In the literature on trafficking in India there is a crucial dearth of primary data and micro studies that could be used for vulnerability mapping of the source areas and for addressing the risk factors identified. The article is a small attempt to contribute to plugging the gap in the context of Andhra Pradesh, identified as a ‘hot spot’ in the literature. It is based on case studies of 78 women who had been trafficked from their places of origin in Anantapur district to metropolitan cities across India and who have since returned to their homes. The article attempts to identify the individual and family circumstances that contribute to trafficking, to highlight in particular the gendered vulnerabilities that set these women up for trafficking, and to capture the process of the trafficking experience. The case studies reported here point to the compelling urgency of interventions that will go beyond the forced/voluntary divide in trafficking and sex work.
Action Aid (n.d.). Intervention: Women in prostitution, trafficked persons and commercial sex workers. Unpublished report. Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh: Action Aid.
2.
Aghatise, E.2004 . Trafficking for prostitution in Italy. Violence against Women, 10(10), 1126–1155.
3.
Agrawal, A. (Ed.) 2006 . Migrant women and work. New Delhi: SAGE.
4.
Anderson, B., & Andrijasevic, R.2008 . Sex, slaves and citizens: The politics of anti-trafficking. Soundings, 40(2), 135–145.
5.
Andhra Pradesh State AIDS Control Organisation (APSACS) 2005 . HIV/AIDS in Andhra Pradesh: Situation and Response—A Report 2005. Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh: APSACS.
6.
Asian Development Bank. 2003 . Combating trafficking of women and children in South Asia: Regional synthesis paper for Bangladesh, India, and Nepal. Manila: Asian Development Bank.
7.
Bandyopadhyay, N.2008 . Streetwalkers show the way: Reframing the global debate on trafficking from sex workers’ perspectives. IDS Working Paper 309. Brighton, UK: Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex.
8.
Baruah, N. (n.d.). Trafficking in women and children in South Asia: A regional perspective. Kathmandu: Global Alliance against Trafficking in Women.
9.
Berman, J.2003 . (Un) popular strangers and crises (Un)bounded: Discourses of sex trafficking, the European political community and the panicked states of the modern state. European Journal of International Relations, 10(1), 105–117.
10.
Chattopadhyay, A., & McKaig, R.G.2004 . Social development of commercial sex workers in India: An essential step in HIV/AIDS prevention. AIDS Patient Care and STDs, 18(3), 159–168.
11.
Cockburn, A. (2006, February 13). Nick Kristof’s brothel problem. The Nation.
12.
Dandona, R., L. Dandona, G.A. Kumar, J.P. Gutierrez, S. McPherson, F. Samuels, S. Bertozzi and Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) and the Frontiers Prevention Project (FPP) Study Team. 2006 . Demography and Sex Work Characteristics of Female Sex Workers in India. BMC International Health and Human Rights, 6(5), 1–10.
13.
Davidson, J.1996 . The sex exploiter. Working Document for the World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, Stockholm. Retrieved from http://www.usemb.se/children/csec/2166.htm (accessed on 2 April 2009)
14.
D’Cunha, J.2002 . Trafficking in persons: A gender and rights perspective. New York: United Nations Expert Group on Trafficking in Women and Girls.
15.
Department of Women and Child Development (DWCD) 2006 . Networking/vigilance committees. Hyderabad: Government of Andhra Pradesh.
16.
Doezema, J.1998 . Forced to choose: Beyond the voluntary vs. forced prostitution dichotomy. In K. Kempadoo, & J. Doezma (Eds), Global sex workers: Rights, resistance and redefinition (pp. 34–50). New York: Routledge.
17.
Doezema, J.2002 . ‘Who gets to choose’? Coercion, consent, and the UN Trafficking Protocol. Gender and Development, 10(1), 20–27.
18.
Dworkin, A.1996 . Pornography. In S. Jackson, & S. Scott. (Eds), Feminism and sexuality (pp. 297–299). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
19.
Evans, C., & Bhattarai, P.2000 . Trafficking in Nepal: Intervention modes—A comparative analysis of anti-trafficking intervention approaches in Nepal. Kathmandu: Asia Foundation and New Delhi: Horizons Project Population Council.
