Prosecution Of Human Trafficking, Forced Labor, Sexual Exploitation, And Migrant Worker Abuse

12 Oct 2025 --
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⚖️ OVERVIEW

1. Human Trafficking

Human trafficking involves the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of persons by means of threat, force, coercion, abduction, or deception for the purpose of exploitation (as per the UN Palermo Protocol, 2000).
It is prosecuted under both international law and national statutes, such as the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) in the U.S., the Modern Slavery Act 2015 in the U.K., and similar laws elsewhere.

2. Forced Labor

Forced labor refers to work or service extracted from a person under threat or coercion and without consent. It is prohibited by ILO Convention No. 29 (1930) and Convention No. 105 (1957).

3. Sexual Exploitation

This covers situations where individuals (often women and children) are coerced or deceived into prostitution or other forms of sexual servitude.

4. Migrant Worker Abuse

This includes exploitation of migrants’ vulnerabilities — confiscating passports, withholding wages, restricting movement, or subjecting them to unsafe conditions.

🏛️ KEY CASES (Detailed Explanations)

Case 1: United States v. Kil Soo Lee (2003) – U.S. Federal Court (District of Hawaii)

Facts:
Kil Soo Lee operated a garment factory in American Samoa. Hundreds of workers, mostly from Vietnam and China, were promised fair wages but were instead forced to work long hours under threats, physical abuse, and confinement. Their passports were confiscated, and they were not paid.

Legal Issues:
Whether the exploitation constituted forced labor under the U.S. Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA).

Judgment:
Lee was convicted of involuntary servitude, extortion, and money laundering. The court emphasized that psychological coercion (such as threats of deportation and isolation) also constituted force under the TVPA.

Significance:
This case broadened the definition of coercion beyond physical violence, recognizing psychological manipulation as a means of trafficking and forced labor.

Case 2: Rantsev v. Cyprus and Russia (2010) – European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)

Facts:
Oxana Rantseva, a Russian woman, was brought to Cyprus on an “artist visa” to work in a cabaret. She was subjected to sexual exploitation and later found dead under suspicious circumstances.

Legal Issues:
Whether Cyprus and Russia violated Article 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights (prohibition of slavery and forced labor).

Judgment:
The ECHR held that both states failed to fulfill their positive obligations to protect victims of trafficking.

Cyprus failed to investigate and protect Rantseva.

Russia failed to investigate how she was trafficked.

Significance:
This was the first time the ECHR recognized human trafficking as a violation of Article 4, setting a binding precedent for European nations.

Case 3: The Queen v. Tang (2008) – High Court of Australia

Facts:
Wei Tang, a Melbourne brothel owner, kept five Thai women in conditions amounting to servitude. They were forced to work to “repay” large debts under restricted freedom.

Legal Issues:
Whether her actions constituted “slavery” under Section 270.3 of the Australian Criminal Code.

Judgment:
Tang was convicted of five counts of possessing and using slaves. The High Court held that even if the victims consented to come to Australia, the conditions of control and exploitation amounted to slavery.

Significance:
First Australian conviction for slavery in modern times. The case clarified that consent is irrelevant when coercive conditions exist.

Case 4: Attorney General v. Ah Hen (2017) – High Court of Kenya

Facts:
Ah Hen, a Chinese national, was accused of trafficking Kenyan workers to China under false promises of employment. Victims were made to work under harsh conditions with no pay and were physically abused.

Legal Issues:
Application of the Kenya Counter-Trafficking in Persons Act, 2010 and forced labor provisions under the Kenyan Constitution.

Judgment:
The court found Ah Hen guilty of trafficking and forced labor. It emphasized that recruitment through deception and abuse of vulnerability are central elements of trafficking.

Significance:
One of Kenya’s first trafficking convictions under its 2010 law, reinforcing the role of deceptive recruitment as a trafficking method.

Case 5: United States v. Calimlim (2006) – U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit

Facts:
A Filipino domestic worker was held in the Calimlim family’s home for 19 years without pay. She was threatened with arrest and deportation if she left.

Legal Issues:
Whether the defendants’ conduct constituted forced labor under the TVPA, even without physical restraint.

Judgment:
Both defendants were convicted. The court held that threats of legal process, such as deportation, can amount to coercion under the forced labor statute.

Significance:
Established that psychological coercion and abuse of immigration status are prosecutable forms of forced labor in the U.S.

Additional Example (Optional): Chowdury and Others v. Greece (2017) – ECHR

Facts:
Bangladeshi migrants worked in strawberry fields under inhuman conditions, unpaid for months, and shot at when they demanded wages.
Judgment:
ECHR ruled that Greece violated Article 4 (forced labor) by failing to protect victims and prosecute offenders.
Significance:
Reaffirmed that states must ensure effective investigation and remedy for migrant labor exploitation.