Trafficking of Karamoja Women and Girls From North-Eastern Uganda into Nairobi, Kenya

Trafficking of Karamoja Women and Girls From North-Eastern Uganda into Nairobi, Kenya

Gachoki Beth Susan & Dr Isaiah Oduor Otieno
Department of International Relations, Conflict and Strategic Studies, Kenyatta University, Kenya

ABSTRACT

This study has examined the trafficking of Karamoja women and girls from North-Eastern Uganda into Nairobi, Kenya. Trafficking in human beings remains a big challenge confronting the international community. The menace remains a global problem with the countries of the Third World bearing the greatest brunt. In spite of the laws and policies enacted by different countries to curb the vice, human trafficking still persists. The Karamoja are a dominant pastoral and agro-pastoral ethnic community residing in the Karamoja sub-region in North Eastern Uganda. The Karamoja have for many years experienced instability and cross border conflict with their Kenyan and South Sudanese neighbors. Desperation created by conflict and poverty have made Karamoja women and girls to be vulnerable to human trafficking into neighboring countries, Kenya included. Thousands of Karamoja women and girls are trafficked each year into Nairobi Kenya to work as domestic servants with some ending up as commercial sex workers. This study has investigated the factors and motivation behind the trafficking of Karamoja women from North Eastern Uganda into Kenya. The forms of labor performed by trafficked Karamoja women and girls in Kenya have been examined. Anchored on the integrated theoretical approach this study argued that the benefits and profits from human trafficking coupled with the low risk of arrest contribute greatly to the prevalence of the vice. The situation is further fuelled by economic and socio-cultural attitudes towards the trafficking of Karamoja women for domestic labor and sexual services.  This study adopted an explanatory research design. The study relied on both primary and secondary data. Simple purposive sampling and snow balling sampling techniques were employed to identify informants for the study. Qualitative and quantitative data interpretation and analysis techniques were employed. This study found out that the main causes of the trafficking of Karamoja omen from north eastern Uganda into Kenya included; poverty, war and conflict, culture and gender discrimination, illiteracy and lack of awareness on women rights and high demand for domestic and sexual services in countries of destination. The main forms of labor performed by migrant women and girls were identified as domestic work and sexual labor.

INTRODUCTION

Human trafficking is motivated by exploitation and profit making. In some cases human trafficking is voluntary as the trafficked person takes the initiative and pay in order to reach their dream countries with the aim of improving their economic well-being. Whether voluntary or non-voluntary we must concur that in either case the traffickers through fraudulent employment bureaus fake promises of economic opportunities to lure and trick their victims.

Fiona David et al (2019) address the nexus between voluntary labor migration and human trafficking for labor. They argue that both voluntary labor migration and trafficking for labor are forms of modern slavery. Accordingly modern slavery as they term it while not adequately and comprehensively defined in law serves as a denominator between human trafficking, forced labor and slavery. They conclude that the three are all situations of exploitation since the victims have no choice and neither are they in a position to leave or refuse their exploitative situations because of existing threats, blackmail and violence.

In the year 2000 the UN Trafficking Protocol was signed paving way for implementation of anti-trafficking laws, policies and a number of initiatives within states, between states and also between regions. Consequently there has been growing interest in global anti-trafficking efforts that has involved several organizations, networks and agencies. Such networks have involved the national and international police, immigration authorities, religious groups, feminist groups, trade unions and human rights groups. In spite of such efforts, human trafficking remains rampant throughout the world. Its persistence globally must be addressed.

South East Asia is recognized internationally as a ‘hotspot’ for human trafficking. Betz (2009) compares human trafficking in three South East Asian countries of Cambodia, Indonesian and Thailand. In a comparative analysis the three countries anti-trafficking laws, Betz concludes that such policies have been ineffective in curbing dealing trafficking in human beings across borders. Berz criticizes universal application anti-human trafficking laws and policies which in the long run fail to address the peculiar and specific conditions in the three countries (Ibid, 2009).

In the same vein Beyrer (2002) notes that in as much as Thailand’s trafficking in humans has mostly been associated with sex tourism industry, the steady growth of industries has given rise to an increase in labor trafficking. In terms of policy formulation of anti-trafficking laws Beyrer concludes that although Thailand has made strides in curbing sex trafficking it has scored poorly on issues of labor trafficking which has remained rampant and unregulated. For anti-trafficking policies to be effective specific governments must come up with polices that address the unique circumstances within their territories. There is need to address both universal and specific concerns for such laws to be effective.

