Identifying Victims of Human Trafficking: The Legal Issues, Challenges and Barriers

This book examines the present challenges associated with identifying trafficked victims. Much has been written about measures to combat human trafficking from a crime control perspective. Although States are legally obligated to protect individuals from exploitation at the supra-national level through international law, this is not enough. A victim-centred approach to the issue of identification is required by States to satisfy both their legal and moral obligations to trafficked victims. Only by acknowledging what present types of trafficking exist alongside examining what an ideal victim of trafficking may or may not look like in society will the awareness of trafficking progress, leading to more victims being identified. The challenges associated with individuals self-identifying as victims is a significant issue and remains part of the discourse of advocating for the importance of identification of victims.