Leading non-profit groups in the fight against human trafficking say that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is feeding instability and dramatically raising the risk of human trafficking in the region
More than 70 of the world’s leading anti-trafficking organizations have come together to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the impact it is having on the risk of human trafficking in the region.
They have signed an open letter that reads in part: “As long as the military invasion of Ukraine continues, the vulnerability of displaced people in the country to human trafficking will increase due to deteriorating rule of law and impunity; further forced displacement; humanitarian need and socio-economic stress and social fragmentation. Human trafficking will also escalate in the countries to where people from Ukraine are fleeing. There have also been deeply concerning reports of attempts to traffic women and girls fleeing Ukraine in neighboring countries, including Poland and Romania.”
Signatories include the leaders of major anti-trafficking groups like Hope for Justice, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), Shared Hope, The Freedom Fund, and ECPAT USA, and many others from across the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe.
The signatories call for the Russian authorities to withdraw their troops immediately from Ukraine, and they call for investigations into potential war crimes, crimes against humanity and human rights violations associated with human trafficking (by either party). They call on the countries that are welcoming refugees to ensure they implement effective prevention measures against human trafficking. They list measures including training for frontline agencies; safe and legal routes for those who are fleeing; measures to more easily enable potential victims to be identified; trauma-informed and holistic care to be made available for survivors of trafficking; and steps taken to ensure perpetrator accountability. With these countries already doing so much to assist refugees, the signatories ask the wider international community to shoulder some of the financial burden of these vital measures.
The letter-writers say: “Human trafficking and conflict feed each other. By promising stability, security and employment, traffickers often appear to offer a greater prospect of hope for individuals who might have left everything behind.”
A study by U.N. agency the International Labour Organization estimated that human trafficking generates at least $150bn in illicit profits every year for organized criminals, which further fuels global instability and insecurity.
Signatories:
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- Tim Nelson, CEO, Hope for Justice and Slave-Free Alliance
- Nick Grono, CEO, The Freedom Fund
- Red Godfrey-Sagoo, CEO, Sophie Hayes Foundation
- Joy M Gillespie, CEO, Survivors of Human Trafficking in Scotland (SOHTIS)
- Linda Smith, Founder and President, Shared Hope International
- Andrew Wallis, CEO and Founder, Unseen
- Dawn Hawkins, CEO, National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE)
- Christian Guy, CEO, Justice and Care
- Helen Sworn, Executive Director and Founder, Chab Dai
- Deb Sigmund, Founder, Innocents at Risk
- Elizabeth Fisher Good, Founder & CEO, The Foundation United
- Leanne Rhodes, Executive Director, European Freedom Network
- Harriett Baldwin MP, Chair, British Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
- Karen Bradley MP, UK Former Minister for Modern Slavery and Organised Crime
- Patricia Durr, CEO, ECPAT UK
- Ann-Kristin Vervik, Generalsekretær/Executive Director, ECPAT Norway
- Lori L Cohen, CEO, ECPAT USA
- Richard Beard, CEO, Jericho Foundation
- Mick Clarke, CEO, The Passage
- Kim Westfall, Founder, Uncaged
- David Gadd, Professor of Criminology
- Bronagh Andrew, Operations Manager, The TARA Service
- Kirsty Thomson, Managing Director, JustRight Scotland
- Martin Hancock, CEO, BCHA
- Emily Chalke, Co Director, Ella’s House
- Lara Bundock, CEO and Founder, Snowdrop Project
- Kush Chottera, CEO, Europia
- Fred Sherling, General Manager, Fair Play Bygg Rogland Norway
- Yvonne Hall, Founder and Co-Chief Executive, Palm Cove Society
- Ragnhild Lindahl Torstensen, CEO, Lightup Norway
- Victoria Marks, Director and Solicitor, Anti Trafficking and Labour Exploitation Unit
- Liz Griffith, Head of Policy and Research, Migration Justice Project at Law Centre Northern Ireland Law Centre
- Jon Lord, CEO, Bolton at Home
- Dr Carole Murphy, Director, Bakhita Centre for Research on Slavery, Exploitation and Abuse
- Dr Ruth Van Dyke, Acting Director, Training Bakhita Centre for Research on Slavery, Exploitation and Abuse
- Rev Ian Howarth (Adavu Chair) and Liisa Wiseman (Adavu Project Manager) Adavu Project
- Leanne Rhodes, CEO and Founder, Abolishion
- Erhard Hermansen, General Secretary, Christian Council of Norway
- Rita Gava, Director, Kalayaan
- Karen Anstiss, Service Manager, Caritas Bakhita House
- Wanjiku Ngotho-Mbugua, Acting Chief Executive, Bawso
- Ed Newton, CEO, City Hearts
- Gayle Bunting, Director, Invisible Traffick
- Amber Cagney, Development Manager, West Midlands Anti-Slavery Network
- Ross Hendry, CEO, Christian Care Research and Education (CARE)
- Matthew Evans, Director, The AIRE Centre
- Jillian McBride, Children’s Policy Officer, Scottish Refugee Council
- Moya Woolven, CEO, Basis Yorkshire
- Modupe Debbie Ariyo OBE, CEO, AFRUCA
- Ashleigh Chapman, President, AFRJ (Alliance for Freedom, Restoration and Justice)
- Rushan Abbas, Executive Director, Campaign for Uyghurs
- Coreen Lategan, Executive Director, Kainos e.V. Germany
- Bettina Kneisler, First Chairperson, Projekt Schattentöchter e.V.
- Rachel Witkin, Head of Counter-Trafficking and Publications, Helen Bamber Foundation
- Anja Slabbekoorn, President, Spring2Freedom
- Andrew Hoskins, Vice President of International Programs, The Exodus Road
- Courtney Skiera-Vaughn, Director of International Programs, Free The Girls
- Jerry Gowen, CXO, Operation Underground Railroad
- Korrin Moon, Co-Founder, Lantern Rescue
- Alison Ussery, Director, Haven of Light CIC
- Jacqueline Joudo Larsen, Deputy Director; and Grace Forrest, Founding Director, Walk Free
- Vidar Sagmyr, Project Leader, Byggebransjens uropatrulje
- Tom Stancliffe, Co-Founder, TRIBE Freedom Foundation
- Caroline Downey, Executive Director, Women Working Worldwide
- Anne Basham, Chair, Taskforce on Human Trafficking for the Parliamentary Intelligence Security Forum
- Jeremy Vallerand, CEO & President, Rescue:Freedom International
- Sneh Aurora, London Director, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI)
- Lucy Brill, Director, Homeworkers Worldwide
- Christi Wigle, CEO and Co-Founder, United Against Slavery
- Adam Whittington, CEO and Founder, Project Rescue Children
- Shannon von Scheele, Executive Director, Netzwerk gegen Menschenhandel
See our Resources and Links relevant to the Ukraine crisis and preventing human trafficking of vulnerable people: hopeforjustice.org/resources-and-statistics/resources-ukraine-crisis/
