafficking and Smuggling Fact Sheet. This site provides general information about human trafficking, explains ICE’s role in combating trafficking, and outlines recent “anti-human trafficking successes.”

U.S. Department of Homeland Security – Immigration and Customs Enforcement, News Releases. This site contains many government news releases about arrests and prosecutions of immigration violators, including human trafficking cases.

U.S. Department of Education – Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, Human Trafficking of Children in the United States – A Fact Sheet for Schools. This site provides information for schools to identify victims of human trafficking and links to resources and publications on human trafficking.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Administration for Children & Families, The Campaign to Rescue & Restore Victims of Human Trafficking. This site contains comprehensive information as the National Human Trafficking Resource Center.

Articles

Salvador A. Cicero-Dominguez, Assessing the U.S.-Mexico Fight Against Human Trafficking and Smuggling: Unintended Results of U.S. Immigration Policy, 4 Nw. U. J. Int’l Hum. Rts. 303 (2005). The article focuses on the U.S.-Mexico relationship with particular emphasis on the Mexican legal system and law enforcement cooperation between the two countries. It criticizes the United States’ unilateral deportation policies and more stringent immigration rules, which may contribute to the increased criminal activity in human trafficking. The paper also reviews new developments and proposed social and policy measures to address the situation. This article is probably the most recent evaluation of the U.S.-Mexico relationship and human trafficking situation, so it provides current information about the policies both countries are pursuing to stop human trafficking. It also has an evaluation of the current state practices and the effects and impacts of those practices on each country. This information is probably difficult to discover elsewhere.

Jennifer M. Chacon, Misery and Myopia: Understanding the Failures of U.S. Efforts to Stop Human Trafficking, 74 Fordham L. Rev. 2977 (2006). This Article situates the Trafficking Act within the framework of its legal antecedents in an effort to illustrate the ways in which the inability of the TVPA to substantially meet its goals of preventing trafficking and protecting trafficking victims stems from more general failures of domestic immigration policy. By broadening the scope of the inquiry concerning the shortcomings of the TVPA, this Article seeks to clarify the ways in which the TVPA actually may be interacting in a detrimental way with other immigration and labor policy choices.

Dina Francesca Haynes, (Not) Found Chained in Bed in a Brothel: Conceptual, Legal, and Procedural Failures to Fulfill the Promise of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, 21 Geo. Immigr. L.J. 337 (2007). The article outlines issues that need to be addressed to accomplish the original TVPA goals for protecting victims of human trafficking. It critiques the ongoing policy of punishing trafficking victims through arrest, detention, and deportation. The paper highlights a procedural policy, misinterpretation, and misapplication of the law by the U.S. government and personnel that it deems is contrary to the purpose of the TVPA. The article suggests an alternative approach for the U.S. government and agency personnel to reframe its view of human trafficking.

Anne T. Gallagher, A Shadow Report on Human Trafficking in Lao PDR: The US Approach vs. International Law, 16 Asian & Pac. Migr. J. 525 (2007). The article evaluates the U.S. unilateral approach for evaluating and ranking countries in its annual Trafficking in Persons Report. It suggests that the United States should adopt the international standards that are already in place to accurately assess country conditions according to established international rules.

Rocio Garza, Addressing Human Trafficking along the United States-Mexico Border: The Need for a Bilateral Partnership, 19 Cardozo J. Int’l & Comp. L. 413 (2011). The article suggests reforms to United States and Mexican laws to address serious problems in the current laws that put traffickers beyond the reach of arrest and prosecution. The article further encourages a partnership between the two countries to address these issues.

Victoria Rietig, New Law, Old Impunity: Mexico Has a New Anti-Trafficking Law. But Will It Address the Country’s Problems? 2 Oxford Monitor Forced Migration 21 (2012). This article discusses Mexico’s 2012 anti-trafficking law and its limitations. It further advocates three changes to make anti-trafficking efforts more effective in Mexico.

