Trafficking of men for men from Brazil to Spain.

Yesterday in Spain, the police dismantled a trafficking network, bringing young men into Spain from Brazil to force them to have sex with men. 80 men were tricked into coming to Spain, some who believed that they would be working as dancers or models, while others knew that they would work in the sex trade but did not know the conditions (tiny apartments, having to be constantly available for sex, continuous consumption of viagra, poppers and drugs etc). The men were told once they arrived that they would have to give half their earnings to the traffickers and pay back a debt of 4,000 e. (See los hombres tambien sufren exploitacion sexual en España http://www.elpais.com/articulo/sociedad/hombres/sufren/explotacion/sexual/Espana/elpepisoc/20100901elpepisoc_2/Tes)

Today el Publico, a left leaning paper published this article entitled ´la trata de hombres con fines sexuales es residual´. (see here http://www.publico.es/espana/334454/trata/hombres/fi/nes/sexuales/residual). While numbers of men trafficked into Europe for sexual exploitation by men are no doubt minimal as noted by Apramp, the focus of the article is worrying. Why highlight the fact that this type of trafficking is minimal instead of carrying out greater investigative journalism into the situation of those trafficked into Spain? Publico did not mention that the trafficking network had also trafficked Brazilian women and transsexuals into the country. More interesting, would have been to link the trafficking of these Brazilian men to the situation of children trafficked into Spain from Morocoo for purposes of sexual exploitation, girls and boys, for men. How many young men working in the sex industry in Spain were forced into prostitution while under age? Why are the majority of male sex workers, much like female sex workers, migrants?

Over dinner last night, some friends asked me if any trafficking networks had been uncovered of persons trafficked for sexual exploitation to have sex with women in Spain. In other words, are men and women trafficked into Spain for the sexual pleasure of women? I had to answer no. There is a fine line of course where exploitation of domestic workers is concerned; women may not directly sexually exploit a victim of trafficking but they may contribute to it in their mistreatment and by holding domestic workers in their house in servitude (see Siliadin v. France, although in this case sexual abuse was not at issue). Other women, in the form of Madams, form part of trafficking networks to ´protect´ and control the girls. However, these women, who find themselves apprehended by law enforcement more readily than male traffickers, are often victims of trafficking themselves, simply trying to work themselves out of a chain of exploitation.

The fact is that human trafficking and all the violence that goes with it remains a multi billion dollar business because we excuse the sexism and racism so prevalent in the sex industry, whether in porn or in prostitution. We fail, like in the Publico article, to ask important questions about the demand and ask why men who visit prostitutes are able to commit acts of violence with impunity. We do not criticise the demand and punish it, like in Sweden. Instead, an onerique belief still exists in Spain that people work in the sex trade because they ALL want to and therefore, puti clubs (brothels) should exist all along highways. There is still a lack of awareness as to the difference between trafficking and prostitution (for example it is common that the words trata (trafficking) and trafico (smuggling) are used interchangeably.

What is urgently needed is greater dialogue and resources invested into variable exist strategies for those who wish to leave the sex trade and for habilitation of victims of trafficking. There should also be responsibility (even strict?) on punters to ensure that prostitutes are not victims of trafficking, including a responsibility on the part of newspapers to ensure that the ads do not advertise services of those who have been trafficked. Finally, amongst the many other measures which could be taken, a crack down on violence against sex workers and greater education for society in general on issues around racism, sexism and sexual health is urgently necessary.

If those who visit sex workers really and truly do believe it is a choice, then these measures should be welcome. Violence is violence and rape is rape whether one is a sex worker or a judge and human rights surely aren´t contingent on a person´s social situation, immigration status or employment.