The Policy Recommendation for A Victim-Centered Approach in Human Trafficking Proceeding
- Siriluck Wiriyadee, Faculty of Criminology and Justice Administration, Rangsit University, Pathum Thani 12000, Thailand, siriluck.wi@gmail.com
- Thamavit Terdudomtham, Faculty of Criminology and Justice Administration, Rangsit University, Pathum Thani 12000, Thailand
Abstract
This research examines the challenges, the personal factors influencing the needs, and cooperation of human trafficking victims to develop policy recommendation for victim-centered proceedings. A mixed-methods approach was employed, incorporating a literature review, quantitative research through questionnaires, and qualitative in-depth interviews. The hypothesis posits that victims with different personal factors have distinct needs. The study population includes 85 victims of human trafficking between September 2023 and February 2024, while 20 key informants comprise psychologists, social workers from governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and law enforcement officials.
The findings indicated that victims with different personal factors mostly affect significantly different needs and cooperations. There is 8 needs which are not affected by personal factors, namely, need to seek compensation, freedom in shelter, being informed of the progression of the case, the defendant being aware of the victim’s suffering, being informed of the penalty of defendant, acknowledgment of legal proceedings, need for prevention of diseases or vaccinated, and need to express the opinion about the bail of the defendant. Factors that enhance victims’ cooperation in legal proceedings, found in quantitative research, include: (1) assurances from officials, (2) fulfillment of such assurances, (3) access to safe housing, and (4) a sense of security during testimony. Policy recommendations emerging from this research include: 1) Enhancing Sense of Security: Establishing safe environments by encouraging private sector involvement in shelter management and support services, creating secure spaces for victim interviews, strengthening witness protection laws, and ensuring victims do not encounter defendants unless necessary; 2) Streamlining Legal Procedures: Expediting legal proceedings by implementing a one-stop service model for human trafficking cases, appointing case managers to coordinate victim assistance, involving prosecutors in formulating investigative questions, and promoting pre-trial witness testimonies; and 3) Strengthening Victim Support Systems: Introducing forensic interviewers to handle case interviews professionally, increasing the number of interpreters to accommodate victims’ gender, linguistic, and national diversity, expanding the presence of psychologists and social workers, and equipping interpreters and law enforcement personnel with psychological training to mitigate victims’ emotional distress.
Keywords: Human trafficking, Victims, Legal Proceedings, Victim-centered approach, Policy Recommendation, Trauma-informed care
References
Altun, S., Abas, M., Zimmerman, C., Howard, L. M., & Oram, S. (2017). Mental health and human trafficking: responding to survivors’ needs. BJPsych international, 14(1), 21-23. https://doi.org/10.1192/S205647400000163X
Anti-Human Trafficking Act, B.E 2551, (2008). Retrieved from https://www.mol.go.th/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/02/ANTI-HUMAN-TRAFFICKING-ACT.pdf
Ben-Shahar, O., & Harel, A. (1996). The economics of the law of criminal attempts: a victim-centered perspective. University of Pennsylvania Law Review, 145(2), 299-351.
Bottoms, A., & Roberts, J. (2010). Hearing the victim: adversarial justice, crime victims and the state (Eds.). London, UK: Routledge.
Boukli, A., & Renz, F. (2019). Deconstructing the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender victim of sex trafficking: Harm, exceptionality and religion–sexuality tensions. International Review of Victimology, 25(1), 71-90. https://doi.org/10.1177/0269758018772670
Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2023). Human trafficking data collection activities: 2023. Retrieve from https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/human-trafficking-data-collection-activities-2023
Ceci, S. J., & Friedman, R. D. (2000). The suggestibility of children: scientific research and legal implications. Cornell Law Review, 86, 33.