UNHRC (2012/2013) takes note of the exploitation of mass migrants from the Horn of Africa through the sea to the coast of Yemen. Investigations indicate that the Yemeni smuggling groups are the ones responsible for the exploitation. These migrants a majority of whom come from Ethiopia, are coerced to part with huge sums of ransom are tortured and also sexually assaulted. The use of children as soldiers is also reported as they are lured with promises financial rewards and bright future. The causes to join armed groups are identified as family reasons or poverty and mistreatment by relatives.

Human trafficking between North Africa and the Middle East has been identified as a major problem. Dudley (2014) identifies two reasons that make the study in trafficking of human beings a challenge in the Middle East.  These include discrepancy in defining the region and inaccurate information on human trafficking. On many occasions victims are punished rather than being helped simply because they are considered illegal migrants. The various forms of trafficking in human beings identified in North Africa and the Middle East include forced labor, domestic service, child trafficking and sex trafficking (Ibid, 2014).

Trafficking of migrant workers has been a feature of human trafficking in the Middle East. Migrant worker from Africa and Asia have flocked the Middle East in search of economic opportunities in forms of better paying jobs. Most of these migrant unknowingly find themselves working as forced labors earning very low salaries. In addition to the low wages and poor working conditions migrant workers are forced to service debts from their high cost of travel and accommodation.

In South Africa Adepoju (2005) documents of two forms of forced labor and exploitation sexually. This author notes that boys are trafficked for street vending, food service and farms work whereas young girls are trafficked for domestic service and commercial sex.  At times children are provide free labor in farms return for accommodation and food. Political conflict, economic instability and gender inequality are identified as the main causes of trafficking in human beings in the region (Ibid, 2005).

According to a report by IOM (2004) human trafficking has been prevalent in the Eastern Africa region. The report notes that the likelihood of an individual to be trafficked depends on among factors such as socio-economic factors, gender of the person, education level, employment and personal aspiration and family profile. Industries, mining sectors, domestic service and commercial sex work were identified as high demand sectors for migrant labor. Ritual purposes, forced marriage and military service to a later extend were destination choices for human trafficking (IOM, 2004). Although the Eastern African region is affected by both domestic and international trafficking there is need to understand the changing dynamics in human trafficking and labor migration.

Human trafficking occurs between Kenya and neighboring Uganda. This paper is particularly interested in examining human trafficking from North Eastern Uganda in to Kenya. The Karamoja or Karamojong are plain Nilotes who originally migrated from South Sudan and settled in the North East of Uganda. The Karamoja are predominantly pastoralist who have for decades being in conflict with their neighbors for water and pasture and occasionally raid one another for cattle. An observable pattern has been the trafficking of the Karamoja from north East Uganda to urban centers in Kenya especially the capital city of Nairobi for domestic service and commercial sex work. This has been happening in spite of existing laws in both countries to curb the menace.

Statement of the Problem

Human trafficking remains a global problem with countries of the Third World being most affected. Millions of people around the world have been victims of this vice which in most cases has robbed them of their human dignity. Poverty, war and conflict, cultural discrimination against women, illiteracy and a lack of awareness of women’s rights make women and girls to be vulnerable to human trafficking. The strong demand for domestic and sex services in the host countries coupled with weak legislations, lack of slow prosecution of offenders and corrupt immigration personnel makes the vice to flourish. Due to their unlawful status in the host nations, migrant domestic and sex workers become vulnerable to exploitation, physical, psychological, and sexual abuse. Migrants in most cases work through irregular channels which exposes them to economic exploitation. In spite of the fact that migrant workers make a positive socio-economic contribution to the host countries in providing labor for tasks that the local people despise they continue to face discrimination, violence and labor rights violations. This is especially true of women and girls. Migrant workers are dislocated from family, society and community support structures, do not have legitimate employment, have no legal status and have no social protection.

