Human trafficking for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation (sex trafficking) is universally acknowledged as an abhorrent violation of fundamental human rights; yet the phenomenon continues to be a pervasive problem and is present in all countries, including Canada. The Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the House of Commons Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development (the Subcommittee) undertook a study on sex trafficking in South Asia, a region in which sex trafficking is particularly prevalent. The Subcommittee’s study focused on six South Asian countries: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka.[1] The purpose of this study was to identify measures to combat sex trafficking that the Government of Canada may incorporate in its initiatives in the region. Witness testimony during the study focused in particular on India, which has the largest number of victims of sex trafficking in South Asia in absolute terms. This fact combined with India’s regional influence makes understanding the Indian experience central to combating sex trafficking in South Asia as a whole.

This report begins by relaying witness testimony describing the nature, shape and size of sex trafficking networks, which range in scale from local to national, intraregional and international. The discussion then turns to select drivers of sex trafficking, including poverty and inequality, culture and social practices, humanitarian crises, public sector corruption and private sector complicity.

The report focuses on two particular areas for action: addressing significant information gaps which are currently hindering the global fight against sex trafficking, and identifying potentially fruitful partnerships at the international and national levels, as well as with non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

The Subcommittee learned that NGOs and state-level actors working towards the elimination of sex trafficking use different definitions and divergent methods of data collection. Witnesses regularly noted that there was a distinct lack of reliable information. Information on sex trafficking was not consistently disaggregated from more widely available information on human trafficking or modern slavery. The challenge this poses is compounded by the reality that sex trafficking is under-reported due to victims’ fears of being stigmatized or prosecuted. The transnational nature of trafficking combined with South Asian states’ limited capacity to detect and profile victims and offenders, and to monitor trends, further add to this difficulty. With this in mind, this report then addresses the legislative frameworks in place in South Asia, and challenges in implementing these frameworks.

This report also relays witness testimony regarding potential partners whose cooperation can help to achieve meaningful progress in the fight against sex trafficking in South Asia. This includes discussion of relevant multilateral organizations, opportunities for partnership through Canada’s existing bilateral development programming, and NGOs already working at the grassroots level on the prevention of sex trafficking and the rescue and rehabilitation of survivors of sex trafficking.

In light of the testimony received during the course of this study, the Subcommittee makes four recommendations to the Government of Canada. These recommendations are mutually reinforcing, and can be implemented in concert with one another. The first recommendation addresses government corruption and its impact on sex trafficking. The second covers data collection and enhancing detection capacity by supporting law enforcement and creating the conditions for sex trafficking victims and survivors to come forward. The Subcommittee also recommends that the Government of Canada include the fight against sex trafficking in South Asia as a development goal and a priority in bilateral relations. Finally, the Subcommittee recommends that the Government of Canada provide concrete support to NGOs working to eliminate sex trafficking in South Asia and to protect and rehabilitate victims and survivors of sex trafficking. Ultimately, these recommendations represent only a starting point to support South Asian governments and NGOs working to address the injustice of sex trafficking in South Asia.