Clawson, H. J., Small, K., Go, E., & Myles, B. (2003). Needs assessment for service providers and trafficking victims. Caliber Associates. Retrieve from https://ovc.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh226/files/pubs/OVC_Archives/sartkit/focus/culture-print.html
Department of Children and Youth, Thailand. (2022). Developmental stages of children. Retrieve from https://www.dcy.go.th/public/mainWeb/file_download/1664788646880-962257553.pdf
Ellison, L., & Munro, V. E. (2017). Taking trauma seriously: critical reflections on the criminal justice process. The International Journal of Evidence & Proof, 21(3), 183-208. https://doi.org/10.1177/1365712716655168
Emergency Decree Amending the Anti- Human Trafficking Аct, В.Е. 2551, (2019). Retrieved from https://www.mol.go.th/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/07/row-humantrafficking-eng-23april2019.pdf%20
European Court of Human Rights. (2019). Guide on article 6 right to fair trial (criminal limb). Retrieve from https://rm.coe.int/1680304c4e
Fohring, S. (2020). The risks and rewards of researching victims of crime. Methodological Innovations, 13(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/2059799120926339
Foucault, M. (1982). The Subject and Power. Critical Inquiry, 8(4), 777–795. https://doi.org/10.1086/448181
Goodey, J. (2008). Human trafficking: Sketchy data and policy responses. Criminology & Criminal Justice, 8(4), 421-442. https://doi.org/10.1177/1748895808096471
Greenbaum, J., Kaplan, D., Young, J., COUNCIL, O. C. A., Haney, S. B., Sirotnak, A. P., ... & Shapiro, A. (2023). Exploitation, labor and sex trafficking of children and adolescents: health care needs of patients. Pediatrics, 151(1), Article e2022060416. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2022-060416
Hamzani, A. I. (2019). The reorientation of criminal justice system to give protection to crime victims. International Journal of Scientific & Technology Research, 8(8), 192-199.
Hentig, H. V. (1948). The criminal & his victim; studies in the sociobiology of crime. Retrieve from https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1949-01866-000
International Organization for Migration. (2009). Guidelines for The Collection of Data on Trafficking in human beings, including comparable indicators. Retrieve from https://publications.iom.int/system/files/pdf/guidelines_collection_data_iomvienna.pdf
Janeja, M. K., & Bandak, A. (2018). (p. 232). Ethnographies of waiting: doubt, hope and uncertainty. New York, US: Bloomsbury Academic.
Lacey, N., & Pickard, H. (2019). A dual-process approach to criminal law: victims and the clinical model of responsibility without blame. Journal of Political Philosophy, 27(2), 229-251. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopp.12160
Lanongkan, A., & Inkarojrit, V. (2020). Emotional response to color and wall decoration of pediatric ward. Journal of Environmental Design, 7(2), 142-165.
Lindholm, J., Carlson, T., Djupsund, G., Högväg, J., & Strandberg, K. (2015). Citizens’ emotional and cognitive responses to focusing events–an experimental study. International Journal of Mass Emergencies & Disasters, 33(3), 407-427. https://doi.org/10.1177/028072701503300306
Lonsway, K. A., & Archambault, S. J. (2016). Understanding the neurobiology of trauma and implications for interviewing victims. Retrieved from https://evawintl.org/wp-content/uploads/2016-11_TB-Neurobiology.pdf
Mason, F., & Lodrick, Z. (2013). Psychological consequences of sexual assault. Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 27(1), 27-37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2012.08.015
Mbazira, C., & Mubangizi, J. C. (2014). The victim-centred approach in criminal prosecutions and the need for compensation: reflections on international approaches and the legislative and policy frameworks in Uganda and South Africa. Comparative and International Law Journal of Southern Africa, 47(2), 206-224.
McGrath, M. (2014). Psychological aspects of victimology. Forensic Victimology: Examining Violent Crime Victims in Investigative and Legal Context, 2, 207-251. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-408084-3.00008-9
National Institute of Justice. (2012). Annual report 2012. U.S. Retrieved from https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/244249.pdf
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). (2021). Applying gender-sensitive approaches in combating trafficking in human beings. Retrieve from https://www.osce.org/files/f/documents/7/4/486700_1.pdf
Reeves, H., & Dunn, P. (2010). The status of crime victims and witnesses in the twenty-first century. In Hearing the Victim (pp. 46-71). Willan.
