A History Repeated: Ukraine, Trafficking, And War
[By: Abigail Eernisse Founder and Visionary of The Abolitionist Collective]
Disclaimer: the following article contains sensitive information and graphic language. This article is not suited for all audiences. H3R wants to provide a trigger warning to protect specific individuals who may have experienced trauma related to human trafficking. h3r offers writers a platform where individuals can share their unique perspectives, stories, and experiences. h3r remains unbiased to any opinion or perspective in order to uphold freedom of press, speech, and thought.
Over the past three months, images of violence and conflict have dominated our social media feeds and our television screens as we have watched the Ukrainian and Russian War unfold.
In less than two weeks, more than 2 million people have fled to Ukraine and become refugees overnight; this mass displacement of people has become the fastest-growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II.
This knowledge alone would be enough to warrant our deep compassion and grief, however, the refugee crisis fueling human trafficking is what I aim to uncover for you in this article.
This conversation won't be easy. But, neither is losing your home. Your freedom. Your partner. Your culture. And your sense of security overnight. This article is for my fellow women. Unflinching and raw because a history repeated is worthy of being witnessed.
Gail Dines, a radical feminist, CEO of Culture Reframed, and expert in the study of pornography, said it this way; "The one thing we know is that there is "no atrocity that the sex industry doesn't commodify or monetize."
The Intersection Between War & Human Trafficking
The women fleeing this war are the most vulnerable members of society; their lives currently hang in the balance of becoming refugees and targets for traffickers, overnight. They didn't choose the situation of political, socioeconomic, and social insecurity. They are journeying across borders and into countries where they are at the mercy of strangers.
Many of the women who have become refugees are resorting to the favors of smugglers—often placing themselves in danger of human trafficking without realizing it. In desperation, smugglers make them promises of safety and a place to stay and then, just as quickly, turn around to threaten them if they don't pay up. Unable to pay their "debts," many women endure abuse and are ultimately forced into prostitution to survive.
As the stories unfold from neighboring cities, Ukrainian refugees are putting their trust in seemingly kind-hearted strangers during this crisis (as many of us would) which quickly turns into exploitation. This only affirms what we already know, traffickers prey on vulnerability. On every path exiting the country as people escape, traffickers know that until Russia declares a ceasefire, those fleeing will be without many of the resources they need to survive.
British news reporter Matthew Thompson shared a story on Twitter of a mother and son being robbed of all their valuables and documents by a driver who assisted them. This is what women are facing, many with their babies alongside them. The neighboring countries are being flooded with the needs of the refugees; one country, Romania, has taken in over 80,000 refugees so far, 97% of which say they have heard of instances of trafficking throughout their travels in the last three months.
The Polish Government has taken a solid stance to warn traffickers and equip refugees with hotline numbers through social media campaigns and individuals working on the ground. The EU has taken a stand for justice like never before, announcing at the beginning of March that it will grant all Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war the right to live and work within the 27 member-states and will provide them access to social welfare, housing, medical treatment, and education for children for up to three years.
This will be one of the great equalizers refugees need to make a home away from home. But, it will not be enough as war conflict and human trafficking are woven together. Human trafficking is a symptom of a refugee crisis.
The History Repeated
Before the former Soviet Union, we glimpse a past that is being repeated in the present day. A shadow economy existed inside the state economy for the people living in Ukraine; it wasn't just a want; it was a need. The shadow economy met the demands of the planned shortages that hindered access to basic needs.
When the economy run by the government ended, the illegal shadow market increased and expanded. As independent states emerged from the former Soviet Union, they didn't have the regulatory agencies to prevent the growth of organized crime networks. Since the state system could no longer pay for a livable wage, many people joined organized criminal networks to survive.
During this time, the Ukrainian people could no longer support themselves with a single salary and endured egregious amounts of wage theft. The only available jobs were privatized and embedded with organized crime networks.
By 1995, the shadow economy accounted for at least 50% of the total market value of the goods and services produced by a country's economy. This resulted in the criminalization of the economy in general, and it created a network for organized crime to flourish. These networks created a perfect place for the trafficking ecosystem to thrive; the borders became open for travel, migration, and trade, facilitating organized crime. The international organized crime from this newly independent state was filled with relatively low risk and high profit for their organized crime.
Hundreds of victims of trafficking recounted their experience to non-governmental organizations and reporters over the past two decades. Approximately at this time in Ukrainian history, all of their tactics are being used such as manipulation, coercion, and violence by traffickers to further avoid persecution from law enforcement. Organized crime networks take advantage of migration patterns and people who are being uprooted and displaced.
Reports from Katya Adler at the BBC said this; “We met Margherita Husmanov, a Ukrainian refugee from Kyiv in her early 20s. She arrived at the border two weeks ago but decided to stay on to help stop fellow refugees from falling into the wrong hands.
I asked her if she felt vulnerable. "Yes," she told me. "That's especially why I worry about their safety.
"The women and children come here from a terrible war. They don't speak Polish or English. They don't know what's going on, and they believe what anyone tells them.
"Anyone can turn up at this station. The first day I volunteered, we saw three men from Italy. They were looking for beautiful women to sell into the sex trade.
"I called the police, and it turned out I was right. It wasn't paranoia. It's horrible."
Margherita says local officials are a bit more organized now. Police regularly patrol the station. The people (mainly men, we're told) with cardboard signs to tempting destinations, so present in the first couple of weeks of refugee arrivals, have largely disappeared.
But as we find out from a number of sources, other ill-intentioned individuals are now posing as high-vis-wearing volunteers. (High-Vis stands for “high visibility clothing” that workers wear to distinguish themselves from others)
Elena Moskvitina spoke out on Facebook to raise awareness. She's now safely in Denmark, so we chatted at length via Skype. Her experience is chilling.”
Here are a few ways you can support Ukraine:
Show up to rallies and events.
Sign petitions
Book an Airbnb (this is another way to donate directly to locals. "Be sure to check that the renter has been active for many years to ensure they are legitimate, and we recommend renting from an individual rather than a larger corporation with hundreds of properties.”)
Shop brands donating proceeds to Ukraine
Stay informed and spread awareness by SAVING & SHARING our social media posts @theabolitionistcollective.
In Ukraine, call 527 or 0 800 505 501 to reach The Ukrainian National Counter-Trafficking and Migrant Advice Hotline.
In Europe, follow this link to access the national human-trafficking hotlines in the respective EU member-states.
In the United States, call 1-888-373-7888, the National Human Trafficking Hotline, or text HELP to 233733 (BEFREE), for urgent situations call 911.
As the global refugee crisis reaches an all-time high, we can be certain Ukrainians will eventually come to most of our countries.
My question for you and our people, is who will we be to them? Will we forget about them or continue to become the change we can see in the world? □
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