Today, the UN describes THB as the third largest crime next to the smuggling and trafficking of drugs and firearms. And while there is a vast body of literature describing the plight and extent of women being exploited in the sex-trade, as well as a growing body of evidence on the trafficking and exploitation of children, there is comparatively little research done in the context of THB on either a national and international level. Most of the literature tends to focus on legal and human rights issues versus strategies that can be used to combat the problem. In particular there is a dearth of information addressing what efforts officials are taking to curb this horrific crime, and more importantly, how effective current strategies are.

Given the void in the literature and the gravity of the problem, as part of a larger international project, we undertook an exploratory examination of how various Canadian agencies who are involved in combating human trafficking acquire their skill set and how effective they feel they are at performing their responsibilities.

Defining Human Trafficking and Its Scope

Until recently, the concept of THB was generally viewed only within the context of illegal prostitution, or “alien-smuggling,” or uncontrolled migration, and there was no clear definition. Not surprisingly, perhaps, the subject of “trafficking” also lacks any consistent theoretical framework, making it difficult to engage in a structured analysis of and conduct sound empirical research on the crime.

Nevertheless, in an effort to address the problem at some level, Canada adopted the United Nations’ definition of human trafficking on December 14, 2000, and ratified on May 13, 2002. The 2000 UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children defines “trafficking in persons” in Article 3:

“Trafficking in persons” shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs.”

In recognizing the challenge of defining the problem, it is not surprising that estimates of THB vary widely. A 2001 UN report estimates the number of victims involved in some form of THB and/or some form of slavery-like conditions, in any given year, to be around 9 million. Meanwhile, organizations such as the IOM (International Organization for Migration) estimate that between 700,000 to 800,000 children and women are trafficked world-wide every year. The U.S. Department of State website, in 2006, estimated the number of people trafficked in Canada to be around 800, and an additional 1,500 to 2,200 trafficked between Canada and the United States.

Given the vast profits that can be made through THB, it is generally recognized that the majority of such victims are the result of major international organized crime groups. Therefore, efforts to combat THB require both national and international cooperation. However, in order to do so, it is necessary to understand how well such efforts are perceived at a local level before examining the global picture.

The primary vehicle for outlawing trafficking-related conduct has been to amend various sections in the Criminal Code. Specifically, they include: conspiracy (sec. 465), extortion (sec. 346(1)), exploitation (sec. 279.04), forcible confinement (sec. 279(2)), kidnapping (sec. 279(1)), money laundering (sec. 462.31), and the controlling or living off the avails of prostitution as it specifically relates to trafficking and prostitution (sec. 212.1(g)), as well as organized crime offences and “criminal organizations” (see section 467.1(1)).¹

In addition to the changes and amendments to the Criminal Code, Parliament enacted the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA - see Sec. 118), which targets human trafficking and organized crime in accordance with the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. Then in November 2005 the government took steps to strengthen the Criminal Code when it passed additional legislation that strengthens sections dealing with human trafficking. The changes created three new offences that deal specifically with the issues of: trafficking in persons, benefiting financially or materially from a trafficking operation, and withholding or destroying documents.

Most recently, the federal Interdepartmental Working Group on Trafficking in Persons (IWGTIP), co-chaired by the departments of Justice and Foreign Affairs, has initiated and/or facilitated through its participating departments a number of proactive measures. They include:

1. producing and distributing an information booklet in 14 languages to warn potential trafficking victims,
2. organizing a professional training session on trafficking in persons for Canadian police, Crown prosecutors, immigration, customs and consular officials,
3. hosting the Forum on Trafficking in Persons, Especially Youth, Children, and Women, to educate and increase public awareness about the situation of victims of trafficking and explore community-driven prevention strategies, and
4. meeting with NGOs and academics to discuss a potential federal anti-trafficking strategy.

In addition to the above measures, the RCMP has established a Human Trafficking National Coordination Centre (HTNCC) within the Immigration and Passport Branch at Headquarters in Ottawa. As noted on their website, the key objectives of HTNCC include the themes of: Leadership, Protection of Victims, Training, Providing Analytical Services, International Coordination, and Development of Partnerships.

Therefore, Canada should be given credit for its effort to combat THB on a number of levels ranging from the introduction of specific legislation to creating new legislation to support victims of THB. Unlike other countries which tend to focus on one or the other strategy, Canada appears well positioned to combat THB. But how well do the formal initiatives actually work?

As part of the project, we surveyed 16 employees and former employees of the CBSA in the summer/fall of 2007. Four main areas were covered. They included: perceptions of the gravity of the problem, performance related questions, organizational issues, and general observations about THB.

Although the sample was compromised because of access-related issues, the uniformity of responses to the questions implies that the findings are strongly suggestive. Two specific observations are offered.

• Respondents do not appear to feel that human trafficking is given enough attention or the federal officials enough resources to effectively combat the problem, and
• Respondents generally recognize the gravity of the crime but have limited knowledge of its complexity or the strategies by which to combat it—other than what is learned on the job.

In addition to the surveys, we conducted six interviews. Four involved CBSA staff and RCMP officers who had/are working in the area of trafficking. The other two interviews were conducted with NGOs and an individual who works for the United Nations on trafficking.

Overall, at least from a CBSA perspective, there is clear acknowledgement of the gravity of THB, but while the government has attempted to provide legal provisions to combat THB, there is a tangible gap between formal intentions and provisions and what happens in practice. This general theme was further illuminated and supported by the NGO participants.

In response to the question pertaining to cooperation among agencies or organizations in different countries, the non-NGO respondents made it clear that “they do not automatically want to cooperate.” In addition to concerns about “trust,” the concern about maintaining reciprocity and the capacity to address and correct “situations where collaboration has become problematic” was identified.

When asked about “some typical problems you have encountered as you try to promote or facilitate cooperation among agencies or organizations (or even individuals) in different countries,” the NGO respondents observed that international cooperation is very expensive, and often there is a lack of commitment of human rights on the part of those involved. Hence, it is often necessary to build capacity—relationship building—and for comprehensive training, building better public awareness, etc.

Although a brief summary has been presented, in contrast to the responses provided through the surveys and interviews with CBSA and RCMP staff, the global issue is one of capacity building.

While Canada appears to have the legal infrastructure to effectively combat human trafficking, the CJS—at least CBSA and the RCMP who represent the official frontline of defence against human trafficking—appear to lack a fundamental capacity to function either efficiently, let alone effectively.

In addition to the need for better support, there also appears to be a clear need to ensure and/or develop a better understanding of the problem so that all parties can more effectively perform their roles. Most importantly, while Canada appears to have created an appropriate framework to combat THB it needs to build a better capacity to ensure that front-line staff have the training, resources, and support needed to perform their responsibilities with the utmost efficiency and effectiveness. This will only happen if we give THB the level of attention that is required—a major challenge when we are confronted with so many other issues.

We cannot afford to sit back and passively accept the platitude from Monte Solberg, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, who in February 2006 said: “we’ll see what we can do to begin to fix the system so we’re more responsive to these victims” (referring to victims of trafficking). Based on our findings, Canada has the capacity to not only reduce the viability of being a destination country for THB, but to also become more active helping host countries to better address some of the major precipitating factors that make it easier for traffickers to exploit innocent victims.