Alicia W. Peters, “Things that Involve Sex are Just Different”: US Anti-Trafficking Law and Policy on the Books, in Their Minds, and in Action, 86 Anthropological Quarterly 221 (2013). This article sheds light on the issues relating to the United States’ distinction between “sex” and “non-sex” trafficking. It further explores how the law is translated into action through symbolically mediated processes that incorporate assumptions and narratives about sex, gender, and victimization, as well as how the symbolic privileging of “sex trafficking” results in uneven treatment of victims.

Jennifer M. Chacón, Human Trafficking, Immigration Regulation and Sub-Federal Criminalization, 19 New Crim. L. Rev. (2016). This article explores the anti-trafficking efforts in the United States on the sub-federal level. It further provides insight on issues related to current sub-federal laws.

Eric Denton, Anatomy of Offending: Human Trafficking in the United States, 2006–2011, 2 Journal of Human Trafficking 32 (2016). This article uses six years (2006–2011) of successfully prosecuted human-trafficking legal case files from the United States in order to consider how trafficking networks operate. The article highlights the importance of understanding human-trafficking actors by their actions, pathways, and networks that determine their inclusion in this underground economy.

Alexandra Still, Solving Human Trafficking Between Mexico and the United States, 9 Pepperdine Policy Review (2017). This article focuses on the trafficking of women and children across the U.S./Mexico border for the purposes of sexual exploitation. It examines policies that contribute to the scale of the problem, both in the U.S. and Mexico. Finally, this paper recommends ways to implement policy to significantly decrease human trafficking between the two countries based on a provided set of criteria.

News Articles About the U.S. and Mexican Anti-Trafficking Efforts

• Eric Green, State Dept. Urges U.S., Mexico Fight Human Trafficking Together: About 17,000 people trafficked into United States from Mexico each year, America.gov (Oct. 7, 2004).
• Department of Homeland Security, Immigration Customs Enforcement, News Release, Three Plead Guilty to Charges Involving Forcing Young Mexican Women into Sexual Slavery in N.Y.: Prosecution is one largest sex trafficking cases to date under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, Apr. 5, 2005.
• Police bust large Arizona human trafficking ring, Reuters, Oct. 30, 2006.
• Sex trafficking victim’s lives in visa limbo, Houston Chronicle, Nov. 28, 2008.
• Human trafficking in Mexico targets women and children, CNN, Jan. 13, 2010.
• Mexico first country in the world to launch the “Blue Heart” campaign against human trafficking, UNODC Press Release, Apr. 14, 2010.
• Marissa Cabrera, Human Trafficking Along U.S.-Mexico Border Is Rising, Fronteras, Jan. 16, 2012.
• IOM Supports Mexican Government Dissemination at State Level of New Counter-Trafficking Law, International Organization for Migration Press Release, Jun. 14, 2012.
• Department of Homeland Security, Immigration Customs Enforcement, News Release, U.S., Mexico convene binational summit on human trafficking, July 13, 2012.
• Axel Storen Weden, Deadly human trafficking business on Mexico-US border, Aljazeera, Jan. 24, 2016.
• Jonathon D. Salant, Obama signs International Megan’s Law, NJ.com, Feb. 8, 2016.
• Ana Davita, Drug Cartels: Where Human Trafficking and Human Smuggling Meet Today, The Huffington Post, June 16, 2016.
• Gustavo Guerro, Mexico/United States: Binational Law Enforcement Operation Against International Human Trafficking Organization, Law Library of Congress, November 23, 2016.
• Congress Passes Trafficking Victims Protection Act Reauthorization, Polaris Press Release, December 21, 2018.
• Human Trafficking And The Southern Border, NPR, June 29, 2019.
• James Pasley, 20 staggering facts about human trafficking in the US, Insider, July 25, 2019.
• Maria Abi-Habib, On Mexico’s Border With U.S., Desperation as Migrant Traffic Piles Up, The New York Times, March 14, 2021.
• Mark Moore, US-Mexico border traffickers earned as much as $14M a day last month, New York Post, March 22, 2021.
• Ben Fox, Associated Press, US Urging Central America to Tackle Poverty, Corruption, June 2, 2021.

