Human trafficking is one of the profitable illegal business worldwide where a body trafficked person is useful alive or dead.
That is according a Social Auxiliary Worker Annah Molea, from Khuluma Family Counselling, a non-profit organization working with trafficked persons in the Tshwane Region.
Molea was speaking during an event organised by the Gauteng Department of Social Development educated the public about the dangers of human trafficking at Aga Sechaba Community Projects in Garankuwa Zone 2.
"Victims who are normally enticed through social media or employment opportunities. 'Utilised' maximally a trafficked person can generate up to R2 million in a period less than five years after been trafficked", she said.
Human trafficking in South Africa occurs as a practice of forced labour and commercial sexual exploitation among imported and exported trafficked men, women, and children. Generally, local girls are trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and domestic bondage, while boys are used for street vending, food service, and agriculture.
Subjective evidence suggests that South African children can also be forced to provide unpaid labour for landowners in return for land occupancy, living accommodation, or for maintaining labour tenancy rights.
This form of unpaid labour is describe as modern form of slavery. Human trafficking is the result of a combination of several factors, including gender inequality, economic instability, and political conflict.