Human trafficking red flags

Everyone has the potential to discover a human trafficking situation.

While the victims may sometimes be kept behind locked doors, they are often hidden right in front of us at, for example, construction sites, restaurants, elder care centers, nail salons, agricultural fields, and hotels.

Traffickers’ use of coercion such as threats of deportation and harm to the victim or their family members is so powerful that even if you reach out to victims, they may be too fearful to accept your help.

Knowing indicators of human trafficking and some follow up questions will help you act on your gut feeling that something is wrong and report it.

YOU MAY ALSO WANT TO READ: Teen exposes human–trafficking syndicate in Vryheid

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Human Trafficking Indicators:

While not an exhaustive list, these are some key red flags that could alert you to a potential trafficking situation that should be reported:

Living with employer

Poor living conditions

Multiple people in cramped space

Inability to speak to individual alone

Answers appear to be scripted and rehearsed

Employer is holding identity documents

Signs of physical abuse

Submissive or fearful

Unpaid or paid very little

Under 18 and in prostitution

Questions to Ask

Assuming you have the opportunity to speak with a potential victim privately and without jeopardizing the victim’s safety because the trafficker is watching, here are some sample questions to ask to follow up on the red flags you became alerted to:

Can you leave your job if you want to?

Can you come and go as you please?

Have you been hurt or threatened if you tried to leave?

Has your family been threatened?

Do you live with your employer?

Where do you sleep and eat?

Are you in debt to your employer?

Do you have your passport/identification? Who has it?

Where to Get Help

If you believe you have identified someone still in the trafficking situation, alert law enforcement immediately at the numbers provided below. It may be unsafe to attempt to rescue a trafficking victim. You have no way of knowing how the trafficker may react and retaliate against the victim and you. If, however, you identify a victim who has escaped the trafficking situation, there are a number of organizations to whom the victim could be referred for help with shelter, medical care, legal assistance, and other critical services. In this case, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center described below.

For urgent situations, notify local law enforcement immediately by calling the police.

0800 222 777 National Human Trafficking Resource Center

Call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, a national 24-hour, toll-free, multilingual anti-trafficking hotline. Call 0800 222 777 to report a tip; connect with anti-trafficking services in your area; or request training and technical assistance, general information, or specific anti-trafficking resources. The Center is equipped to handle calls from all regions of South Africa from a wide range of callers including, but not limited to: potential trafficking victims, community members, law enforcement, medical professionals, legal professionals, service providers, researchers, students, and policymakers.