IACHR and UN Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons: States must enhance the protection of victims of human trafficking

July 30, 2024

Washington, D.C. - On World Day against Trafficking in Persons, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the UN Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons call upon all States in the region to enhance their national systems of assistance and to provide comprehensive reparations for victims of human trafficking.

The Commission and the UN Special Rapporteur note that challenges for trafficking victims persist in the region, including difficulties in accessing justice, assistance, and comprehensive reparations. In particular, they warn that barriers to accessing justice perpetuate impunity, that insufficient specialized assistance leaves victims in situations of vulnerability, and that a lack of comprehensive reparations exacerbates the harm suffered. Additionally, highlight that racism and xenophobia exacerbate failures to prevent trafficking in persons and to assist and protect victims and persons at risk of trafficking. Furthermore, they point out that women and girls in human mobility and with disabilities are at greater risk of being victims of human trafficking, due to the intersection of various vulnerability factors, which requires specific and differentiated attention from States.

In light of these challenges, the IACHR and the UN Special Rapporteur emphasize that effective responses to addressing trafficking in persons must prioritize victim protection. States must ensure that their responses are grounded in a human rights framework, which recognizes and safeguards victims' rights to assistance, protection, access to justice, and comprehensive reparations, without discrimination. This approach should also support the full reconstruction of victims' life projects.

In accordance with the Inter-American Principles on the Human Rights of All Migrants, Refugees, Stateless Persons, and Victims of Human Trafficking, victims have the right to protection from revictimization and access to legal assistance, counseling, and information provided in a language they understand and in a gender-sensitive manner. They also have the right to receive medical, psychosocial, and material assistance, and educational or training opportunities. Likewise, victims of trafficking with disabilities must be ensured equal protection of the law and effective access to justice. Comprehensive reparations should encompass restitution, compensation, physical and mental rehabilitation, satisfaction, and guarantees of non-repetition.

Additionally, the IACHR and the UN Special Rapporteur reinforce that reparations must be proportional to the severity of the violations and the harm inflicted, with the aim of restoring the victims' dignity, quality of life, and well-being to the state prior to the harm suffered. In instances where human rights violations stem from structural or systematic problems, reparations should take on a transformative role, addressing and amending the underlying conditions that enabled the violations.

Therefore, the Commission and the UN Special Rapporteur call upon all States of the region to observe five key recommendations to enhance national systems of assistance and comprehensive reparations for victims of human trafficking:

• Institutionalize assistance to victims of human trafficking by ensuring their rights to receive medical, social, and psychological care, health and social services, and other essential services. To this end, States should strengthen their national systems with budgetary allocations to provide comprehensive and specialized assistance.
• Provide free and accessible legal assistance to victims of trafficking, including culturally sensitive counseling in languages they understand. Ensure that victims can seek justice and file complaints without fear of detention, deportation, or punishment, prioritizing their protection and adequate assistance.
• Facilitate the process for victims to obtain necessary documentation and legal status if they wish to remain in the country.
• Implement concrete and effective measures to ensure comprehensive redress for victims of human trafficking, including restitution, compensation, physical and mental rehabilitation, satisfaction, and guarantees of non-repetition.
• In all actions of assistance, protection, and reparation to victims, consider the gender perspective, the best interests of the child, the rights of persons with disabilities, including to reasonable accommodation and access to justice, and the principle of non-punishment for all victims of human trafficking, regardless of their migration status.

The IACHR is a principal and autonomous organ of the Organization of American States (OAS), whose mandate derives from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission is mandated to promote the observance and defense of human rights in the region and acts as an advisory body to the OAS in this area. The IACHR is made up of seven independent members who are elected by the OAS General Assembly in their personal capacity, and do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council's independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures' experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

No. 172/24

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