3.3. China and Vietnam

Government Resources

Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress Regarding the Severe Punishment of Criminals who Abduct and Traffic in or Kidnap Women or Children, Sept. 4, 1991, available at Chinalawinfo. The 1991 criminal law is designed to protect “personal safety of women and children and maintain the public security order.” It proscribes 5-10 years imprisonment and fines of up to 10,000 yuan for certain offenders, and the death sentence and confiscation of property for ringleaders and other more severe crimes related to trafficking and kidnapping of women and children. This seems like a very powerful domestic law to deal with human trafficking.

Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of Rights and Interests of Women, Oct. 1, 1992, rev. Aug. 28, 2005, eff. Dec. 1, 2005, available at Chinalawinfo. The law provides equal rights to women and men. In the original October 1, 1992 provisions, Article 36 of the law specifically prohibited abducting, trafficking, or kidnapping women as well as buying women who have been abducted, trafficked, or kidnapped. The provision further required that the government and relevant agencies must rescue women who have been abducted, trafficked, or kidnapped, and return them home. This law was revised in 2005, and Article 36 was renumbered to Article 39. Additional language was included to prohibit discrimination of the victims and to require that the women’s federation make cooperative efforts to rescue the victims and handle problems arising in each case. This appears to be a strong foundation to build the framework for combating human trafficking and punishing traffickers.

Supplementary Provisions of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on the Severe Punishment of the Crimes of Organizing or Transporting Other Persons(s) to Illegally Cross the National Border (Frontier), Mar. 5, 1994, available at Chinalawinfo. The law proscribes two to seven years of imprisonment and fines for offenders who transport people across China’s borders illegally. It provides the death sentence for offenders who engage in more serious crimes (e.g., murder, rape, etc.) during the commission of the transport. The law also punishes fraudulent documentation. This is another good law to deal with human trafficking, especially through the China-Vietnam border.

Criminal Law of the People’s Republic of China, Jan. 1, 1980, rev. Mar. 14, 1997, available at Chinalawinfo. Human traffickers can be prosecuted under various offenses of China’s criminal code. Article 236 proscribes three to ten years of imprisonment for rape and life imprisonment or the death penalty for sexual exploitation of girls under the age of 14. Article 240 provides a ten-year to lifetime sentence or the death penalty for abducting or trafficking women or children. Article 241 proscribes imprisonment up to three years for buying women or children who have been abducted. This law is helpful in providing the criminal punishments that are available for human traffickers.

Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of Minors, Jan. 1, 1992, rev. Dec. 29, 2006, eff. June 1, 2007, available at Chinalawinfo. Article 41 of the revised version of this law outlaws trafficking, kidnapping, and sexual exploitation of minors. This is an example of China’s recent ongoing efforts to combat human trafficking and protect victims.

Vietnam Penal Code. The English translation of the current Vietnam Penal Code shows that Vietnamese domestic laws have various sections that may be pertinent to human trafficking. Sections 114 and 115 is on sexual abuse of children, and section 120 is prohibits the trade or fraudulent exchange of children. Section 119 deals with trafficking in women, and section 128 makes forced labor illegal. For the research, it is helpful to know what domestic laws are available to prosecute traffickers and protect victims.

UNODC, Press Release, Viet Nam, China and UNODC Meet in Ho Chi Minh City for Cross-Border Cooperation to Fight Human Trafficking, June 21, 2006. The press release discusses a 2001 bilateral agreement that Vietnam and China signed on cooperation to combat crime and human trafficking. An English source of the agreement has not been found, but the press release is a secondary source to show such agreements have been signed between the two countries.

UNICEF, UNODC, and Vietnam Ministry of Justice, Assessment of the Legal System in Vietnam: In Comparison with the United Nations Protocols on Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants, Supplementing the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (Apr. 2004). The report examined Vietnam’s legal compliance with the UN Protocols on Human Trafficking. It follows a six-week training program that UNICEF and the UNODC carried out in Vietnam during the Spring 2004. It is a great report to understand the state of Vietnamese law enforcement capacity, legislation, and judicial responses to human trafficking.

Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation against Trafficking in Persons in the Greater Mekong Sub-Region. This agreement was signed by the governments of Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam in October 2004. It lays the framework for a cooperative network among the signing nations to develop national and international policy against human trafficking, to adopt and enforce appropriate legislation prosecute traffickers and to protect victims, and to develop programs to shelter, recover, and reintegrate victims. It affirms the international commitment of these Asian countries to jointly fight human trafficking.

Agreement between the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Government of the People’s Republic of China on Strengthening Cooperation on Preventing and Combating Human Trafficking. This agreement was signed by the governments of Vietnam and China in September 2010 and aims to strengthen the cooperation between the two governments to prevent and combat human trafficking.

Combating Human Trafficking in Asia: A Resource Guide to International and Regional Legal Instruments, Political Commitments and Recommended Practices (U.N. Publications: New York City 2003). This resource guide identifies the international and regional legal instruments that can be used to combat the trafficking in persons and other related forms of exploitation such as human rights, slavery and slavery-like practices, migration, labor, and gender. It also provides recommendations to governments in strengthening and improving their law enforcement response to meet the requirements of international instruments. Important United Nations conventions on human rights, slavery, transnational organized crime, migrant workers, women, labor, wages, and child welfare examined. The guide is mainly targeted to governments in the Asia region and law enforcement officials to increase their capacity to effectively combat trafficking in persons.

Electronic Resources

United Nations Action for Cooperation Against Trafficking in Persons. This UN web site is the online resource center for the United Nations Action for Cooperation against Trafficking in Persons (UN-ACT). UN-ACT was established in 2014 to ensure a coordinated approach to combat trafficking more strategically and effectively in persons in the Greater Mekong Sub-region and beyond. The project builds upon the work previously undertaken by the United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP).

United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT). This UN web site is the online resource for UN.GIFT. UN.GIFT was launched in March 2007 by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). UN.GIFT aims to mobilize state and non-state actors to eradicate human trafficking by reducing both the vulnerability of potential victims and the demand for exploitation in all its forms; ensuring adequate protection and support to those who fall victim; and supporting the efficient prosecution of the criminals involved, while respecting the fundamental human rights of all persons.

International Labour Organization, Project to Combat Trafficking in Children and Women. The ILO web site provides information on the Mekong Sub-Region’s effort to eliminate human trafficking, focusing mainly on child labor. It covers Vietnam and the Yunnan Province of China, among other countries. The site provides analysis and research reports on the situation of labor exploitation in the region. It is a great research tool for background information and links to research and publications.

Coalition to Abolish Modern-day Slavery in Asia. CAMSA is an NGO formed by a group of international organizations to advance anti-human trafficking efforts, particularly focusing on victims from Vietnam. Its web site provides access to legislation and statistics related to Vietnam and human trafficking.

Articles

Yi Wang, Trafficking in Women and Children from Vietnam to China: Legal Framework and Government Responses, Anti-Human Trafficking Program in Vietnam (Oxfam: Quebec 2005). This study is the profile overview of the human trafficking situation from Vietnam to China. It discusses the various international treaties the countries have or have not signed, and it also looks at the bilateral treaties between the two countries to combat human trafficking. Research information on the Vietnam-China cross-border trafficking problem is difficult to come by as most sources are in Chinese or Vietnamese. This study publication is a wonderful asset for the researcher to understand the China-Vietnam situation and see the types of bilateral efforts sustained in the process. Furthermore, the study leads to specific treaties and agreements to aid the research.

Nancie Caraway, Human Rights and Existing Contradictions in Asia-Pacific Human Trafficking Politics and Discourse, 14 Tul. J. Int’l & Comp. L. 295 (2006). The article examines debt bondage, prostitution, and forced labor human trafficking in Asia, particularly Southeast Asia. It looks at the supply-and-demand reason for trafficking and argues complicity by Western nations as a reason for increased human trafficking. The author sees free market effects create a lack of punishment for trafficking because the market sees it as no crime committed. It is a great new concept and reasoning for human trafficking. The new concept is wonderful to read and look at it from an economics perspective and seeing how the need by rich countries is actually proliferating the trafficking of the most vulnerable human beings. This is another reason to consider in the research for understanding push and pull mechanisms of human trafficking.

