The Problem of Human Trafficking in Syria

Human trafficking is one of the largest issues our world must face in the coming years. While accurate global statistics are lacking on this subject, it is still estimated that human trafficking is second only to drug trafficking as a source of illegal income worldwide. Due to the lack of reports and research in the area, it is difficult to accurately determine the number of victims of human trafficking, but some reports estimate that nearly 21 million people are victims of forced labor across the globe, and that nearly 60% of those victims are victims of sexual exploitation. Other reports estimate that somewhere between 1.2 million and 2 million children are victims of human trafficking each year. These numbers are outrageous in an age where a vast majority of people agree that slavery and the sexual exploitation of anyone, especially children, is an egregious violation of human rights. 

A child soldier in Syria

In Syria, the problem of human trafficking is a very serious one. In the 2015 Trafficking in Persons Report, the U.S. Dept. of State ranked Syria as a Tier 3 country, the lowest ranking there is. The report states that as the civil war continues, the incidences of human trafficking have increased. With around half of the pre-war population having been displaced, and over 4 million of them fleeing the country as refugees, there remains a very large population of Syrians inside and outside the Syrian borders that are extremely vulnerable to human traffickers. Offenses are committed by nearly all the actors of the war, including the Syrian army, who “forcibly recruit[s] boys, some as young as 6 years old,” to participate in the war. The rebel groups, such as ISIL, are even worse. The U.S. Dept. of State report cites several offenses by ISIL, including the capture and sale of 30 Christian women into sex slavery, forced marriages between Syrian girls and Islamic State fighters, the sale of abducted women into sex trafficking rings, as well as the recruitment and use of child soldiers, who ISIL call “Cubs of the Caliphate”, and actively deploy into hostile engagements. ISIL operates training camps designed to instruct child soldiers on the use of weapons, as well as to train them as suicide bombers. Other groups actively abduct women and children to be used in prisoner exchanges. In addition to this internal population, many of the Syrian refugees are at risk of becoming human trafficking victims as well. With many routes taken from the country controlled by gangs and criminals, these refugees are at an increased risk of becoming victims of trafficking. Some reports mention incidences of Syrian women and children being sold into prostitution rings in Lebanon and Turkey, where a majority of the Syrian refugees reside. Many others have become victims of forced labor in begging rings or the agricultural sector.  

ISIL Trained Child Soldiers

With human trafficking as rampant as it is today, especially in poor and struggling countries, the necessity of a coordinated response continues to grow larger. In her article, Sarah E. Mendelson argues that this effort would be much stronger with an active dedication to the cause in the Sustainable Development Goals, which are set to replace the Millennium Development Goals in 2016. She cites several mentions of human trafficking in the sub-goals of the SDGs, and says that if they remain in the completed version of the goals, that organizations working in the countries of issue will have a greater motivation to address the problem of human trafficking. I tend to agree with that sentiment. I believe the issue of human trafficking across the globe is one that will require a concerted effort from many governments and organizations to address properly, and with the Sustainable Development Goals calling on global organizations to address the issue, I believe they are more likely to begin working towards the goal of eradicating the problem entirely. Though that goal may be out of sight today, with a coordinated effort across the globe, it could become attainable within our lifetime.