Source: Vietnam News Agency
Posted: September 28, 2006

HANOI — A recent study carried out in Southern Viet Nam, mainland China, Cambodia, and Taiwan by ActionAid International Viet Nam (AAV), found that trafficking often occurs within the context of migration.

The study shows many women knowingly weigh up the risks of migration and still decide to go, leaving them vulnerable and susceptible to trafficking. "It is important to understand that many women are exercising bad judgement when they decide to migrate and interventions should be developed to support them before their departure and at their destination points so they can assert their rights," said Phan Van Ngoc, AAV Country Director.

This study was conducted as the first activity under the 3-year sub-regional initiative named "Battling cross border trafficking of Vietnamese women and children" to better understand the situations women face before departure, at their destination points and when they return. The initiative originated from AAV’s analysis showing most regional and national interventions in combating human trafficking have focused largely on prevention and reintegration, while lacking in on-site interventions at the women’s destination points.

The report highlights trafficking as related to several key factors: "push" factors such as poverty and lack of opportunities, women’s capacity to decide, lack of Government and non-Government mechanisms to promote safe migration, illegal and criminal mechanisms for migration that cause trafficking, and gender inequality as evidenced in women’s limited access to education, work, and the patriarchal power structure that favours men.

Research in the different countries determined the conditions that women face within each country vary greatly. The type of experience they have and the amount of money they are able to earn and remit to their families greatly determines how they feel about their situation.

In order to address these issues, AAV will begin phase II of the project to support women before their departure, at their destination points, and those who choose to return so they can claim their rights. Phase II will be implemented in Taiwan (China), Cambodia, and Viet Nam from October 2006 to October 2008. — VNS

Find out about EMW's ADAPT program, an anti-trafficking initiative in the Mekong Delta region.