Trafficking and exploitation strategy: review

Annex D - Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP) – question set

To ensure the voices of those with lived experience of the human trafficking support system were fully reflected, the following questions were issued to Migrant Help’s Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP). These questions centred on three key themes:

• look at the reasons why a person might be vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation and what we could do to help;
• identify people who were victims of human traffickers, and provide them with safety and support to rebuild their life away from the people who had abused them; and
• take action to stop people abusing other humans as a way to make money.

Questions

Look at the reasons why a person might be vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation and what we could do to help.

1. Does this seem like a correct focus for the Strategy?

2. What do you think can make someone more vulnerable to being exploited?

3. Where should we focus prevention to make potential victims’ aware of traffickers’ tactics?

Identify people who were victims of human traffickers and provide them with safety and support to rebuild their life away from the people who had abused them.

4. Does this seem like a correct focus for the Strategy?

5. What signs do you think are most important in noticing someone who might need help to leave exploitation?

6. In your opinion, what is the most important support provided once a person has been identified?

7. What do you think is most important in supporting people towards long- term recovery?

Take action to stop people abusing other humans as a way to make money.

8. Does this seem like a correct focus for the Strategy?

9. Are there any organisations that need further training to help them recognise victims of trafficking?

10. What more can the Scottish Government do to prevent or stop traffickers exploiting people?

11. If you were able to send a message to the person responsible for the Scottish Government’s strategy on trafficking and exploitation, what would it be?

Answers from the LEAP

Look at the reasons why a person might be vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation and what we could do to help.

1. Does this seem like a correct focus for the Strategy?

• Yes
• Why? If someone (such as an asylum seeker) is running from their country for help and the Scottish Government is giving them like £40 a week to live, that is not enough. If there is a limit for those to work, this amount doesn’t meet their needs. That’s why you see some of them going out there and begging. They run from their own place to come here hoping it will be a benefit to them, but the government says no, you’re not entitled to anything other than the £40 we give to you, some of them live in the hotel where they can’t cook – they are just eating noodles. That’s no way to live.

2. What do you think can make someone more vulnerable to being exploited?

• Poverty within their own country can cause people to be vulnerable. Traffickers who travel to other countries promise a better life in the UK through false information, e.g., you are going to make this amount of money and you just accept it because of poverty.
• People say that they feel sorry for you and want to help so you just accept the help.
• In most cases poverty makes people vulnerable as everything is about money; you need medication etc. – it costs money.
• Within the UK people are further made vulnerable by the limited financial support provided by the government. Because the government is providing such little financial support, it is making people more vulnerable and forcing them to be re-trafficked/further exploited.
• In some cases, you have the money, but your money can’t fight for you. For example, someone has more money than you in a situation, but because they have more money, they can buy the better lawyer or bribe the police, so you are left on the outside/unstable. Money can be used by other people to bribe themselves into positions.
• Pressure from family makes someone vulnerable to trafficking. For example, family need money put pressure on you need to find job to work just accept whatever work they can get and end up being trafficked.
• In my country we must pay everything (bills, homes etc., nothing is free). Extended family must help each other, so if you don’t contribute to the support, you can get under too much pressure and once you are offered an opportunity outside your country (in the UK, Canada etc.) you will be, like: ok – bye, bye, poverty. But then you arrive there, and the struggle begins again.
• The desire for a better life for them and their families can make someone more vulnerable.
• For some, religion can make them more vulnerable. For example, if you don’t want to follow a religion/want to change religion, e.g., you want to go from Muslim to Christian, your parents are not going to be happy with you. Your family can disown you; you are not going to be part of the family anymore. Your family could kill you, so if you have an opportunity like that (to leave) you must run away.
• Promise of a better life for someone and their family.
• Lack of guidance into UK systems e.g., ignorance/no exposure.
• Less privileged families depending on an individual coming to UK for “greener pastures”.
• Quest for International Academic Qualification.