Susan Tiefenbrun, Human Trafficking in China, T. Jefferson Sch. L. Research Paper No. 1522603 (2008). The article reviews the human trafficking situation in China and explores the underlying causes in terms of China’s One Child Policy and a cultural preference for sons rather than daughters. It provides a comprehensive overview and evaluation of China’s laws related to human trafficking and suggests new policies for combating human trafficking in China. It is a good source to begin research in this area.

Rebecca Surtees, After Trafficking: Experiences and Challenges in the (Re)integration of Trafficked Persons in the Greater Mekong Sub-Region, Summary Report (Bangkok: UNIAP/NEXUS Institute 2013). This report aims to explore the individual (re)integration experiences of trafficked persons. Through the presentation of real-life experiences of trafficking victims, this article provides the insights necessary to develop forthcoming (re)integration policies and programs in the Greater Mekong Sub-region.

Nguyen Thi Hoai Duc, Trafficking in Women and Girls for Sexual Exploitation is a Crime and Human Rights Violation, 12 J. U.S. China Med. Sci. 135 (2015). This article focuses on the rising rates of trafficking in women and children for sexual exploitation in Vietnam despite the existence of anti-trafficking policies and laws. The article encourages community involvement in identifying these victims.

Bonny Ling, Human Trafficking and China: Challenges of Domestic Criminalisation and Interpretation, 17 Asia-Pac. J. Hum. Rights & Law 148 (2016). This article argues that China’s criminal law fails to correctly define human trafficking, leading to the exclusion of adult male victims and predicating domestic criminalization on the purpose of selling a person as opposed to the element of exploitation. It further examines these differences in the law to obtain a fuller understanding of human trafficking in the country.

Tran Quang Huyen, International Cooperation in Prevention and Combating Human Trafficking in Southeast Asian Region: A Case Study of Vietnam, 94 J.L. Policy & Globalization 19 (2020). This paper focuses on analysis policies and implications of Vietnam through providing details of the current viewpoints in international cooperation to fight trafficking in human beings. Some main trends and patterns of human trafficking in Vietnam in the past years will illustrate the nature of complex situation. The paper also recommends further research to ensure the effectiveness of international cooperation.

Hung Nguyen, Justice and development: the transnational bride trafficking from Vietnam to China, Journal of Money Laundering Control (volume ahead of print) (2021). This article provides an overview of transnational bride trafficking from Vietnam to China, enriching the human trafficking literature with the Vietnamese perspective. It proposes to analyze this bride trade in the developmental context and outline how the supplies and demands for brides are rooted in socio-economical-legal forces such as poverty, lack of law enforcement, and culture. This study also brings to attention the involvement of organized crime and collusion of government officials as the main drivers of the trafficking activities.

