Traditional Security Model is Primary Lens for HT
Since traditional security is still the dominant framework it has most shaped human trafficking policy today. Anti-trafficking response is primarily “a criminal justice type that focuses on prohibition (criminalizing) and control (securitization)”
In the first study of its kind, all printed articles from 2000–2005 on human trafficking from major media sources in the United States (New York Times and Washington Post), United Kingdom (Times of London and Guardian), and Canada (Toronto Star and Globe and Mail) were compiled and analyzed for various content. When reviewing mentioned causes of human trafficking stated in these articles, the results exposed the traditional security influence.
The most commonly mentioned set of causes, cited in 40 percent of the articles, was criminal activity, including forms of force, fraud, or coercion. Trafficking activity perpetrated by organized crime networks was mentioned specifically in 26 percent of the articles. The next most cited causes were poverty and lack of economic opportunities (13 percent), war and political violence (9 percent), corruption by government officials (8.5 percent), and the selling of victims by family members (7.5 percent). The ranking of causes provides support for the hypothesis that the dominant narrative when discussing the causes of trafficking has been the “crime frame”