3. Where should we focus prevention to make potential victims’ aware of traffickers’ tactics?

• How can we answer this when they are in a different country?
• People are trafficked from different countries so don’t know how they are going to do it, whether the government is going to go these other countries.
• UK/Scottish government should find out how many trafficking victims there are and why they traffic those victims specifically (e.g., we have 1,000 victims and 50% of them are from the same country).
• Make a stronger law for traffickers, need to make action – if they catch you and they find out this person has been trafficking they should get a double punishment. Won’t stop the traffickers but may slow them down.
• We have this information for asylum seekers, need to get the same for victims of trafficking.
• So many beliefs that awareness can be communicated in schools - raise awareness.
• Depends on the people who do the trafficking – you will believe them when you don’t have a better life.
• Publish awareness on social media - if they found out someone is being a trafficker, publish them on social media, newspaper etc.
• Point of entry, e.g., airports, seaports and borders. Flyers and professionals to enlighten commuters of what is happening on matters trafficking and exploitation. How to spot potential victim and who to report to or talk to.
• UK and other developed states to share success systems with countries where most victims come from. In other words, make other places conducive to live so that they don’t need to run to UK or Europe for “better lifestyle”.
• The media should also show the struggles in UK so that people globally stop assuming UK is perfect. Movies and mainstream media don’t show people in UK struggling, which is far from reality when immigrants reside in UK.

Identify people who were victims of human traffickers and provide them with safety and support to rebuild their life away from the people who had abused them.

4. Does this seem like a correct focus for the Strategy?

• Really good, saves a lot of lives, good what the government is doing.
• Good idea, helping a lot of people.
• Yes, give them opportunity to heal over time.

5. What signs do you think are most important in noticing someone who might need help to leave exploitation?

• Victims always look scared and worried, language barrier, scars/ bruises, looking tired, scared to say anything to the police.
• Really stressed, not able to focus properly, tiredness, the people who trafficked them may have told them that if you see the police don’t look scared.
• Always separated from meeting people in the community.
• Constantly being threatened to be deported by the persons or organisation that brought them into UK.

6. In your opinion, what is the most important support provided once a person has been identified?

• Take the victim from the trafficker, can’t give support if they are still there.
• Provide food, somewhere to live, somewhere to shower, important to meet basic needs.
• Need to rebuild their life, education, work skills, something to keep them busy rather than sit in the house and keep thinking.
• Therapy – for the person sometimes it has been stressful where they have been, so they need a professional therapist to make their brain come back to life, tell them that everything will be fine, you are not alone, things like that. It takes a while to build trust in people (both needed right away and long term).
• Rescue the person from the exploiter so that he/she can live independently.
• Introduction to legal systems that will make the survivor know they can live without being in the shadow of the exploiter. Convince them exploiter is not a “God” to be above the law.

7. What do you think is most important in supporting people towards long- term recovery?

• Therapy is very important and very good.
• Got to go to the doctor and set themselves up if they have any problems, both mental and medical help.
• Protection from being re-exploited.
• Additional life skills to work and sustain themselves in the UK borders.
• Introduction to people in the community of other survivors who have embraced new way of life. They can guide and give hope to the new survivors of trafficking, exploitation and modern-day slavery.

Take action to stop people abusing other humans as a way to make money

8. Does this seem like a correct focus for the Strategy?

• Yes, very good. If they can stop it, it would be brilliant.
• Think it is correct.
• Yes, people are losing their lives through trafficking. If the government is proactive with measures against trafficking, lives will be saved.

9. Are there any organisations that need further training to help them recognise victims of trafficking?

• Very difficult to recognise people who are being trafficked unless they come to you and tell you their problem – you won’t really know them.
• The organisation that are supporting me are already doing a great job and looking after me well.
• People do need more training to recognise the signs and understand the victim, any organisation, like for example police, Migrant Help etc., as well as anyone working in this area.
• Tertiary learning institutions because there are many migrants who come as students.
• Human resource organisations and recruiting agencies ought to do enough background checks to prevent the companies they work from exploiting people, whether knowingly or unknowingly.

10. What more can the Scottish Government do to prevent or stop traffickers exploiting people?

• If they can have someone from that nationality working undercover with the police and secretly reporting on traffickers.
• Harsher punishment, more awareness of victims and traffickers named on the TV/posters.
• Communicate with the people who are newly coming into the country to get more information – people at the airports/ports, get more information to the people there. These people can recognise something more unusual.
• Work with foreign embassies to make other countries put measures in place that will create more job opportunities for a healthy work environment and lifestyle to its citizens without the need to travel to UK. Have diplomatic relations that guide these states on erecting companies; technology inventions that will employ the youths in their respective countries.

11. If you were able to send a message to the person responsible for the Scottish Government’s strategy on trafficking and exploitation, what would it be?

