How to spot some of the warning signs of human trafficking
· Toronto Sun
Scared, confused, completely alone, utterly clueless to their situation. Those are only some of the feelings and thoughts that victims of human trafficking are experiencing at any given moment.
“They can stand next to you in Starbucks while the trafficker’s in the car outside waiting for them,” said Timea Nagy, a survivor-turned-advocate for victims of human trafficking. “They have no chance. They’re nothing like what the movies explain to you in that sense.
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“No. 1 is that they feel completely alone and No. 2 is that they feel like there’s absolutely no one out there who can possibly understand what’s happening to them. No. 3 is the most important one: They have no idea that they’re a victim of human trafficking.”
With Monday marking the start of Victims and Survivors of Crime Week, Peel Region’s anti-human trafficking program is launching a regionwide public awareness campaign called “If you see something, say something.”
Average age of recruitment is 13 years old
The campaign offers tips to recognize some of the signs that a victim may exhibit when being trafficked and how to take action, noting the average age of recruitment in Canada is 13 years old.
Some of the signs, according to the nCourage program, include:
— Isolation from family and friends;
— No phone, inconsistent phone privileges or more than one phone;
— A youth who is always being monitored or controlled and may not have identification on them;
— Inability to leave a situation due to safety concerns;
— Dictated or restricted movement;
— Speaking in a rehearsed way or someone speaking for them.
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Support available by phone, online
Nagy, who was trafficked through Pearson airport from Hungary on the promise of a summer job, said someone who suspects a youth or adult is being trafficked should contact the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline, which will “walk you through the situation.
“They have survivors, they have experts and you could just say, ‘Hey, I think this is the situation now, how do you think I should approach it?” said Nagy, the founder of Timea’s Cause .
Patience and understanding a victim’s mindset, however, is just as crucial.
“There’s a psychological bond not just to the trafficker, but to the life that they just left behind,” Nagy said. “Believe it or not, sometimes it’s actually in some ways better than what they left behind at home, so it actually takes about five to seven times for these individuals to return back to the trafficker or to the lifestyle.”
The Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline can be reached at 1-833-900-1010 or canadianhumantraffickinghotline.ca . The nCourage program can also be reached at 905-866-2831 or nCourage.ca .