Where governments fail to constrain corruption, human trafficking flourishes. Traffickers benefit from all types of corruption as they illegally profit from commercially exploiting people. Sometimes it is a local police officer taking a bribe to “look the other way” or tip off the trafficker about an impending raid. Other times, corrupt border guards, immigration officials, consular officers, labor inspectors, or civil servants benefit traffickers by abusing their power. At its most nefarious, the government itself is so complicit in the trafficking that it acts as the trafficker. The US State Department finds that 14 governments are trafficking people as part of their policy or pattern of behavior.
For the estimated 27.6 million human trafficking victims who rely on governments to enforce the rule of law, the failure to address corruption magnifies the length and pain of their exploitation.
Last month, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime convened a group of experts from around the world to discuss the intersection of corruption and human trafficking. The meeting, held in Vienna, Austria, over two days, will produce a series of recommendations for countries to combat corruption and human trafficking. Ambassador (ret.) John Cotton Richmond of the Libertas Council participated in the meetings and provided insights from his experience as a federal prosecutor, diplomat, and nonprofit leader.
A few of the anticipated recommendations include governments increasing investigations and prosecutions of officials engaged in corruption. The recommendation may also include addressing corruption in the judiciary, media, labor unions, and administrative officials. Increasing civil suits against officials may also create accountability and deterrence for officials to choose to engage in corruption. For the estimated 27.6 million human trafficking victims who rely on governments to enforce the rule of law, the failure to address corruption magnifies the length and pain of their exploitation.