The challenges associated with human trafficking called for measures to be taken to curb the crime. This resulted in the signing of the UN Trafficking Protocol in the year 2000. Consequently anti-trafficking laws, policies and a number of initiatives within states, between states and also between regions were implemented. Although individual states came up with policies aimed at combatting the growing human trafficking menace. However the effectiveness of these laws and policies raises questions. In spite of the above efforts a number of countries are yet to fully comply despite being signatories to international protocols on human trafficking. This has led to the persistence of human trafficking globally. It is against this problem that this study has examined trafficking of Karamoja women and girls from north eastern Uganda into Nairobi, Kenya. The factors and motivations towards human trafficking and forms of labor performed by trafficked women and girls have been addressed.

REVIEW of RELATED LITERATURE

Human trafficking is listed as one of the 21st century’s greatest worldwide concerns by the UN. According to reports, this problem affects up to four million people (UN, 2000). Raymond (2002) and Emmers (2004), document of human trafficking being a serious concern in Southeast Asia. They estimate that an estimated 200,000 women and fall victim to human trafficking annually.

Davis and Snyman (2005) acknowledge the existence of a variety of factors that contribute to human trafficking. They argue that the causes of human trafficking vary greatly from region to region and country to country. They add that some of these factors cut across regions and countries.  Langa) (2014) notes that poverty; conflict, natural disasters, and a desire for a better life are the main motivators of human trafficking in East Asia.

Betz (2009) addresses the global root causes of human trafficking. The author identifies globalization, poverty, sex tourism, women’s rights, and low educational levels around the world as universal causes. Accordingly poverty as the main cause of trafficking forces women and girls to cross borders, either freely or involuntarily, in an effort to improve their financial circumstances (Ibid, 2009). However, poverty is not the main driver of immigration to other countries. Poverty interacts with other factors which include the process of globalization that has subsequently eliminated physical boundaries between states hence increasing travel and immigration.

Samarasinghe (2003), documents of globalization being a strong contributory factor to global human trafficking. This assertion can however be contested by the existence of different forms of human trafficking throughout history primarily targeting women and girls. Globalization is a recent phenomenon only emerging in the twentieth century as compared to human trafficking which has existed since the dawn of time. Since the fifteenth century AD, people have been transported as slaves.

It should be noted that in the context of globalization human trafficking has taken on a new dimension. Although globalization is not the primary cause of human trafficking has accelerated the evil by erasing national boundaries. Globalization has acted to facilitate the physical travel of persons being trafficked by removing strict border controls. The process of globalization it must be accepted has catalyzed human trafficking by significantly increasingly and amplifying the vice. This study assessed the process of globalization as a factor and motivation towards the trafficking of Karamoja women and girls to Nairobi, Kenya.

There is no one specific origin of the vice as several factors help to create the environment that encourages trafficking. However the vulnerability of the potential victims to exploitation is the common denominator among all the contributing variables to human trafficking. The above sentiments were tested to establish the vulnerability and prevalence of Karamoja women and girls to trafficking.

IOM (2004), reports that a majority of women trafficked end up being employed in the domestic sector. Other sectors include commercial sex work, industries and mining. In South Eastern Asia, Berz (2009) concurs but in spite of the prevalence of sex industry, the majority of women work in the domestic services industry. The author attempts to distinguish between forced labor and sex trafficking as the two different categories of human trafficking in the South Eastern countries of Cambodia, Indonesia, and Thailand. This is done based on the types of traffickers, destinations, strategies used, and reasons why they are trafficking victims, this author makes this distinction (Ibid, 2009). In spite of this, the majority of women work in the domestic services industry.

According to Castles and Miller (2003) the Gulf region remains the largest global destination for migrant workers from South Eastern Asia. Most of the women migrant workers destined to the Middle East end up performing domestic services. Likewise Jureidini, (2009) and Liebelt (2011) attribute increased demand for domestic help from South Eastern Asian nations, particularly the Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Indonesia to the quick increase in oil earnings. They argue that labor migration to the Middle East was triggered by huge inequalities in wealth between the region and other regions of the developing world attributed to the oil boom of the early 1970s.

Oish (2005) and Moukarbel, (2009) identify the Gulf region as the largest destination globally for migrant workers female workers from African countries. For many years the Middle East has hosted millions of domestic servants mostly from Africa. Most of the estimated 7.4 million migrants mainly women serve as domestic workers (Oish, 2005). There has been an upsurge in the number of migrant domestic workers from various African nations during the past 20 years. Thousands of Kenyan women migrate to the Middle East to take up employment as domestic servants.

