THE EFFECTS OF CHILD AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

This paper highlights the effects of child and human trafficking in Nigeria. This project also trace the origin of trafficking back to the pre-colonial period in the early 1920’s and how it was later modernized to modern day’s slavery. In the subsequence chapters, issues like the origin of women trafficking, types of human trafficking and it extent in Africa, reasons for the growth of trafficking, problems associated to the woman trafficking, effect as well as possible solution were also highlighted. Furthermore, the study make in-depth analysis on the full meaning of (WOTCLEF) a non-governmental organisation as well as the members aims, objectives and achievement of the organisation.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0     INTRODUCTION

Child and human trafficking is one of the social problems facing Nigeria today. The condition some people find themselves is contrary to the 1999 National Constitution chapter IV, sub-section 34 which state that every citizen is entitled to the dignity of his human person and accordingly, no one shall be subjected to torture or inhuman or degrading treatment and no person shall be held in slavery or be require to be involved in forced or compulsory labour.

Many Nigeria child and human find themselves in one form of slavery or the other. Slavery according to Sills (1968 p. 14) is “an institution whereby someone is subject to the dominion of another contrary to nature”. Women’s trafficking is a disgrace and degrading to women entirely and does not protect the dignity of woman and child in the society.

Trafficking retards the educational development of women folk and this may be responsible for the backwardness of women as seen in the female enrolment in institution of learning and subsequently in various professions.   

1.1     BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Trafficking according to UN Transnational Organized Crime Protocol is defined as “the recruitment, transport, transfer, harbouring of receipt of persons, by means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or a position of vulnerability or not the giving or receiving of payments or benefits of achieve the consent of a person having control over another person for the purpose of exploitation.

Exploitation shall include, at a minimum the exploitation or the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery, servitude or the removal of organs, cutting of nails and collection of photographs to be deposited into the shrines of witch doctors.

The protocol also defines child trafficking as the recruitment, transport, transfer, harbouring or receipt of child (anyone under 18years) for the purpose of exploitation even if this does not involve force, fraud, or coercion. This is a critical point because in African, child trafficking often occurs with the consent of the parents and sometimes of the children themselves.

There cannot be trading in slaves unless slaves are allowed in a country, although there can be slavery without trading in salves. The slave trade began only when some countries found that they had as many slaves as they needed and began to buy slaves from other countries. The slave trade was begun in Africa by the Arabs and they were later followed by European who took away slaves to America.

Slavery began so many thousand of year ago that no one knows how or when it started. Many Africans tribes kept slaves as we know from records made by Europeans who were often the first people to visit them. Some tribes had a custom by which a man could offer himself or one of his families as a slave to someone to shown he owed money. A slave of this kind worked for a number of days as the slave of the man to whom he owed money and the rest of time, he would work for himself. When he had earned through many to pay off the debt, he could then be free.

During the day of our colonial master, we were enslaved by the British empire and force to work or the sugarcane farm. After we gained our independent, slavery was later modernized into what we called “human trafficking”.

The national and international trafficking of persons, especially of women and child for prostitution and literally embodies in the use of women and young girls for commercial sexual exploitation. There is no way an end can be put to trafficking if yet we fail to realize that government bodies still support the legalization and thus this expansion of systems of prostitution.

Victims suffer many psychological consequences being trafficked and prostituted. Many of them of having psychological and emotional problem as a consequence of the magic juju rites and mental and physical violence to which they are subjected to. Because they believe that they are being helped by those who traffic them, the realization that their helpers are exploiting them in various way is often the cause of great psychological suffering. Exploiters use various and kind of forms of violence; verbal and physical abuse; rape, burning women and girls with hot irons if they refuse to prostitute, making them continue prostituting on the road even when they are ill, menstruating or pregnant.                     

Furthermore, in most cases, some families actively encourage their daughters to accept offers from trafficker who take the young girls and women abroad. Some victims have been thrown out of their house when they refused to follow their footsteps. This has been of a high concern to both the government and non-governmental organisation.  

In conclusion, we need a global recognition that prostitution is a violation of women’s human right and is inherently a violation of women’s dignity as persons.

The legitimating of prostitution and its promoting as an employment option have been direct causes of the international and national trafficking of women and children for prostitution.

This work therefore aim at investigating the effects of child and human trafficking in Nigeria with emphasis on women trafficking and child labour eradication foundation.  

1.2     STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

This study will create enough awareness on the causes and effects of some area confronting women in which they are subjected to a kind of harsh treatment popularly known as “human trafficking”. This research will also drawn the attention of all concerned people like the victims, the parents, guardians, non-governmental organisation, etc to come together so as to combat the major attributes attached to human trafficking which is prostitution in our society which as overtime become an area where some selfish and wicked individuals in the country have been making what they referred to as “cool money”.       

1.3     PURPOSE OF STUDY

The purpose of this research study is to investigate the effect of child and human trafficking in Nigeria with special references to the activities of women, traffic and child labour eradication foundation Ogun State Chapter.

To explore various ways by which non-governmental organisation can help in cubing child labour and human trafficking in the country.

To ascertain the level at Nigeria involvement in child and human trafficking.

To assess the role of WOTCLEF (Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation) in Ogun State chapter in reducing cases of women trafficking and child labour in Ogun State.    

1.4     RESEARCH QUESTIONS

            For the purpose of clarity and understanding in the mind of every reader of this research study the following questions may arise for solution or answer. These include:

(i)                 What are the causes of human trafficking in Nigeria?

(ii)               Does government has any contribution or impact in the causes and control of human trafficking in Nigeria?

(iii)             What are the consequences of human trafficking?  

(iv)             What are the control measure to be put in place in order to combat trafficking in Nigeria?

1.5     SCOPE OF STUDY

The research work was carried out with specific reference to the Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation (WOTCLEF) office of Ogun State chapter at Oke-Ilewo.

Also, in the course of carrying out the research, the researcher encountered some problems, such as financial problems in getting more information from internet, transportation barrier and also the inadequate of data and information to carryout the research to be limited to scope.     

1.6     SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY

This national and international trafficking of persons, especially of women and children for prostitution is a global scourge and a worldwide problem of monumental scope. Trafficking and prostitution are literally embodies in the use of women and young girls for commercial sexual exploitation.

Victims suffer many psychological consequences from being trafficked and prostituted. Many of them end up having serious psychological and emotional problems. This research work will call the attention of all the concerned people like the parents, guardians, government, the victims, non-governmental organisation etc to come together in order to combat the major attributes attached to human trafficking which is prostitution in our society, where some selfish and wicked peoples in the country have been making what is regarded as “cool money”.      

1.7     DEFINITION OF TERMS

Child: A young person from birth to the age of full physical development either a boy or a girl.

Child Prostitution: It is an act of using little children for prostitution which is born of the belief that sex with virgin cure HIV/AIDS.

Effects: A charge produced by an actions or a cause of result of an outcome.

Human: Characteristics of people contrasted with God, animals and machines.

Labour: Work especially a hard physical work.

Prostitution: It is an act of using women bodies for commercial purpose or to make a living.

Sexual Exploitation: It is an act of using women bodies forcefully for commercial purpose.

Slavery: It is an action of working for a number of days to pay up depth to a particular person.

Salve Trade: It is the act of taking people by force and selling them to people either international slaves trade or national slave trade. 

Trafficking: Modern illegal trading of human beings.

Trafficking in Person: It is an instances where people are deceived, threatened or coerced into situation of exploitation.