International Law and Human Trafficking in Fragile and Conflict Affected Situations: The case of Palestine

Abstract

Human trafficking (HT) is a complex and multi-faceted phenomenon transgressing in the most egregious way an entire web of basic human rights. In 2015, HT was identified by the UN Security Council (UNSC) as a ‘serious crime’ and a threat to international peace and human security. Since the adoption in 2016 of the landmark UN resolution 2331 condemning HT in the context of armed conflict and post-conflict situations, trafficking in persons in all its forms has been more widely documented as a direct or indirect consequence of conflict and fragility. Empirical evidence suggests that HT is most likely exacerbated in fragile, migratory, and conflict contexts. Priority is often given to other humanitarian emergencies. The thesis focuses on HT in fragile and conflict affected situations (FCAS) and seeks to identify how the victims of HT can access adequate standards of protection. Even in conflict settings States remain the primary duty-bearers but are often unwilling or unable to comply with their legal obligations arising from the international legal framework addressing HT to provide human rights protection on the ground. The thesis examines the contribution as well as the interaction of international human rights, humanitarian, refugee, labour, criminal laws in protecting individuals against HT practices. The thesis identifies challenges in the implementation of the legal framework addressing HT and faced by States in fragile contexts. The research conducts an in-depth single case study which confirm generic challenges faced by FCAS identified in chapter 7 and investigate specific and unique challenges in the context of Palestine. The study examines the Palestinian legal framework and legal system, the role of Palestinian institutions, civil society organisations and external actors in the building of a harmonised rule of law, with the difficulties experienced regarding the domestic implementation of Palestine’s international human rights commitments. The findings of the research confirm that in the presence of conflict and instability associated with generic components of fragility applicable to other FACS examined in chapter 7, such as the absence of a stable rule of law, and more specifically in the case of Palestine, experiencing a complex legal system due to its plurality, linked to political uncertainties, the implementation of human rights and HT legislation are jeopardised and are not practically as well as judicially enforced. The thesis contributes in a modest way to understanding the practicalities of implementing a protective framework against HT in Palestine and possibly other conflict settings.