The feminization of migrant labor in the Middle East is clear as women make up the majority of migrant labor workers in that region.  The duties of female migrant workers in the Middle East include cleaning, cooking, taking care of young children and the elderly, as well as carrying out other caring tasks as required by their employers. This study interrogated the reasons why Karamoja women and girls did not constitute a substantial part of female labor migration to the Middle East.

Adepoju’s (2005) attributes the strong demand for domestic labor in South Africa to the steady growth of the middle class in urban areas. Because of their busy schedules, educated women in the country have to hire other women to help with household chores. Employing migrant women was less expensive for women employers since their labor was affordable and easily accessible. In Senegal the IOM (2012) documents that migration movements have been part of West Africa’s history and sociology of daily life for many years which occurs at local, cross-border, and sub-regional level. Accordingly a majority of young girls are employed as house helps. Within the contemporary capitalist globalization migrant domestic labor emerges as the most vulnerable. They are poorly paid, work long hours and are exposed to physical and sexual abuses. The exploitation and abuse of female domestic migrant workers of Karamoja origin was examined by this study.

Commercial sex work has been documented by several scholars as a popular sector for female unskilled migrant workers globally. ILO (1998) report in Southeast Asia notes that the prostitution industry has expanded so quickly in recent years that it now resembles a commercial sector and makes a sizable contribution to the region’s jobs and GDP. Lim (1998) attributes the growth of the sex market in Thailand to international factors. Bertz (2009) relates the growth of commercial sex work in Southeast Asia to internal and international migration. The author notes of a strong relationship between the growth of commercial sex and population movements. Population movements and urbanization were tested in their role in the growth of prostitution in the capital city of Nairobi.

Dudley (2014) identifies sex trafficking as a rampant practice in the trafficking of women and girls from North Africa to the Middle East. The author adds that the existence of flourishing sex industry in the Islamic dominated Middle East remains questionable considering the strict Islamic laws that outlaw the practice. Adepoju (2005) in South Africa documents of the trafficking young girls for commercial sex. The author adds that young girls who have mostly migrated from Botswana are recruited into prostitution. Commercial sexual labor as a form of labor performed by Karamoja women and girls in Nairobi was assessed. The vulnerability of these migrant commercial sex workers was examined.

Theoretical Framework

This study was informed by the integration theoretical approach in explaining the prevalence of human trafficking in East Africa. As a theoretical frame work integration involves merging concepts from different disciplines and fields to explain crime which in this case is human trafficking. Brown & Geis (2007) and Lanier & Henry (2010) theory of integration proceeds by combining and blending the best elements of existing theories for a better explanation of the causes of a criminal behavior. Integration as a theoretical frame-work will be used here to explain human trafficking of women and girls for labor and sexual exploitation.

The integrated theoretical approach is borrowed from Bruckett and Parent (2002) who employed the theory in a study of women trafficked for involuntary prostitution. The two authors concluded that human trafficking cut across diverse institutions whose systematic operations are entwined into a multitude of activities. This being the case it is only through a combination of theories that human trafficking can be fully understood (Ibid, 2002). Accordingly human trafficking should not be classified as a single-dimensional type of crime. Van Impe (2000) emphasizes that the integrated theoretical approach goes beyond the mere description of the processes, practices, and routes of human trafficking to include factors that enable human trafficking to occur. Such factors vary and are interdependent and interconnected. Three related theories will be integrated in this study namely; Rational choice theory, economic theory, constitutive theory and demand theory.

According to rational choice theory persons engaged in human trafficking are motivated by profits. Being rational actors, perpetrators and organizers of human trafficking make rational decisions to commit the crime based on the associated cost (risks) and benefits (rewards) generated by the act. The argument here is that human trafficking is profitable where the risks of being arrested are low and non-profitable where risks are high. Based on the above arguments human trafficking is rife and profitable where culprits are rarely arrested, prosecuted and sentenced for crimes committed. Weak laws, ineffective criminal justice and poor community response to human trafficking allows perpetrators to generate high financial proceeds from the crime.

