The fight against trafficking in human beings and its external dimension: strategies and processes

Trafficking in human beings is a serious form of crime that has a global dimension and is mainly associated with the general discourse on migration and mobility. It is essentially based on the exploitation for profit of human beings who, for different reasons, are in a condition and position of vulnerability. Vulnerable migrants – i.e. women, children and people in poor economic conditions or undocumented people – are at greater risk of being trafficked or of being exploited in terms of domestic work, in the agricultural sector or in the sex industry because of their particular conditions. In the current context of the migration crisis, a significant proportion of the migrants that have reached EU territory have been faced with human trafficking by becoming victims of it or have experienced violence during their journey. The European Union’s approach, which is based on the anti-trafficking directive ,could have the effect of boosting measures of prevention, protection and prosecution in the fight against this serious crime, addressing freedom from want, freedom fromfear and strengthening the rule of law. It also considers the victims’ position and their rights. Along with the three pillars, ‘Prevention, Protection, Prosecution’, a fourth one has to be added, ‘Partnership’, with its horizontal dimension. All of them are involved in the external dimension. The aim of this chapter is to provide a general overview of the main strategies and processes interacting in the external dimension of the action against human trafficking.