Introduction
Since the dawn of time, humans have occupied this planet in some form or another. Many generations have come into being and exited this planet, leaving behind a legacy of positive virtues and harmful vices. These virtues and vices have been passed down from one generation to the next. Humanity faces various obstacles that threaten their existence and negatively affect their daily lives. Human trafficking is one of the most notorious forms of vice that has persisted throughout history. The practice of this vice has evolved over the years, taking on new forms while retaining its core characteristics. In today’s world, people trafficked to various destinations often end up being mistreated in various ways, ranging from commercial sex exploitation to forced labor. They are forced against their will to engage in illegal practices such as drug trading and being used for experimental research. This research paper will focus on human trafficking in Thailand. It will entail a literature review on Thailand’s social challenge of human trafficking. The violation of human rights and oppression of the victims and measures put in place by the Thai government to curb the vice.
The Thai government has come a long way in its efforts to protect the health and safety of its people and has made significant strides in this direction. There are several policies in place to guarantee that significant growth will take place in the country. These policies have proven beneficial over the past five decades, ensuring that the country’s economy is on an upward trend and has significantly been recognized as an upper-middle-income country, having moved up from the status of a low-income country. Despite the efforts made by the government to steer the country in the correct direction, dishonest people living within the country have discovered a method to take advantage of the country’s population by violating their rights through the practice of human trafficking. Most people who fall prey to human trafficking in Thailand are economic migrants from neighboring countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos. Even though certain Thai citizens have the misfortune of coming into contact with human traffickers, the situation is still quite serious.
Social Problem of Human Trafficking in Thailand
The prevalence of corrupt practices throughout Thailand is a major contributor to the industry’s success. Corruption in Thailand is pervasive and may be found in many facets of the country’s economy. It can be found in corrupt government officials, law enforcement authorities, and affluent individuals. However, Thailand has laws designed to combat corruption, and those responsible for wrongdoing face increasingly severe punishments. The problem is that the people supposed to enforce the law are themselves corrupt. As a result, it has been difficult to put corrupt people behind bars and bring them to justice. Because of this factor, human trafficking has been able to thrive in Thailand, although it violates the rights of those victimized by it.
The trafficker takes advantage of the economic migrants in Thailand by subjecting them into activities they would not take part in if they had the free will to choose. Laws are broken as the victims are subject to inhumane acts some of which are indecent, children are forced to labor for hours while the young adults are forced into sexual acts. The old, on the other hand, are treated as guinea pigs and various experiments are conducted on them without consent (Ezell, 2001). On the other hand, some Thai nationals are victims abroad and are subject to the same inhumane and indecent acts that other victims are subjected to. Without their approval.
Human traffickers operating in Thailand have a large network that has operational activities between Burma and Thailand. The network enjoys the protection of some corrupt law enforcers, local authorities and some corrupt migration personnel working in the government officers. These corrupt individuals are responsible for ensuring that the human trafficking syndicate operate secretively while causing harm to many human beings that should not be subjected to the kind of treatment that the victims are exposed (Garcia & Soest et al., 2006). The public has therefore lost significant trust on the local and national government in protecting its citizens as implied by the study conducted by the United Nations who identified their subjects at random. The study shows that the Thai citizen would fail to report trafficker’s due to their inability to correctly identify the victims.
Human Rights, Social Justice, and Oppression
Traffickers are extremely cunning individuals who deploy several techniques to lure victims into their traps. They may attempt to deceive those who have suffered damage by assuring them of a secure haven. People who are desperate and looking for ways to improve their lives may fall victim to this trap since they are searching for solutions to better their lives (Ezell, 2001). In this sense, the victims are exploited and ultimately suffer at the hands of the traffickers, who oppress and exploit them to the most extent possible. In this manner, the victims are used and made to suffer at the hands of the traffickers.
Many migrants who wind themselves in the hands of traffickers did so because they unlawfully entered the country, contributing to their mistrust of those who enforce the law. It is common for victims to fear their traffickers and the authorities, which keeps them from seeking help and contributes to the secrecy surrounding human trafficking. According to the United States Department of State, the likelihood of economic migrants being victims of human trafficking in 2021 will climb dramatically. When led into the traps established by traffickers, most illegal immigrants enter the country because they believe they will find better employment possibilities here. They fear reporting their oppressors to the authorities since they may not have entered the nation legally.
