Human trafficking, slavery of our times, has become a global issue now. Human trafficking is domestic or transnational trade of human beings, most commonly for the purpose of forced labour and sex trade. It has become a multibillion dollar criminal economy, and has around 20 million victims all over the world.

Although, human trafficking (HT) has become a global criminal phenomenon, a country like Pakistan, which is a frontline state in fight against terrorism, should be a little bit more cautious when it comes to HT.

Human trafficking is an organised crime which is interconnected with other crimes. Human smuggling and drug trafficking are directly connected with HT, and all three crimes are connected with terrorism. This vicious cycle provides a room for some terrorists to use established smuggling routes to move around the world and launch attacks and for some to generate revenues through drug trafficking.

According to the United Nations Office on Drug and Crimes (UNODC) criminal networks operating in Pakistan generated $927 million in 2013 and the number is constantly rising.

The US State Department’s Trafficking in Human Beings Report 2017, said that Pakistan is in Tier-2 watch list. The watch list includes countries which are countries of origin, source and destination and do not fully meet the standards to prevent human trafficking, but are instead contributing to the problem.

In line with the US law, a country that remains in watch list for two years can be put in Tier-3. After reading four reports from 2014 to 2017, it was found that Pakistan is in the Tier-2 watch list for the fourth consecutive year because the US is granting waiver to Pakistan. Without a waiver, Pakistan would have been put in Tier-3, which brings certain sanctions under a US law called Trafficking Victims Protection Act 2000.

The international community’s fight against terrorism and fight against human smuggling and trafficking is part of the same campaign (human smuggling means willing but illegal migration to other countries while human trafficking means forced and bonded trade of human beings). International Center for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), with the support of the EU, recently organised a training seminar for Pakistani journalists in Baku, Azerbaijan, to sensitise them about a serious human rights issue which is human trafficking and how to report it in line with basic media ethics.

Tamme de Leur, one of the anti-trafficking experts, said, "It will take an organised government and organised media to counter the organised crime."

He identified twelve elements that can help fight out organised crimes including trafficking in human beings. It includes law enforcement, human rights, gender issues, migration, politics, economics, technology, corporate law, healthcare, multidisciplinary approach, education and media. These elements require coordination between government institutions and media.

Now, let’s have a look at what the Pakistani state and media are upto to counter this organised crime.

Pakistan has many laws including well written "Prevention and Control of Human Trafficking Ordnance, 2002 (PACHTO)", but the real problem is implementation of those laws. Corruption, lack of resolve and insensitivity towards masses are said to be the main reasons behind the nourishment of this crime.

Apart from the US State Department’s report and other world organisations fighting THB, one can easily see occurrence of all kind of crimes including domestic and transnational human trafficking and smuggling in every nook and corner of the country.

As for as domestic THB is concerned, you can see a large number of girls and boys migrating from villages and working in every other house or shop in big cities or small towns for $30 to $70 per month. In some cases the parents of those domestically-trafficked children take an advance of around $500, and then salary may be less than what is mentioned above.

Then you see those children being molested and beaten up badly by their so called owners. The much highlighted case of Taiba, a minor girl who was tortured by the wife of a sitting judge, on media is one of the examples of domestic trafficking.

Lack of education, health facilities and rising unemployment, which is resulting in poverty, are forcing the Pakistani youth to go abroad at any cost, and human smugglers and human traffickers are taking advantage of it. A very few end up reaching their destinations, while most of them get killed on way to their dream destinations.

Trafficking of human organs is also on the rise in big cities. According to media reports foreigners are coming to private hospitals of Lahore to get their kidney transplant by paying $15000 to $25000, and hospitals are exploiting poor victims and forcing them to sell their kidneys for $400 to $800.

You see camel jockey boys, girls, women and men being trafficked to Middle Eastern countries and all around the world for forced labour and sex trade. You also see women being trafficked from some countries, including Baltic States and Central Asian States, to Pakistan, mainly for prostitution. That is how Pakistan becomes a country of origin, source and destination.

There is need to have laws which are clear and close to the reality and are formulated after doing a thorough and scientific research in the society. For instance, a person who is enslaving a boy or a girl in his house or business should be declared a trafficker instead of making it a child abuse case.

As for as media is concerned, with the exception of a few English dailies, all newspapers and TV channels are ignoring the issue due to lack of education, training and proper knowledge of basic journalistic code of conduct. The issue of sensationalism in Pakistani media, especially in news channels, which is mainly due to lack of education and training, was also discussed in the training workshop.

How long would that be possible for the government to put the issue of human trafficking and related crimes under the carpet, and remain on the watch list? It will not help in resolving the issue, rather it is aggravating the problem.

Startling facts about domestic and transnational human trafficking in Pakistan suggest that Pakistan needs to curb this crime not only for the sake of human rights but also to improve its image and relations with other countries.

Only an organised government and media can fight organised crime, motivated by a will to fight despite lack of resources. Will that be possible for the government and its institutions and media to take the beast of organised crime by the horns and save the beauty of the world?