• If each country or nationality can get someone undercover to really know about trafficking – it will reduce the amount of trafficking, nobody will know that person is telling the police. That will be nice if they can do that. Very difficult to identify trafficking victims on the street.
• To give the traffickers a bigger punishment. If someone traffics someone from a different country to another country, nothing you can do other than give them punishment to scare the trafficking people.
• To give the victims more skills to learn and get some work instead of sitting and thinking in the house.
• As the government they can stop the human trafficking.
• No public funds to migrants make them vulnerable to the sponsors who bring them into the UK borders. Migrants are obliged to do everything the sponsors says since if they approach the local government, it will be highlighted that they are not citizens to receive government services.
• The conduct of charities by UK organisations operating abroad ought to be scrutinised to avert any dubious activities that could be taking advantage of the weak legal systems, currencies and unstable governance.

In addition to the targeted question responses from LEAP, the Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance Advisory Group (TAG) provided the below responses to the public survey outlined in Annex A.

Are you aware of Scotland’s Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy and its purpose?

No

Only became aware of strategy in 2022 as we were undertaking research for the TAG awareness raising presentation so know of it only because we were proactively searching for information for our presentation. Some members of the TAG still not really aware of the content of the Strategy.

The TAG felt that the statistics in the Strategy were not clear and not very outcome/achievement focussed e.g. limited statistics from Scottish Government and Police. Not much to draw on for our awareness raising presentation and not enough quantitative data to use.

Given the lack of survivor awareness of the Strategy we therefore do not have a clear understanding of its purpose.

Do you think people understand what is meant by human trafficking and exploitation?

No

We think there is still limited public awareness/knowledge and most people don’t think its happening in their communities. Not sure people know signs in less obvious cases or who to report concerns to. Survivors are scared to share with communities for fear of discrimination and prejudice e.g. being blamed for it and/or women being stereotyped. This means people don’t hear directly from survivors so think it is a myth in Scotland. People get shocked when they hear. Sometimes, to protect their “image” and not to cause others distress, survivors don’t disclose or fully tell their stories. People don’t know how to respond so they avoid or ignore or stereotype or lie (blame women).

Communities and families judge based on what they hear/myths/lies/stereotypes.

What do the terms mean to you?

TAG prefer “human trafficking and exploitation” as “modern slavery” makes you think of historical slavery or clear cases such as “sweatshops”. How does modern slavery reflect exploitative labour such as with the recruitment of “foreign” nurses and employment agencies taking extortionate “fees”. Modern slavery doesn’t reflect people in poverty needing to do things to survive and then being exploited due to their limited choices.

In Scotland, which industries/activities do you think might involve adults who are being trafficked/exploited?

Agriculture, factories/linework, restaurants, nail/hair salons, car washes, care homes/ home carers, so-called “sex industry”, construction, cannabis cultivation, shoplifting/petty crime, street beggars, fishing sector, live-in housekeepers with childcare/elder care responsibilities.

In Scotland, which industries/activities do you think might involve children who are being trafficked/exploited?

County lines, child sexual abuse/ pornography, cannabis cultivation, domestic servitude.

How confident would you feel in recognising signs of human trafficking and exploitation? (Scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being very confident?)

5. Very confident due to lived experience (all forms).

Where would you report concerns about someone you suspected of being a victim of human trafficking and exploitation?

Police, people like TARA, MS Helpline (there was limited awareness of the Modern Slavery and Exploitation Helpline – 3 out 4 haven’t heard of helpline – 1 saw advert)

How could a Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy best raise awareness of human trafficking and exploitation, both in professional networks and amongst the general public/society?

Support/fund/implement/mandate awareness raising in schools and training elsewhere which is realistic and shocking to ensure the message is heard.

Should the Scottish Government continue to report on an annual basis on progress in implementing the Strategy?

Very clear yes!

Is there an alternative approach to reporting on progress that would be more effective or meaningful? If so, what?

The TAG feel that this question would benefit from a focus group or more time for consideration but they think that there could be a few alternative approaches such as to make data tangible and outcome focussed and targets set for coming years. We should work to find creative ways for survivors to report on their experiences/progress as part of the strategy. Survivors should be the ones monitoring Scotland’s progress in its response.

Finally the TAG think that the knowledge of the strategy for those with lived experience and the general public awareness needs to be improved before they can answer on/give suggestions.