When it comes to human rights violations, trafficking is a serious issue that can have very serious consequences for the victim. Social workers and shelter workers working with victims must therefore be aware of the serious and individual health consequences of trafficking.

 

Customers can cause serious harm to people in prostitution

 

Physical consequences

Discomfort in the lower abdomen, including pain during intercourse, discharge, itching, irritation and abrasions. Women in prostitution also often experience pelvic inflammatory disease and osteoarthritis in the back and elbows. Physical injuries can also include broken bones, concussions, bruises, burns or other injuries after assault. Some of these serious injuries can cause lasting health problems and require long-term treatment.

 

Psychological consequences

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety disorders – including anxiety about other people – decreased sexual desire, low self-esteem, difficulty forming close emotional bonds with others, especially men, self-loathing, guilt and depression.

 

Social consequences

Social isolation, stigmatization and loneliness. Many withdraw from family and friends because they fear being exposed or because they feel shame.

 

Women who have been trafficked have often been subjected to multiple abuses over a long period of time, and therefore may suffer from the same health consequences that victims of prolonged torture suffer from.

 

Sexual assault

Sexual assault is a violent traumatic experience for the victim that affects the victim physically and emotionally. Sexual assault is any sexual activity between two or more people where at least one person is involved against his or her will.

 

The sexual activity associated with an assault can include many different unpleasantnesses, such as unwanted restraints, humiliation or forced intercourse, oral sex, anal sex or penetration with an object.

 

Victims are often provided by perpetrators who pressure women into engaging in sexual activities using threats, bribery, gross manipulation, or while the woman is under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The sexual assaults cause the women to experience a range of physical consequences and emotional reactions, including severe stress and depression.

 

It can take many years to recover from being a victim of trafficking, if the women ever manage to move on in life.