Related to the rational choice theory is the economic theory which explains crimes, actions and behavior that calculate the gains and benefits from engaging in a particular task. Accordingly human beings take decisions to offend in ways similar to decisions made about their non-criminal activities (Witt & Witte 2002). It is postulated here that a person might engage in a criminal activity if the expected gains from illegal work outweigh those from legal work. Criminals in this case engage in crime because they have perceived the benefits from the crime to outweigh the possibility of being prosecuted and incurring costs.  Arguing in favor of the economic theory in explaining prevalence of criminal activities, Pratt (2008) postulates that, persons apply legal or illegal actions because of the expected utility from those acts Such persons accordingly are influenced by the fact that the possibility of the expected gains from crime relative to earnings from legal work accentuates trafficking endeavors. The lesser the punishment the more human trafficking progresses. The probability of being apprehended prosecuted and sentenced and the value of the expected punishment determine the extent of the crime. Perpetrators of human trafficking remain successful in large part because the probability of being caught is low.

The third theory to be integrated in this study will be the constitutive theory. The constitutive theory postulates that power and equality build socially constructed differences through which harm and deprivation is imposed on the subordinated group. To put it candidly, Lanier and Henry (2004) argue that the interconnectedness of societies determines the types of crimes that are likely to be committed in specific geographical locality. They add that criminals as excessive investors in crime would use all means necessary to achieve the desired outcomes. The victim in this case is often the disabled party who experiences pain, loss and denied humanity (Ibid, 2004).

As intercontinental trade agreements become a profitable way of conducting business, relations between countries expand. International trade in this case eliminates physical boundaries between countries. The process of globalization has in the 21^st Century increased immigration, traveling and tourism opportunities. Consequently power and inequality, interconnectedness, investment in crime and loss and pain experienced by victims during the perpetration of human trafficking have become identifiable variables important to build an integrated theoretical framework. The constitutive cultural and structural contexts within which potential victims emanate are important in explaining victim vulnerability to human traffickers.

Demand theory will be the Third theory to be integrated .Demand is simply s relation showing the quantities of a good that consumers are willing and able to buy at various prices per period. Hughes (2004) applied the demand theory in understanding demand for sexual services. Consequently the author classifies demand for prostitutes into three categories; users or purchasers of sex, profiteers from selling sex, and socio-cultural attitudes towards sex.  Persons who pay prostitutes for sexual services are the users while brothel owners are the economic beneficiaries. The same can be applied to demand for labor services in host countries.

The integrated theoretical framework was employed in this study in the case of human trafficking for labor and sexual services. It is argued here that users or purchasers, profiteers and socio-cultural attitudes contribute towards human trafficking of Karamoja women for labor or sexual services from Northern Eastern Uganda into Kenya.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This study took the form of explanatory research design. In this case the main factors and motivations behind the trafficking of Karamoja women into Kenya were unveiled. The forms of labor undertaken by Karamoja women and girls were also examined. This study was located in Nairobi County which doubles as the capital city of Kenya. Nairobi County has eight administrative divisions namely; Mathare, Westlands, Starehe, Dagoreti, Langata, Makadara, Kamkunji and Embakasi. Two Areas Eastleigh and Majengo within Kamukunji Division were selected for interviews by virtue of having high number of migrant women and girls from the neighboring country of Uganda. Purposive and snowballing sampling techniques were used to select respondents for interviews as represented in the table below.

The main research instruments for this study comprised questionnaires and interviews schedules with both closed and open ended questions. Interview guides comprised of open ended questions to give the respondents room to respond to questions without much restriction. Questionnaires were semi-structured and composed of closed ended question. Data collected in this study was analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively.

FACTORS AND MOTIVATIONS BEHIND TRAFFICKING OF KARAMOJA WOMEN AND GIRLS FROM NORTHERN UGANDA INTO KENYA

This study interrogated the factors and motivations behind trafficking of Karamoja women and girls. The contributory factors were divided into two broad categories namely; Primary (Individual) and Secondary (Institutional) factors. The main causes were poverty, war and conflict, cultural discrimination against women, illiteracy and a lack of awareness of women’s rights, as well as the strong demand for domestic and sex services in the target countries. Secondary causes on the other hand included; weak legislations, lack of slow prosecution of offenders and corrupt immigration personnel.