Any person directly impacted by the vice of human trafficking has their rights violated as a result of the vice. As a direct consequence of this, the government of Thailand has enacted several regulations that are geared toward preserving the dignity of everyone who has been impacted. For instance, once victims of human trafficking in Thailand have been rescued from their captors, they are afforded the protection of the law. They are granted permission to work in the nation for up to two years, pending the prosecution of the criminals who were involved in their trafficking and who were responsible for their enslavement. It provides the victims with the option to earn a respectable living and find a means of sustaining themselves in a foreign nation without being victimized. It does so without the victims being subjected to any form of exploitation.
Advocacy Plan
The emotional trauma inflicted on victims of human trafficking while they are held hostage in other countries contributes to the development of their depressive symptoms. Their legal protections are being blatantly violated, and they do not have any channels through which they can air their grievances. They are not given the essential requirements they should have, and they are required to watch out for their masters, who may cause them harm at any time and for no apparent reason. They are not given the fundamental requirements that they should have. As a direct result of this, it is of the utmost importance for the government of Thailand to formulate regulations that would completely do away with the practice of human trafficking in the country (U.S. Department of State, 2021). The policies should be strict and include steps such as placing a freeze on the perpetrators’ assets and sending them to prison for an extended period.
Educating Thai citizens about the negative effects of human trafficking would enable them to recognize oppressed foreigners who may be victims of human trafficking. Citizens should report the perpetrators of the crime to the authorities responsible for maintaining law and order in Thailand. The information would be helpful to Thai nationals who are looking for employment prospects outside of Thailand. Thai nationals can be victims of human trafficking when working in other countries. Therefore, they need to be able to protect themselves. The information would greatly assist in ensuring that instances of human trafficking are reported and reduced to a minimum, if not eliminated.
Several government entities have been identified as assisting traffickers; the government ought to carry out a comprehensive reform of these institutions. Due to the high levels of corruption, the migration department and law enforcement have been the most adversely affected. As a result, they have opened some legal gray areas that traffickers have exploited (U.S. Department of State, 2021). With this mechanism in place, the corrupt officials would be forced out of their positions, and severe steps would be taken against them. They ought to be used as examples, making it less likely for other offenders to engage in human trafficking.
Even though the Thai government has been attempting to combat human trafficking, they have not yet met the requirements that the United Nations has established to deal with human trafficking. Therefore, the government should guarantee that it moves quickly to enforce its general laws to combat the vice. The capacity of the government to carry out the provisions of these laws would contribute significantly to the reduction of vice. There are additional regulations already in effect, in addition to allowing victims to work in the country for two years. If these laws were followed to the letter, there would be a considerable decrease in the number of trafficked persons.
Conclusion
The widespread corruption in Thailand makes it simpler for anyone to engage in the illegal trade of people in that country. Corruption is pervasive across the Thai economy and can be seen in various circumstances. The public has lost faith in the local and federal governments’ ability to protect their residents, and this sentiment permeates all levels of government. Illegal immigration is a big obstacle for migrants, particularly those who become victims of human trafficking. Many victims of human trafficking are reluctant to seek assistance because they fear for their safety and the security provided by law authorities. Human trafficking for economic gain is a significant problem. In recent years, Thailand’s immigration and law enforcement authorities have become increasingly criticized due to the country’s pervasive corruption. Those responsible for upholding peace and order in Thailand must be brought to justice, which can be accomplished by identifying the perpetrators of the crime. The submitted information would be extremely helpful in detecting and preventing instances of human trafficking.
References
Ezell, M. (2001). Advocacy in the human services. Cengage Learning.
Garcia, B., & Van Soest, D. (2006). Social work practice for social justice: cultural competence in action. Council on Social Work Education.
United Nations. (n.d.). Global report on trafficking in persons. United Nations: Office on Drugs and Crime. Web.
U.S. Department of State. (2021). Thailand – united states department of state. U.S. Department of State. Web.