Human trafficking and Nigerian society

Trafficking in human beings, as defined in the United Nations Special Report of the UN Commission on Human Rights, means the reception of persons through the threat or use of force, kidnapping, violence, fraud, deception or coercion, with including abuse of authority. It also includes debt bondage for the purpose of placing or retaining such person, whether for payment or not, in forced labor or slavery-like practices in a community other than that in which such person lived at the time of the original act. Although there are laws in Nigeria prohibiting the trafficking of women and girls for exploitation by use as maids or for prostitution, the crime of human trafficking has taken on an alarming dimension, especially in recent times. Hardly a day goes by without one or the other report of human trafficking. Lately it is no longer a gender issue as boys are also victims. Initially, it was mainly girls and women who were the victims, but there are known cases of young boys who, against their will and against the will of their parents, were also kidnapped and used for jobs.

It is no longer news that many Nigerian ladies are tricked into going out of the country with the promise of getting good jobs and a better life in countries in Europe and some Arab countries like Saudi Arabia and Omar only for them to get there to meet a completely different scenario. The nature of human trafficking includes enticing potential victims using stories of monetary gain or reward, as well as the use of force and threats. According to data from a study conducted a few years ago, the age range of girls who were trafficked was between 9 and 23 years old. Lately, however, older women have been lured into the trade, all because they seek greener pastures beyond the country’s shores. Wishing to escape the situation in the country, they fall into the ever-ready hands of these traffickers with promises of infinite goodies that usually end in regret. Some of these women are forced into prostitution beyond the country’s shores with their passports confiscated. They sleep with men against their will and they can’t help themselves while the traffickers dictate the tune. In other cases, some traffickers end up putting them in contact with very horrible bosses who use them as maids and servants and abuse, maim and sometimes kill them. They are used in the most inhumane ways, supported by the testimonies of those who managed to escape.

Some people pack victims into trucks inland and take them to neighboring countries. They are then shared with various locations and destinations. All money resulting from the sale or rental of these persons goes to the perpetrators. The illicit profit these people have made has allowed the human trafficking business to continue to thrive. There have been numerous social media cases where some of these victims send SOS pleas to social media platforms like Facebook when the situations become very unbearable and their lives are on the line. There is no denying that the dangers of this trade are enormous and that at least 18 percent of such victims are enslaved and exploited for most of their productive lives. If they are rescued or escape, most of these people will be psychologically disfigured for life. Some would have to undergo a series of therapies before they can get better. Some may not be so lucky as they carry scars that can never be erased, both physically and emotionally. The cost of this to the population is enormous in terms of wasted lives and human resources. The fact that these victims had to be forced to deal with these situations is something else to think about.

The Nigerian government has been proactive in rescuing some victims over the years. There has been news over time of the federal government’s intervention to ensure that some victims are brought home by all means when such reports become public. Frankly, this costs the government a lot of money every time, because the well-being of these people is at stake, at least from the period of extraction and for some time after they land in the country. Therefore, this should be treated as an urgent issue by the government to avoid losing citizens in foreign lands to this ugly trade. There is a need for mass sensitization, both in all local languages, Pidgin English and English, about the need for everyone to be alert and aware of the dangers of human trafficking. The government must fish out the chain of human traffickers in the country. Victims must in any case be able to reveal who their agents are, so that the government can arrest them and also get hold of the big brains behind the chain. Obviously there will be a hierarchy of these perpetrators and arresting one or two of them should make it easy to catch the rest. No stone must be left unturned in prosecuting these people. Once the rest knows that the government is keen to strip society of their activities, it can help to reduce them.

The government must do everything it can to make the country safe and liveable for everyone. In all honesty, many of the victims are lured with promises of a better future and due to the high cost of living in the country, victims will want to try and eventually fall into these pitfalls. It is high time that all Nigerians committed themselves to the fight against human trafficking in general. This is also a call to the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and other Related Matters (NAPTIP), Federation of International Women Lawyers (FIDA) and other related bodies, religious organizations such as the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and all Nigerians join forces to fight against the threat called human trafficking.

• Ishola is part of the staff of the Nigerian Tribune

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