This study reported of poverty as the main driver to the trafficking of Karamoja women and girls trafficking form northern Uganda to Kenya. Poverty was found to make victims vulnerable to traffickers by depriving them of economic resources. As result of poverty women and children lacked access to basic services, had financial insecurity, were disempowered and lacked the ability to face life with confidence. It is argued here that the main fertile areas for traffickers to recruit victims for exploitation are the economic deprivation of poor people. Vulnerable populations are duped to migrate with the target of improving their economic opportunities abroad. The above findings concur with a UNICEF (2005) report that decries the level into which impoverished people from Africa are recruited and sold out for exploitation.

The role played by war and conflict in increasing the vulnerability of women and girls has been amplified (Adepoju, 2005; Punam, 2018). Human trafficking is substantially more likely to occur in environments with political instability, militarism, civil unrest, internal armed conflict, and natural disasters. Migrants who are fleeing economic troubles brought on by violence or political upheaval become targets when traffickers are looking for victims to recruit. For a very long period, violence and conflict have existed in North Eastern Uganda. The Lord’s Resistance Army and Ugandan government forces engaged in a civil war that lasted for more than two decades.

Some cultural practices in patriarchal African societies expose women to human trafficking. Like other patriarchal African society the Karamoja place low value on girls as opposed to boys. Women in comparison to men do not enjoy the same rights. Compared to males and boys, women and girls are more at risk of being trafficked as a result of this devaluation. This study noted that patriarchy and the resultant deep-rooted practices of gender discrimination among the Karamoja creates a cultural climate where trafficking of women and girls is perceived as morally accepted. Traditional culture and customs such as early marriages further expose women and girls to trafficking.

A majority of the women and girls interviewed lacked formal education. With low education trafficked women relied on recruiting agents with promises of decent and well-paying employment. The victims not being well informed of the dangers involved found themselves in situations that they could not escape from. Education creates awareness to the rights of women to would be victims of human trafficking.

The high demand for domestic and sexual labor in host countries was also identified by this study as a factor and motivation towards the trafficking of women and girls in to Kenya. The prevalence of human trafficking in Kenya was also found to be influenced by secondary or institutional factors which included; weak legislations, lack or slow prosecution of offenders and corrupt immigration personnel

FORMS OF LABOR PERFORMED BY TRAFFICKED KARAMOJA WOMEN AND GIRLS IN NAIROBI, KENYA

This section looked at the types of labor done by Karamoja women and girls who had been trafficked into Nairobi, Kenya. This study identified domestic labor, sexual labor, employment as hawkers and in shops and self- employed in small scale businesses. This is illustrated in the table and chart below.

Out of the 80 women interviewed 60 representing 75% were engaged as domestic servants. Ten (10) representing 12.5% worked in the sexual industry while 4 representing 5% were employed as hawkers and in shops. Three (3) of the interviewed had made savings and were able to establish small scale businesses. Three (3) out of the 80 interview responded that they were searching for employment.

The findings of this study support the argument that domestic service accounts for the significant part of migrant labor globally. IOM (2004), reports that although industries, mining sectors and commercial sex work as the high demand sectors for migrant labor globally, a majority of women trafficked end up being employed in domestic service. Betz (2009) distinguishes forced labor and sex trafficking as the two different categories of human trafficking in a comparative study of Cambodia, Indonesia, and Thailand in South Eastern Asia. Based on the types of traffickers, destinations, strategies used, and reasons why they are trafficking victims, this author makes this distinction (Ibid, 2009). In spite of this, the majority of women work in the domestic services industry.

This study documented instances of physical and sexual abuse as well as exploitation of women and girls working as domestic helpers. This ranged from poor and delayed or withheld pay, working for long hours, and physical, verbal and sexual abuse. Some domestic servants were kept in doors with restricted communication with neighbors and relatives. Others worked daily and for long hours with no day off. Food was in some cases rationed. Some employers took employees identifications for ‘safekeeping’ though it is really about holding workers hostage. This makes it difficult for them to leave if they are not happy with their employer’s conditions.

This study noted that most of the women and girls who joined commercial sex work did that out of desperation. It was stated that returning to their own nation was not an option after running away from harsh and exploitative employers. Some women turned to their friends for advice who introduced them to prostitution. A majority of sex workers interviewed lived in informal settlements which are densely populated like Majengo slums.

Sex workers interviewed lamented on the hardships they went through during the government lockdown to curb the spread of Covid 19. They noted that they suffered acute loss of income with the restriction on movement, closing of bars and placement of curfews. Unlike the local women who could bring clients to their homes the immigrant sex workers were disadvantaged as they shared dwellings with their ‘sisters’ which made the option impossible. They could not visit their clients’ homes for fear of being taken advantage of basically because they were foreigners. The number of customers wanting to buy sex dropped dramatically as most clients were fearful of catching the virus.