News Articles About China and Vietnam’s Joint Anti-Trafficking Efforts

• China, Vietnam launch anti-trafficking campaign, People’s Daily Online, June 4, 2004.
• China, Vietnam join hands to fight cross-border trafficking in women, UNICEF (February 27, 2003) (Internet Archives, October 24, 2016).
• Campaign to stop trafficking in women and children between Viet Nam and China, UNICEF, (June 3, 2004) (Internet Archives, January 31, 2016).
• Viet Nam and China: joint effort to fight cross-border trafficking of women, UNICEF (Internet Archives, March 3, 2016).
• Six Asian nations act to stop human trafficking, Reuters, Mar. 31, 2005.
• Vietnam-China trafficking on rise, BBC News, Jan. 24, 2006.
• No red lights for trafficking women to China, Inter Press Service News Agency, Feb. 10, 2006.
• China issues plan to combat human trafficking, en.people.cn (July 12, 2006).
• China, Vietnam vow to step up co-op against cross-border crimes, Xinhua News, Oct. 12, 2006.
• Foundation fights human trafficking, VietNamNet Bridge, Oct. 22, 2007.
• China joins Mekong countries in fighting cross-border human trafficking, Xinhua News, Nov. 29, 2009.
• Vietnamese authorities tackle human trafficking into China, Global Times, Feb. 24, 2010 (archived on WikiLeaks).
• Efforts boosted against human trafficking, China Daily, January 22, 2013.
• IOM, China seek to protect trafficking victims on Northern Mekong Border, International Organization for Migration Press Release, July 23, 2013.
• Police Officers Trained to Identify Victims of Trafficking in Southeast Asia, International Organization for Migration Press Release, June 24, 2014.
• Nguyen Kim Ngan, Vietnam-China cooperation on combatting human trafficking, WorldVision Vietnam, Nov. 10, 2015.
• Pamela Boykoff and Alexandra Field, Vietnamese girls smuggled into China and sold as child brides, CNN, April 19, 2016.
• Zhang Yan, China, Vietnam fight human-trafficking, China Daily, May 22, 2017.
• Peter Tran, Women, children and babies: human trafficking to China is on the rise, AisiaNews.it, July 11, 2019.
• Minh Nga, 80 percent of Vietnamese human trafficking victims end up in China, VNExpress International, August 1, 2019.
• Vu Anh, Nguyen Quy, China liaising with Vietnam on human trafficking tragedy, VNExpress International, October 29, 2019.
• Thoi Nguyen, Vietnam’s Human Trafficking Problem Is Too Big to Ignore, The Diplomat, November 8, 2019.
• Vietnam pays special attention to preventing human trafficking and supporting victims, Vietnam Times, August 2, 2020.

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[1] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, Message from the Secretary of State (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-trafficking-in-persons-report/.

[2] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 8 (June 2009), https://2009-201state.gov/documents/organization/12335pdf.

[3] United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2020, at 9 https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/tip/2021/GLOTiP_2020_15jan_web.pdf.

[4] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 3 (June 2019), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2019-Trafficking-in-Persons-Report.pdf.

[5] 5 See U.S. and U.N. statutory definitions. Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000, Pub. L. No. 106-386, 114 Stat. 1464 (2000) [hereinafter TVPA 2000]. G.A. Res. 55/25, annex II, U.N. GAOR, 55th Sess., Supp. No. 49, at 60, U.N. Doc. A/45/49 (Vol. I) (2001), at http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=a/45/49. [hereinafter UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking].

[6] Blue Heart Campaign against Human Trafficking at http://www.unodc.org/blueheart/index.html; UN rallies public support to end human trafficking with Blue Heart campaign, UN News Centre, Mar. 5, 2009, at http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=30096&Cr=Human+trafficking&Cr1.

[7] UNGlobalCompact.org, Overview of the UN Global Compact, https://www.unglobalcompact.org/about.

[8] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 16 (June 2016), https://2009-201state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2016/index.htm.

[9] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 17 (June 2016), https://2009-201state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2016/index.htm.

[10] U.N. Office on Drugs and Crimes, Trafficking in Human Beings. See also EU Directive on Trafficking in Human Beings – A joint UN Commentary and UN Human Trafficking.

[11] UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking, supra note 3.

[12] G.A. Res. 55/25, U.N. GAOR, 55th Sess., Supp. No. 49, at 65, U.N. Doc. A/45/49 (Vol. I) (2001), at http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=a/45/49.

[13] G.A. Res. 55/25, Annex I, U.N. GAOR, 55th Sess., Supp. No. 49, at 44, U.N. Doc. A/45/49 (Vol. I) (2001), available at http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=a/45/49.

[14] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 4 (June 2019), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2019-Trafficking-in-Persons-Report.pdf.

[15] UN Protocol to Prevent Trafficking, Preamble, supra note 3.

[16] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 6 (June 2019), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2019-Trafficking-in-Persons-Report.pdf.

[17] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 43 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-TIP-Report-Complete-062420-FINAL.pdf.

[18] Salvador A. Cicero-Dominguez, Assessing the U.S.-Mexico Fight Against Human Trafficking and Smuggling: Unintended Results of U.S. Immigration Policy, 4 Nw. U. J. Int’l Hum. Rts. 303 (2005), at http://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/njihr/vol4/iss2/.

[19] See generally Yi Wang, Trafficking in Women and Children from Vietnam to China: Legal Framework and Government Responses, Anti-Human Trafficking Program in Vietnam (Oxfam: Quebec 2005).

