Book Reviews
| Author | Dipankar Guha |
| Published date | 01 January 2016 |
| Date | 01 January 2016 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0019556120160111 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
BOOK REVIEWS
Veerendra Mishra, Combating
Human
Trafficking: Gaps in Policy
and
Law
New
Delhi, SAGE, 2015,
pp
XIII+
286, Rs. 995.
Human
trafficking, also called trafficking in persons, slavery, is a form
of
modem-day slavery involving the illegal transport
of
individuals
by
force
or
deception for the purpose
of
labour, sexual exploitation,
or
activities in
which others benefit financially. Human trafficking is a global problem
affecting people
of
all ages. It is estimated that approximately 1,000,000
people are trafficked each year globally and that between 20,000 and 50,000
are trafficked into the United States, which is one
of
the largest destinations
for victims
of
the sex-trafficking trade. Although human trafficking is
recognised as a growing international phenomenon, a uniform definition has
yet to be internationally adopted. The United Nations (UN) divides human
trafficking into three
categories-sex
trafficking, labour trafficking, and the
removal
of
organs-and
defines human trafficking as the induction by force,
fraud,
or
coercion
of
a person to engage in the sex trade,
or
the harbouring,
transportation,
or
obtaining
of
a
pe~son
for labour service
or
organ removal.
Though the United States does not acknowledge the removal
of
organs in its
definition, it does recognise sex and labour trafficking and describes human
trafficking as the purposeful transportation
of
an individual for exploitation.
The cause
of
human trafficking stems from adverse circumstances in
origin countries, including religious persecution, political dissension, lack
of
employment opportunities, poverty, wars, and natural disasters. Another
causal factor is globalisation, which has catapulted developing countries
into the world's market, increasing the standard
of
living and contributing
to the overall growth
of
the global economy. Unfortunately, globalisation
is a double-edged sword in that it has shaped the world's market for the
transportation ofillegal migrants, affording criminal organisations the ability
to expand their networks and create transnational routes that facilitate the
transporting
of
migrants.
This book deals with the legal, functional and technical aspects
of
human trafficking. Human trafficking, as a subject
of
study, has evolved very
recently. There are still gaps in understanding
of
what action is construed
as trafficking worldwide. Despite the fact that more than
15
years back,
UN
defined human trafficking in its Palermo Protocol, but still there are
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