Sangtongdee, U & Srichareon, M. (2022). Guidelines of child-friendly environmental design for police interrogation rooms. Journal of Criminology and Forensic Science, 8(1), 94–113.
SaweangPeuch, C. (2015). The effective solution of human trafficking problem. National Defense College: Bangkok. Retrieve from https://dric.nrct.go.th/Search/SearchDetail/289850
Schaffer, K. M., Evans, W. S., Dutcher, C. D., Philburn, C., & Henry, M. L. (2021). Counseling and script training in PPA. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 30(2), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1044/2021_AJSLP-20-00361
Shaw III, J. S., & McClure, K. A. (1996). Repeated postevent questioning can lead to elevated levels of eyewitness confidence. Law and Human Behavior, 20(6), 629-653. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01499235
Sigmon, J. N. (2008). Combating modern-day slavery: issues in identifying and assisting victims of human trafficking worldwide. Victims & Offenders, 3(2-3), 245-257. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564880801938508
Spohn, C. (2014). The non-prosecution of human trafficking cases: an illustration of the challenges of implementing legal reforms. Crime, Law and Social Change, 61(2), 169-178. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10611-013-9508-0
Thailand Prevention and Suppression of Human Trafficking Act (No.1) B.E. 2551. (2008). Retrieved from http:// library.siam-legal.com/thai-law/anti-trafficking-persons-act-penalties-sections-52-57/
Thailand Trafficking in Persons Procedural Act B.E.2559. (2016). Retrieved from https://oia.coj.go.th/th/file/get/file/20190212acd9b5de108f0158aa87de8daf24f01b161433.PDF
Turner, R. C., Mulvenon, S. W., Thomas, S. P., & Balkin, R. S. (2002). Computing Indices of Item Congruence for Test Development Validity Assessments. Proceedings of the SAS Users’ Group International Conference. SAS Users Group International
Turner, S. F., Cardinal, L. B., & Burton, R. M. (2017). Research Design for Mixed Methods: A Triangulation-Based Framework and Roadmap. Organizational Research Methods, 20(2), 243-267. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428115610808
U.S. Department of State. (2019). 2019 Trafficking in persons report: Thailand. Retrieved from https://th.usembassy.gov/th/our-relationship-th/official-reports-th/2019-trafficking-persons-report-thailand-th/
U.S. Department of State. (2020). 2020 Trafficking in persons report: Thailand. Retrieved from https://th.usembassy.gov/th/our-relationship-th/official-reports-th/2020-trafficking-persons-report-thailand-th/
U.S. Department of State. (2021). 2021 Trafficking in persons report: Thailand. Retrieved from https://th.usembassy.gov/th/our-relationship-th/official-reports-th/2021-trafficking-persons-report-thailand-th/
U.S. Department of State. (2022). 2021 Trafficking in persons report: Thailand. Retrieved from https://th.usembassy.gov/th/our-relationship-th/official-reports-th/2021-trafficking-persons-report-thailand-th/
U.S. Department of State. (2023). 2021 Trafficking in persons report: Thailand. Retrieved from https://th.usembassy.gov/th/our-relationship-th/official-reports-th/2021-trafficking-persons-report-thailand-th/
United Nations. (2024). Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. In Brill Nijhoff E-books (pp. 415–424). https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004681224
Viechtbauer, W., Smits, L., Kotz, D., Budé, L., Spigt, M., Serroyen, J., & Crutzen, R. (2015). A simple formula for the calculation of sample size in pilot studies. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 68(11), 1375-1379. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2015.04.014
Winrock International. (2020). Asia CTIP GESI toolkit. Retrieved from https://winrock.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Asia-CTIP-GESI-Toolkit-4.22.pdf
Witness Protection Act B.E. 2546, (2003). Retrieved from https://sherloc.unodc.org/cld/uploads/res/document/tha/2003/witness_protection_act_b_e__2546_html/Thailand_Witness_Protection_Act_BE_2546_2003.pdf

Indexed in


Search