[20] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 206 (June 2009), http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2009/index.htm.

[21] Eric Green, State Dept. Urges U.S., Mexico Fight Human Trafficking Together, Oct. 7, 2004.

[22] TVPA 2000, supra note 3.

[23] 146 Cong. Rec. H2683 (daily ed. May 9, 2000) (statement of Rep. Smith).

[24] Id.

[25] TVPA 2000, supra note 3, § 105.

[26] Id. § 110.

[27] Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003, Pub. L. No. 108-193, 117 Stat. 2875 (2003).

[28] Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005, Pub. L. No. 109-164, 119 Stat. 3558 (2005).

[29] Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, Pub. L. No. 110-457, 122 Stat. 5004 (2008).

[30] Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2013 (Title XII of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013), Pub. L. No. 113-4, 127 Stat. 54 (2013).

[31] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 485 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-TIP-Report-Complete-062420-FINAL.pdf.

[32] Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2017, Pub. L. No. 115-427, 132 Stat. 5503 (2019).

[33] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 58 (July 2001), https://2009-201state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2001/index.htm.

[34] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 178 (June 2006), https://2009-201state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2006/index.htm.

[35] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 206 (June 2009), at http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2009/index.htm.

[36] Id.

[37] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 233 (June 2010), http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2010/index.htm.

[38] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 206 (June 2009), http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2009/index.htm.

[39] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 256 (June 2011), https://2009-201state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2011/index.htm.

[40] Mexico first country in the world to launch the “Blue Heart” campaign against human trafficking, UNODC Press Release, Apr. 14, 2010, at http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/press/releases/2010/April/mexico-launch-blue-heart-campaign-against-human-trafficking.html.

[41] IOM Supports Mexican Government Dissemination at State Level of New Counter-Trafficking Law, International Organization for Migration Press Release, June 14, 2012, available at iom-supports-mexican-government-dissemination-state-level-new-counter-trafficking-law.

[42] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 346 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-TIP-Report-Complete-062420-FINAL.pdf.

[43] Government of Mexico, Interior Ministry, Actions and Programs. https://www.gob.mx/segob/acciones-y-programas/programa-nacional-para-prevenir-sancionar-y-erradicar-los-delitos-en-materia-de-trata-de-personas-y-asistir-a-las-victimas-de-estos-delitos.

[44] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 279 (June 2017), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/27133pdf.

[45] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 348 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-TIP-Report-Complete-062420-FINAL.pdf.

[46] TVPA 2000, supra note 3, § 107. See also INA § 101(a)(15)(T).

[47] Cicero-Dominguez, supra note 11.

[48] See TVPA 2000, supra note 3, § 107; INA § 101(a)(15)(T).

[49] Id.

[50] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 518 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-TIP-Report-Complete-062420-FINAL.pdf.

[51] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 518 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-TIP-Report-Complete-062420-FINAL.pdf.

[52] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 518 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-TIP-Report-Complete-062420-FINAL.pdf.

[53] Jennifer M. Chacon, Misery and Myopia: Understanding the Failures of U.S. Efforts to Stop Human Trafficking, 74 Fordham L. Rev. 2977, 3011-12 (2006).

[54] The United States Department of Justice, Special Initiatives, https://www.justice.gov/humantrafficking/special-initiatives#bilateral.

[55] Id.

[56] Viet Nam and China: joint effort to fight cross-border trafficking of women, UNICEF at http://www.unicef.org/vietnam/reallives_56html.

[57] Id.

[58] Pamela Boykoff and Alexandra Field, Vietnamese girls smuggled into China and sold as child brides, CNN, April 19, 2016, available at http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/17/asia/vietnamese-girls-child-brides-china/index.html.

[59] Peter Tran, Women, children and babies: human trafficking to China is on the rise, AsiaNews.it, July 11, 2019, available at http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Women,-children-and-babies:-human-trafficking-to-China-is-on-the-rise-4751html.

[60] See generally Wang, supra note 12.

