ACT Alberta, an anti-trafficking organization based in Edmonton, says that they’re seeing a significant rise in reported human trafficking cases each year.

• Up to 60% of the cases they come across involve sex trafficking and the rest have elements of labour trafficking
• About 20% of the sex trafficking cases involve Aboriginal women

Andrea Bukhardt, the executive director of ACT Alberta, believes that more victims may be coming forward because of increased awareness, especially amongst health care professionals.

Read the full CBC article here.

OUR TAKE:

• While on the surface it may appear alarming that human trafficking cases being reported are doubling each year, the key word to keep in mind is reported. The fact that victims are coming forward and people are spotting warning signs means that awareness programs and training in various sectors is working.

• This is one of the challenges when trying to measure levels of human trafficking. Plenty of trafficking could be happening even if no one reports it. Once cases begin to come forward, it could mean (a) a rise in trafficking levels or (b) effectiveness in victim outreach and public awareness.

• In this case, the rise in numbers is believed to be a good sign. Great to hear that awareness efforts in Alberta are having an impact.

Feature photo: By Darren Kirby, Creative Commons via Wikimedia Commons