Blog post written by Dr Vladislava Stoyanova (Lund University) a Senior Research Associate of the RLI, and forms part of a series of blog posts analysing the final draft (objective by objective) of the UN’s Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration.
The Global Compact on Migration contained three main commitments concerning trafficking in human beings. The first one has a criminal law approach, i.e. investigation, prosecution and penalisation of the offence of trafficking in human beings. This is clearly reflected in the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons that imposes an international law obligation upon its State Parties to criminalise human trafficking. The second commitment is ‘discouraging the demand that fosters exploitation leading to trafficking.’ The third commitment is enhancing identification, assistance of and protection of migrants who have become victims of trafficking. As opposed to the first commitment, the last one is not reflected in binding legal norms incorporated in the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons. The latter contains only recommendations to this effect. (This weakness has been to a certain extent rectified at regional European level; see Stoyanova 2017). Therefore, identification, protection and assistance of migrants who have become victims of trafficking in human beings is still a weakness and states at a global level are yet to endorse binding commitments.
Full blog post here
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