[61] See e.g., Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress Regarding the Severe Punishment of Criminals who Abduct and Traffic in or Kidnap Women or Children, Sept. 4, 1991, available at www.lawinfochina.com; Vietnam Penal Code §§ 114, 115, 119, 120, 128.

[62] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 371-372 (June 2012).

[63] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 399 (June 2016).

[64] NA approves delay to Penal Code 2015, Viêt Nam News, July 1, 2016, at http://vietnamnews.vn/politics-laws/298919/na-approves-delay-to-penal-code-201html#rarqEkZwLpEGXi3L.97.

[65] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 455 (June 2018), https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/28279pdf.

[66] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 533 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-trafficking-in-persons-report/.

[67] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 400 (June 2016), http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2016/index.htm.

[68] See Vietnam pays special attention to preventing human trafficking and supporting victims, Vietnam Times, August 2, 2020. https://vietnamtimes.org.vn/vietnam-pays-special-attention-to-preventing-human-trafficking-and-supporting-victims-2301html.

[69] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 153 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-trafficking-in-persons-report/.

[70] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 130 (June 2016), http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2016/index.htm.

[71] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 155 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-trafficking-in-persons-report/.

[72] See Wang, supra note 12, at 22-23.

[73] HumanTrafficking.org, Vietnam Government Action Plan, http://www.humantrafficking.org/action_plans/1

[74] UNODC, Press Release, Viet Nam, China and UNODC Meet in Ho Chi Minh City for Cross-Border Cooperation to Fight Human Trafficking, June 21, 2006, at http://www.unodc.org/pdf/vietnam/PressreleaseChina_21_22June0pdf.

[75] Wang, supra note 12, at 11; Six Asian nations act to stop human trafficking, Reuters, Mar. 31, 2005.

[76] China’s Human Rights, Border police rescue 37 in anti-human trafficking drive, (July 13, 2005).

[77] HumanTrafficking.org, News & Updates: Campaign Against Trafficking in Vietnam, http://www.humantrafficking.org/updates/119 (July 2005).

[78] Fighting cross-border human trafficking, November 29, 2009, at http://www.china.org.cn/world/2009-11/29/content_1897350htm.

[79] China joins Mekong countries in fighting cross-border human trafficking, Xinhua News, Nov. 29, 2009, at http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-11/29/content_1255888htm.

[80] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 387 (June 2011), https://2009-201state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2011/index.htm. See also Miwa Yamada, Comparative analysis of Bilateral Memoranda on Anti-human Trafficking Cooperation between Thailand and Three Neighboring Countries: What do the Origin and the Destination States Agree Upon?, Institute of Developing Economies (March 2012) at 4, at http://www.ide.go.jp/English/Publish/Download/Dp/34html.

[81] Efforts boosted against human trafficking, China Daily, Jan. 22, 2013, available at http://www.china.org.cn/china/2013-01/22/content_2775651htm.

[82] Nguyen Kim Ngan, Vietnam-China cooperation on combatting human trafficking, Nov. 10, 2015, at https://www.wvi.org/vietnam/article/vietnam-china-cooperation-human-trafficking-combat.

[83] Zhang Yan, China, Vietnam fight human-trafficking, China Daily, May 22, 2017, available at http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2017-05/22/content_2943732htm.

[84] Campaign to stop trafficking in women and children between Viet Nam and China, UNICEF, June 3, 2004, at http://www.unicef.org/vietnam/media_52html.

[85] IOM, China seek to protect trafficking victims on Northern Mekong Border, July 23, 2013, available at https://www.iom.int/news/iom-china-seek-protect-trafficking-victims-northern-mekong-border. See also Police Officers Trained to Identify Victims of Trafficking in Southeast China, June 24, 2014, available at https://www.iom.int/news/police-officers-trained-identify-victims-trafficking-southeast-china.

[86] China joins Mekong countries in fighting cross-border human trafficking, supra note 49.

[87] United States of America Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, at 533 (June 2020), https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-trafficking-in-persons-report/.

[88] See Peter Tran, Women, children and babies: human trafficking to China is on the rise, AisiaNews.it, July 11, 2019, available at http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Women,-children-and-babies:-human-trafficking-to-China-is-on-the-rise-4751html.