There are certain nations that have privileges in which some people take advantage of because they have never experienced life without those privileges. However, it can be said that while others live with these freedoms, some have fought to at least obtain one. Not everyone was born with the choice to be free and not everyone could run from the nightmare of being taken. Human trafficking is a global issue that does not have solely one definition. Human trafficking can be described as forced labor onto someone, the forced removal of a vital organ, and the force of selling one’s body. In 1945, the United Nations was founded as an intergovernmental organization to keep the peace between nations, to promote human rights, and economic development. The UN has regulating human trafficking as a priority and thus the question remains as to if the United Nations has a right to force on foreign policies. Since it is a global issue many nations have two perceptions of dealing with human trafficking: enforcing strict policies to combat it and legalizing it to reduce its function. It is firmly important that the UN contribute ideas to nations to slowly ban human trafficking. By contributing such ideals I believe that the UN can aid countries their legal reforms, reduce sanctions for countries who are willing to comply to such legal reforms, and change policies of foreign nations that may not agree with the UN. 

Many countries have already implemented policies of human trafficking; for example, the German and the Dutch governments have made policies to decriminalize prostitution on strict regulations. Both governments have the ideals that human trafficking is not humane; on the other hand, New Zealand has fully stated that they have decriminalized prostitution completely (Glazer). In addition, Glazer states in her article, Decriminalizing Prostitution, that nations like Sweden have adopted more of a “Nordic model” which entails that only the buyers would be prosecuted. Furthermore, other countries that would change their policies if the UN were to contribute more ideals would be Scotland and Israel. According to Asif Efrat’s academic journal, Global Effects of Human Trafficking, Israeli authorities have come to ignore the issue of human trafficking. Due to influence they were able to change their human trafficking policies in 2006. While there was a change in policies in Israel, Scotland has only placed in action an extremely broad policy on human trafficking. Their policy concerns victims of prostitution not being tried. Broad policies, like that of Scotland, have many ways of being taken advantaged of because there are no specific restrictions (MacNab and Philip). It is important to acknowledge how the evolution of human trafficking has changed and thus policies must change with it. In these cases, the UN must intervene to tighten regulations to aid nations in providing more safety to its citizens. In fact, since only certain countries have policies on human trafficking, more countries still need to be influenced to start drafting legal reforms. According to Juliet Perry’s article for CNN, U.S. Trafficking in Persons Report: How Does Your Country Fare?, some countries have not done much to change their policies. Therefore, a list of countries that have handled human trafficking has been established. This list entails three Tiers, the third Tier being the countries that have the worst human trafficking problem. Not every country has the benefits of clean water, education for all, or the proper living conditions. In effect, this forces individuals to turn to more drastic measures to survive (Perry). Moreover, Perry names some countries that have done more to handle human trafficking; this includes countries like Lebanon, Egypt, and Cambodia. On the contrary, other countries like Haiti have dropped down to Tier 3 due to their lack of productivity to change their policies. Even though the Tier 1 and Tier 2 countries are doing well, it is vitally important for the UN to contribute ideas to the countries of Tier 3 because the plan is to fully exterminate human trafficking. It is a start to implement the stricter regulations on those countries because they are the least productive at producing results to combat human trafficking. To continue, to force these countries to comply with certain stricter regulations would make the UN look like a controlling organization. The UN must slowly progress to grant consequences to those countries who refuse to change their policies and benefits to those who agree to those regulations. 

The U.S. State Department has been extremely involved in the efforts to put an end to human trafficking. They have chosen to aid countries financially if they were to increase productivity in banning human trafficking (Perry). In fact, the US State Department has states the report of Tiers has been resourceful to putting a stop human trafficking. Even though the US has proven to truly be combating human trafficking, “the United States is considered one of the top destination points for victims of child trafficking and exploitation. Between 244,000 and 325,000 U.S. children are considered at risk for sexual exploitation” (Smith 6). In fact, many celebrities and citizens from other countries have provided support to third world countries where the situations of human trafficking are worsening. However, it is equally important to recognize why countries have not done much to regulate human trafficking as a crime. These countries include those who have struggling economies. In Smith’s article, Selling Lives Seeking a Unified Solution to Human Trafficking, he states, that “Trafficking is a multi-billion industry ranking only behind drugs and guns as the most lucrative criminal enterprises. It is estimated that human trafficking rakes in about $32 billion annually, worldwide.” This refers to a reason why nations have decided to turn a blind eye on human trafficking.  Not to mention that,  “The debate is occurring amid growing concern over the global trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation, which generates an estimated $99 billion a year in illegal profits, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations organization that works to improve working conditions and workers' rights worldwide” (Glazer).