20.
Farley, M.2004 . ‘Bad for the body, bad for the heart’: Prostitution harms women even if legalised or decriminalised. Violence against Women, 10(10), 1087–1125.
21.
Gajic-Veljanoski, O., & Stewart, D.E.2007 . Women trafficked into prostitution: Determinants, human rights and health needs. Transcultural Psychiatry, 44(3), 338–358.
22.
George, A., Vindhya, U., & Ray, S.2010 . Sex trafficking and sex work: Definitions, debates and dynamics—A review of literature. Economic and Political Weekly, 45(17), 64–74.
23.
Government of Andhra Pradesh and Centre for Economic and Social Studies. 2007 . Human Development Report 2007. Hyderabad: Government of Andhra Pradesh and Centre for Economic and Social Studies.
24.
Government of India. 2008 . India Country Report: To Prevent and Combat Trafficking and Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children and Women. Report prepared for the World Congress III Against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 2008. New Delhi: Ministry of Women and Child Welfare.
25.
Greenall, M.2007 . Review of the evidence base for an evidence-based policy on HIV programming with sex workers. Retrieved from http://www.plri.org/category/tags/hiv?page=5 (accessed on 31 March 2009)
26.
Huda, S.2006 . Sex trafficking in South Asia. International Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, 94(3), 374–381.
27.
Human Rights Watch. 1995 . Rape for profit: Trafficking of Nepali girls and women to India’s brothels. New York: Human Rights Watch.
28.
ILO. 2006 . The demand side of human trafficking in Asia: Empirical findings. Regional project on combating child trafficking for labour and sexual exploitation (TICSA-II). Bangkok: International Labour Organisation.
29.
International Centre for Research on Women and Centre for Economic and Social Studies. 2010 . Unpacking sex trafficking: Sex trafficking of women and girls in coastal Andhra Pradesh. Unpublished research report.
30.
Jana, S., Bandyopadhyay, N., Dutta, M.K., & Saha, A.2002 . A tale of two cities: Shifting the paradigm of anti-trafficking programmes. Gender and Development, 10(1), 69–79.
31.
Jayasree, A.K.2004 . Searching for justice for body and self in a coercive environment: Sex work in Kerala, India. Reproductive Health Matters, 12(23), 58–67.
32.
Jeffreys, S.2006 . The traffic in women: Human rights violation or migration for work. In A. Agrawal (Ed.), Migrant women and work (pp. 195–217). New Delhi: SAGE.
33.
Joffres, C., Mills, E., Joffres, M., Khanna, T., Walia, H., & Grund, D.2008 . Sexual slavery without borders: Trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation in India. International Journal for Equity in Health, 7(22), 1–11.
34.
Kapur, R.2002 . Collateral damage: Sacrificing legitimacy in the search for justice. Harvard International Review, 24(1), 42–46.
35.
Kempadoo, K., & Doezema, J.1998 (Eds). Global sex workers: Rights, resistance, redefinition. New York: Routledge.
36.
Mackinnon, C.1982 . Feminism, Marxism, method and the state. Signs, 7(1), 3–13.
37.
Madhusudana, B. (n.d.). Internal trafficking of women into sex work in India: Problems in rehabilitation and reintegration. Unpublished paper.
38.
Manohar, S.2002 . Trafficking in women and girls. Paper prepared for the Expert Group Meeting on Trafficking in Women and Girls, November, Glen Cove, New York.
39.
Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, National Human Rights Commission, and National Commission for Women. 2007. Integrated Plan of Action to Prevent and Combat Human Trafficking with Special Focus on Children and Women. Report by Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, National Human Rights Commission, and National Commission for Women, New Delhi.
40.
Misra, G., Mahal, A., & Shah, R.2000 . Protecting the rights of sex workers: The Indian experience. Health and Human Rights, 5(1), 88–115.
41.
Munro, V.E.2006 . Stopping traffic? A comparative study of responses to the trafficking in women for prostitution. The British Journal of Criminology, 46(2), 318–333.
42.