CONCLUSION

This study unveiled a number of contributory factors and motivations behind trafficking of Karamoja women and girls. Primary (individual) and Secondary (institutional) contributing elements were separated into two major categories. The main causes were poverty, war and conflict, cultural discrimination against women, illiteracy and a lack of awareness of women’s rights, as well as the strong demand for domestic and sex services in the target countries. Secondary causes on the other hand included; weak legislations, lack of slow prosecution of offenders and corrupt immigration personnel.

The forms of labor performed by trafficked Karamoja women and girls in Nairobi, Kenya were assessed. This study identified domestic labor, sexual labor, employment as hawkers and in shops and self- employed in small scale businesses. The findings of this study support the argument that domestic and sex services account for the significant part of migrant labor globally.  Due to their unlawful status in the nation, domestic and sex workers have been proven to be more susceptible to exploitation, physical, psychological, and sexual abuse.

REFERENCES

1. Adepoju, A. (2005). “Review of research and data on human trafficking in sub-Saharan Africa” (PDF). International Migration. 43 (1–2): 75–98.
2. Beyrer, Chris. (2001) “Accelerating and Disseminating Across Asia.” The Washington Quarterly 24, no. 211-225.
3. Betz, Diana L. (2009)  Human trafficking in Southeast Asia causes and policy implications Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School
4. Bruckett, C., & Parent, C. (2002). Trafficking in human beings and organized crime: A literature Review. Ottawa, ON, Canada: RCMP. [O] Avaialble:http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca Assessed 14/03/2008.
5. Castles, S., and Miller, M.J., 2003. The Age of Migration: International Population Movements in the Modern World. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
6. Davis, L., & Snyman, R. (2005). Victimology in South Africa. Van Schaik.
7. Dudley S. (2014) Human Trafficking in the Middle East and North Africa Region.
8. Hughes, M. D. (2004). Best practices to address the demand side of sex trafficking. Rhode Island: University of Rhode Island.
9. IOM Human Trafficking in Eastern Africa: (2004).Research Assessment and Baseline Information in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, and Burundi.
10. ______________ (2012) Migration of Girls in West Africa: The Case of Senegal. ACP. Secretariat
11. Jureidini, R., 2009. In the Shadows of Family Life: Toward a History of Domestic Service in Lebanon. Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies, 5(3), pp. 74–101.
12. Langa, P. 2014 (Juta publications). Retrieved July 29, 2016, from http://www.iol.co.za/geneeral/news/newsprint.php?art_id=nw20071019133658452C91 [Google Scholar]
13. Lanier, M., & Henry, S. (2010). Essential Criminology. 3rd edition. United States of America: Westview Publishers.
14. Lim Lean ed., (1998) The Sex Sector: The Economic and Social Bases of Prostitution in Southeast Asia (Switzerland: International Labor Organization, No, 6.
15. Liebelt, C., 2011. Caring for the “Holy Land”: Filipina Domestic Workers in Israel. New York: Berghahn.
16. Moukarbel, N., 2009. Sri Lankan Housemaids in Lebanon: A Case of “Symbolic Violence” and “Everyday Forms of Resistance.” Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.
17. Oishi, N., 2005. Women in Motion: Globalization, State Policies, and Labor Migration in Asia. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
18. Pratt, T.C. (2008). Rational Choice Theory, Crime Control Policy, and Criminological Relevance. Journal unknown, 7(1), 43-52.
19. Punam Shashi (2018) Human Trafficking: Causes and implications. Career Point University, Hamirpur Himachal Pradesh.
20. Samarasinghe V. (2003) “Confronting Globalization in Anti-Trafficking Strategies in Asia,” Brown Journal of World Affairs, vol. 10, no. 1, 93.
21. Van Impe, K. (2000). ‘People for sale’: The need for a multi-disciplinary approach towards human trafficking. International Migration, Special Issue, 2000 (1):113-131.
22. Witte, A.D., & Witt, R. (2002). Crime Causation: Economic Theories. In Encyclopedia of Crime and Justice, 1 (302-308) New York: Macmillan.