Additionally, Smith’s point that human trafficking has preyed on those who are left vulnerable through tragedy and disaster.  According to Perry’s article, Haiti’s human trafficking has increased after the 2010 earthquake that left many individuals homeless and many children left to fend for themselves. Even after the spike of child trafficking, women and children are seeking safety in camps because the situation has reached an overwhelming peak. Haiti is one of the many countries on the Tier 3 list while countries like Colombia have made differences to their policies and improved regulations. While some countries are improving their situations, others have indeed turned a blind eye. These countries include China, Russia, and Uzbekistan (Khazan). Over the years, China’s policies have increased the need for human trafficking; their main policy that encourages prostitution is the one-child policy. The preference for male children has drastically increased the trafficking of brides and prostitutes since some females are left to fend for themselves in a country that has abandoned them. In addition, Russia has more than 50,000 children that are forced into prostitution and forced labor. Some companies in Russia have been exposed to having poor working conditions, withholding documents, and nonpayment for labor (Khazan). The amount of individuals exposed to doing such horrid things is more than one million people in Russia. Not to mention that Uzbekistan depends much on the human trafficking business. The reasoning behind this includes the need for workers in the cotton harvest. Uzbekistan is the world’s sixth largest cotton producer and this country has also been exposed for abusing children. Surprisingly, authorities have been caught forcing children to pick cotton since sometimes quotas need to be met cheaply. For their wrongdoings, these countries have been forced to face sanctions for their lack of progress on improving human trafficking elimination. After being faced with these sanctions, they were even encouraged to improve their law enforcement training to identify and help victims and to be more transparent on their sex slavery data (Khazan). Instead of accepting the sanctions, China and Russia reacted angrily to these accusations. If these countries were to work with the UN to draft regulations then they would not have to face that humiliation. Nonetheless, this brings up the issue of drafting legal reforms since countries’ lawmakers have many differences. 

Along with other countries, the United States has drafted several similar legislations when it comes down to human trafficking. Smith states that the primary criminal statute in the US was adopted in 2000 and reauthorized by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act in 2008 (Smith 5).  According to Professor Mutiu in her article, The European Policies on Fighting against Trafficking in Human Beings Challenges for Romania, European nations have taken the initiative to improve the conditions of human trafficking. For example, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union “requires the implementation of the comprehensive policy to effectively address trafficking in human beings…” (Mutui 49). Additionally, the EU strategy provides insight to how the European nations can permanently eliminate human trafficking. The UN can further encourage drafting since the EU strategy has been effective so far. When referring back to Efrat’s academic journal, he states:

In 2000, the US government launched a campaign against human trafficking worldwide by enacting the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act. That same year saw the signing of the primary international agreement on human trafficking: the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (hereinafter: UN Protocol). In the following years, the UN established various anti-trafficking tools, including a Global Report on Trafficking in Persons and an Inter-Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in Persons. The UN General Assembly has passed several resolutions on measures to eliminate human trafficking and in 2010 adopted a UN Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons. Various other organizations have also engaged in global and regional efforts against human trafficking (Efrat 36).

This, in fact, demonstrates that the UN’s plan of action on human trafficking has made some impact on banning human trafficking. 

In conclusion, the UN cannot completely force the hands of foreign nations to comply with human trafficking regulations. However, the UN can advise foreign countries on how they can continue to combat human trafficking. Forcing regulations on countries would worsen the UN’s relationship and reduce their influence. Combatting human trafficking is a crucial global issue since it does affect one of the UN’s main missions. When done correctly, human trafficking can cease to exist and many individuals will be freed from international slavery.