Nair, P.M.2010 . Human trafficking: Dimensions, challenges and responses. New Delhi: Konark Publishers.
43.
Network Against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation. 2007 . Trafficking in AP. Retrieved from http://www.traffickingap.org/profile.html (acessed on 31 March 2009)
44.
Parker, M.2006 . India’s other virus: Human trafficking and the spread of HIV. U.N. Chronicle, 2, 3–8.
45.
Pearson, E.2004 . GAPS analysis on intervention strategies against trafficking in women in Nepal. Kathmandu: OXFAM GB Nepal Programme.
46.
Prerana. 2007 . Rehabilitation of women victims of commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking. Comprehensive note prepared for circulation to members of various task groups of CAC, April.
47.
Project Parivartan. 2007 . Results of a cross-sectional survey of female sex workers in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh: A summary report. New Haven, Connecticut: Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS, Yale University.
48.
Reddy, B.K. (2006a). Rapid assessment of the existing situation of the Sugali in Anantapur district. Report submitted to the Director, Tribal Cultural Research and Training Institute, Hyderabad: TCRTI.
49.
Reddy, B.K. (2006b). Perspectives on women trafficking and health hazards in the Banjara tribal community of Andhra Pradesh, South India. Unpublished report.
50.
Registrar General of India. 2001 . Census of India. Delhi: Office of the Registrar General.
51.
Samuels, F., Pelto, P., Verma, R., & George, C.K.2006 . Social capital and HIV risk behaviour among female sex workers and men who have sex with men in Andhra Pradesh: Insights from quantitative and qualitative data. Horizons Research Update, 3(1), 1–10. Washington: Population Council.
52.
Sanders, T.2005 . ‘It’s just acting: Sex workers’ strategies for capitalising on sexuality. Gender, Work and Organisation, 12(4), 319–342.
53.
Saunders, P.2005 . Traffic violations: Determining the meaning of violence in sexual trafficking versus sex work. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 20(3), 343–360.
54.
Schauer, E.J., & Wheaton, E.M.2006 . Sex trafficking into the United States: A literature review. Criminal Justice Review, 31(2), 146–169.
55.
Segrave, M., & Milivojevic, S.2005 . Sex trafficking: A new agenda. Social Alternatives, 24(2), 11–16.
56.
Sen, S., & Nair, P.M.2004 . A report on trafficking in women and children in India 2001–2003: Volume 1. New Delhi: Institute of Social Sciences, National Human Rights Commission and UNIFEM.
57.
Shah, S.2006 . Producing the spectacle of Kamathipura: The politics of red light visibility in Mumbai. Cultural Dynamics, 18(3), 269–292.
58.
Sharma, R.2007 . Trafficking in women and children in India: A situational analysis in Maharashtra. International Journal of Criminal Justice Sciences, 2(2), 85–100.
59.
Silverman, J.G., Decker, M.R., Gupta, J., Maheshwari, A., Patel, V., Willis, B.M., & Raj, A.2007 . Experiences of sex trafficking victims in Mumbai, India. International Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, 97(3), 221–226.
60.
STOP (Stop Trafficking of People) 2005 . Combating trafficking of women and minors with the 4 ‘Rs’. New Delhi: STOP.
61.
Thapan, M.2006 . Series Introduction. In A. Agrawal (Ed.), Migrant women and work (pp. 7–17). New Delhi: SAGE.
62.
UNDP. 2007 . Human trafficking and HIV: Exploring vulnerabilities and responses in South Asia. Colombo, UNDP Regional Centre: UNDP Regional HIV and Development Program for Asia Pacific.
63.
United Nations. 2000 . Protocol to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons, especially women and children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against transnational organized crime. New York: United Nations.
64.
USAID. 2005 . Trafficking in persons: USAID’s response. Washington: U.S. Agency for International Development.
65.
USDOS. 2008 . Trafficking in persons. Country narratives: India. Washington: U.S. Department of State. Retrieved from www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2008/105388.html (accessed on 31 March 2009)
66.
Women, Health and Development Programme, Pan-American Health Organisation (n.d.). Trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation in the Americas. Washington, DC: World Health Organisation.
