Browsing by Author "Mitts, Sandra"

This thesis analyses the international law on trafficking in human beings, and its implementation on national level in Finland. Trafficking in human beings consists of three elements, the act, means, and the purpose. This thesis focuses on the element of means, and more specifically on subtle and psychological means such as the “abuse of power or a position of vulnerability”. Trafficking has stereotypically been viewed as only including cases where violence or physical coercion have been used, when in fact, the traffickers often use psychological pressure and other subtle means in order to keep the victims in exploitative situations. The purpose of this thesis is therefore to shed light on the use of psychological means in trafficking, and to study how they have been understood both on international and national law concerning trafficking in human beings, and whether there is a gap between these understandings. The first part of the thesis covers international law on trafficking, and how the definition and object and purpose have developed throughout history. The main source for the international law on trafficking is the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (the ‘Trafficking Protocol’), which was adopted in 2000, and entered into force in 2003. Since the adoption of the Protocol, the understanding of the element of “means” has continued to develop, and the thesis will therefore look also at more current understandings on the means of trafficking. European regional legal frameworks on trafficking are also discussed briefly. The second part of the thesis then looks at how the international law on trafficking has been implemented and understood in Finland, both on a theoretical and practical level. The focus is on the Finnish Criminal Code and how it has defined trafficking and the element of “means”, as well as how the law has been understood in practice by the national courts. The second part looks at the developments of the national legislation on trafficking, and the discussions and criticism surrounding that. This is supplemented by a case law analysis with a focus on more recent case law on trafficking in Finland. Finland first adopted a definition on trafficking in human beings to its Criminal Code in 2004. A law amendment was made in 2015. The amendment was partly a reaction to criticism against the inadequate legal provision on trafficking and similar crimes from 2004. The aim of the amendment was to broaden the scope of protection of trafficking victims, and to make the criminal law provision more in line with international law on trafficking. The Finnish criminal law amendment from 2015 shows an increased understanding of international law and the elements of “means” of trafficking. This can also be noted in the case law of the national courts. However, there are still a few issues which could be noted both in the legal provisions as well as the interpretations of the courts. The thesis concludes that while improvements have been made with regard to understand the “means” of trafficking within the Finnish national legal systems, the situation is still not perfect. This has mainly been due to two different reasons. One being the dominant stereotype that prostitution would always include some type of coercion and abuse, meaning that cases of trafficking for sexual exploitation are often convicted as pandering, if no overt physical means have been used. The second reason is an overlap in the legal provisions on trafficking and usury, especially concerning subtle means, which leads to confusion as to what crime a specific case amounts to when it is a question between cases of usury and trafficking for forced labour.